Bridger Pass
| Bridger Pass[1] | |
|---|---|
| Bridger's Pass[2] Name origin:Jim Bridger | |
 Hiking along Bridger Pass Road in the Divide Basin | |
| Elevation | 7,532 ft (2,296 m)[3] |
| Traversed by | Stansbury Expedition Overland Trail |
| Range | Sierra Madre (Wyoming) |
| Coordinates | 41°33′02″N107°26′05″W/ 41.5505°N 107.4347°W |
Bridger's Pass | |
   | |
| Nearest city | Rawlins, Wyoming |
| Coordinates | 41°33′3″N107°26′4″W/ 41.55083°N 107.43444°W |
| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1850 |
| NRHP referenceNo. | 70000669[4] |
| Added to NRHP | April 28, 1970 |
Bridger Passis amountain passinCarbon County, Wyomingon theContinental Divide of the Americasnear the southGreat Divide Basinbifurcation point, i.e., the point at which the divide appears to split and envelop the basin.
The first documented crossing of Bridger Pass was by theStansbury Expedition,returning east from an expedition toUtahand guided byJim Bridger.[2]A decade later the pass was in regular use by travelers on theOverland Trailand the associated stage line, these having been established along the route described by Stansbury and known since that time as the Cherokee Trail. To support the stage line, the Bridger Stage Station was established near the pass. The Overland Trail was used steadily between 1860 and 1869 until theFirst transcontinental railroadmade the stage line obsolete.
In modern times, the official route of theContinental Divide Trailuses Bridger Pass Road to navigate the Great Divide Basin between Battle Pass onWyoming Highway 70and Rawlins, Wyoming. A challenge to hikers is the lack of potable water along this section due to the brackish nature (salinity) of water in the basin.[5]
References
[edit]- ^U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Bridger Pass
- ^abBarnhart, Bill (Dec 19, 1969)."Bridger's Pass: Nomination Form"(pdf).NPS Focus.Wyoming Recreation Commission.Retrieved2010-04-27.
- ^"Bridger Pass, Wyoming,USGS 7.5 minute topographic map via TopoQuest ".USGS.Retrieved2013-05-26.
- ^"National Register Information System".National Register of Historic Places.National Park Service.March 13, 2009.
- ^Wyoming's Continental Divide Trail by Lora Davis - 2000
External links
[edit]- Bridger's Passat the Wyoming State Historic Preservation Office
- .New International Encyclopedia.1905.
