Parting of the Ways monument

We were awakened in the wee early hours by booming thunder, flashing lightning, and pouring rain… We’re not in California any more…

However, by 8:00 the rain had mostly stopped and I was able to disconnect and hitch up without too much difficulty. At 9:00, Lynda and I showed up for our duties as assigned – we are part of the launch crew, or, as we typically call it on other caravans, we were to be de-parkers. As each Airstream leaves, we give a once-over look at their hitch, lights, vents, TV antennas, and we keep an eye our for any other unusual conditions…

Our duties were uneventful, and at 10:00 we returned to the Villa and finished up our hitching routine. We were on the road by 10:20.

We are heading to Glenn’s Ferry, ID.

The scenery along the way is fairly typical. Lots of potato farms…

We always stop every hour or two to stretch our legs…

This particular rest stop had a path to take us to see the Snake River, an important feature along the Oregon Trail…

We are nearing the “Parting of the Ways”, where the Oregon-bound emigrants separated from the California-bound emigrants…

One of the reasons the Snake River is important is that it must be crossed several times; some crossings were easy, some were difficult and dangerous…

Around lunch time we pulled off at Jerome, ID. It was lunch time, and we know most small towns have a large city park at the center of town. We can park, walk around the town, and have lunch, either at a café in town or in the Airstream…

We found parking at the park…

After a relaxing lunch we were off again…

We arrived at the town of Glenn’s Ferry, and we parked for the night at the Three Island Crossing State Park. It is right on the banks of the Snake River.

There is a nice Visitor’s Center… The Oregon Trail History and Education Center

It tells the story of Three Island Crossing…

The Snake RIver is wide here, and the current is deep and swift. But there are three islands at this one spot that allowed the wagons to cross in smaller bits, hopping from one island to the next. It was still a treacherous crossing, and many emigrants debated whether the crossing was worth it – only a few day’s travel down the river they would have to cross back. But if you cross here you have several days travel with ample grass, game, and water. Those who avoided the two crossings risked running short of all three…

And then came Gus Glenn…:

He knew that Three Mile Crossing was one of the most famous and treacherous river crossings on the Oregon Trail. Pioneers forded the Snake River at the Three Island Crossing until 1869. It was then that Glenn constructed a ferry about two miles upstream, primarily to expedite freight but also for emigrants. His boat, which could hold two wagons, cut nearly twenty miles from the former route. In 1871 the city of Glenn’s Ferry was established. Construction of the Oregon Short Line Railroad through the town in 1883 doomed the ferry business…

Here sits Glenn’s Ferry, a little worse for wear…