Several years ago, I took the train from Denver to Sacramento. It's one of the best train trips in the U.S. What I didn't know at the time, was that I was going to see the last great undeveloped expanse in the west. It is a stark, unforgiving, and seemingly relentless patch of earth. There is, however, a great beauty that should not be missed! 🇺🇲
Lol, that's the very last one in the whole entire 'west' huh? I'm sure it's very nice but we've got a lot of great undeveloped expanses in the Pacific NW, and we'd like to keep it that way. They don't have trains going through them, so that must be why you haven't seen them.
When the sage brush bloom in the fall it's really amazing. I lived in Reno and it took me a few years to discover that there were pink sage brush flowers along with the 2 yellows. The first time I saw the pink, it was a dark overcast early evening and the lighting was surreal. Nevada is a beautiful state and it really has everything from desert, to mountain lakes. Tahoe is the prize there, but Pyramid and Lahontan are great for camping and outdoor rec. Or you can pop up to Frenchmen's or Bucks Lake in Cali, not to mention all the rivers, Truckee, Feather, Yuba. All of those are in gold country and that route is always a great day trip drive even if you don't want to hit the lakes. We used to stop at the old roadside graveyards and read the headstones. You could tell who the elite were vs the paupers. Most paupers and town drunks were buried by the gate. The rich folks were in the back with "deluxe" headstones. Lots of infants and children too. I think we learn more by seeing things than reading it in books. As we know, not all history is real. Most of it has been manipulated by the victor.
My Dad was the outrider for the Oregon Wagon on the Bicentennial Wagon Train in 1976 when he was 16. It took him 6 months just to get from fort Laramie Wyoming to valley/pigeon forge Pennsylvania. They took the exact trail west to east as the pioneers took back in 1876 (of course east to west) and a lady who was a lil over 100 went along on the journey and shared true stories of her experience in 1876 on the trail. I've never met someone besides my Dad who was on the 1976 Bicentennial Wagon Train. Anyone here have family that was involved in the 1976 Bicentennial??
I live in RI. I'm a couple years older than your Dad. I remember reading about those on his trip. And on other trips. We had the Tall Ships come to visit Newport as well as parades and a lot of historic exhibits. In my town, 1974 was a locally bigger deal because it was our town Tri-Centennial. The people on your Dad's trip, did they take Conestoga wagons or farm wagons? In the video he said farm wagons because they were lighter. But if you had the animals to pull them Conestoga were tanks. but apparently they were not used west of the Mississippi because of the weight.
@@kitefan1 @kitefan1 in 1876 and the centennial of 1976 Conestoga wagons were mostly used because they were tanks and super easy to fix on the go. Prairie wagons were also used, but couldn't take the cross country abuse like a Conestoga can. Prairie wagons were also used for smaller journeys for going state to state/territory hopping. The Oregon wagon my dad was on was a Conestoga. He was an outrider for the Oregon State Wagon. He also told me quite a few places they rode through groups of indigenous people had rifles pointing at them and the national guard was called in to escort them through. As you can imagine the Native Americans had mixed emotions about the 1976 bicentennial wagon train. My dad could also whip a 6 shooter out of his holster and put it between your hands faster than you can clap 😎 some Doc Holiday shit right there hahahahaha. More people need to be taught about the bicentennial wagon train of 1976 and what it stood for. I'm surprised no movie has been made on it or documentary. I only found old video clips from news crews which had a certain narrative. Even back then... Thanks for sharing stories and reminiscing about the bicentennial and your states 3rd centennial.
@@robertbrodie5183 Oh wow that's so cool! 😎 Being a drummer in that was a really solid role! I bet you have some epic memories of those historic/western and patriotic moments being brought back to life 🙏
@@kitefan1 btw a team of 6 draft horses were used for Conestoga wagon. Sometimes 8 were used. If it wasn't draft horses pulling them it was Mules. If it wasn't either then it was 2 ox of some kind. I have seen pictures of a team of 10 non draft horses pulling wagons though it was not very common because that way was of course always a pain in the @$$ even with 2 outriders and a shotgun rider. The 1976 wagons rode for 15-25 miles a day and had to switch out horses here n there along the journey. Wayyyy back in the day they didn't have the means to switch out horses/trade for a fresh horse whenever they wanted like my dad back in 1976.
Outstanding! Thank you for producing this. You did a great job of explaining what we are seeing out there. Incredible that we can still see the trail and artifacts nearly 200 years later. Also - your song and slide show are both terrific! 👍
amazing indeed. reminds me of old times growing up in Nevada, old antique old west paraphernalia decorating all kinds of beaten-up casinos. Probably mostly thrown away as the places were renovated. But the desert has a way of preserving things. Loved the musical bit at the end of this video.
Good video. Even today, with all the public water systems, the water around Fallon and Fernley tastes horrible and you have to add filters to your home system. That water then full of alkali was a killer. Even on foot you will sink into that stuff and all that super fine dust floats up with just a footfall, let alone hundreds of hooves and wagons churning it. A light breeze will make dust clouds and any real wind (this area is known for 30-60 mph winds) would turn it into a Hell.
ill never forget in the 1970's i was in winnemucca, and marked on the topo map was the emigrant trail in ' town ' . it was a fenced off squarish piece of land , maybe 20 acres, and the ruts were so deep and hard no grass or brush would grow in them to that day.
Love this... my wife and I have followed several sections of the Truckee & Carson Emigrant trail on foot through the forests of the Sierra and we are amazed by what they went through to make it here to the Golden State. Plenty of history can still be found hidden in plain sight along the trail in the National Forest lands.
I rememder going through this desert, or at least the north rim of it, at 9 years if age in 1965 on highway 80 with the family. Did not know the history of it then but was mesmerized anyway, probably from watching so many episodes of Death Valley Days and Bonanza at home in Sacramento. This is a really good video.
Insane photo of the horse remains. The age of those poor animals and how "well" preserved they are for being on top of the ground is crazy to me. I guess it goes to show how cruel the desert can be. Fantastic photos, haven't seen any like that online or in the few books I've read. Great video!
I dont get how the records recorded things like you can barely take a step without stepping on bones, and wagons and effects dumped and left behind, yet other than a few barrel hoops it looks like everything is just gone, but it doesnt seem like there is much in the way of what we would call "weather" in the desert like everywhere else that would quickly rot wood and rust iron away etc from torrential rains, storms, ice/snow, and big leg bones from animals like horses and oxen dont seem to me like they would just vanish, so what's the story?
Wow this has been an excellent video, thank you for sharing your pictures from your previous visit, shows some changes and some things that are exactly as they were during the wagon train days!! I really appreciate your message to folks to please not disturb any artifacts that may be spotted for future generations to see,also the message of modern day vehicles disturbing wagon wheel tracks as they are truly a living piece of history that the future should be able to enjoy
Thank you so much for sharing this history with us. Your absolutely right about leaving these trails and any debris undisturbed for future generations to enjoy.
There was another desert that was equally disastrous, the salt desert part of the Hastings cuttoff. Early in the rush, many still believed it was actually a shortcut.
@SteveTRYK I recommend Charles Kelly's Salt Desert Trails. Kelly has compiled many journal excerpts from immigrants who traveled through the Salt desert from 1846 through the early 1850s.
Lansford Hastings guide was one of the most reckless irresponsible publications ever. He had never been over it and apparently didn't care. It was a terrible route.
Thanks! At present the song only exists on our last CD - we kinda broke up before getting it online. However I might find an alternative - let me work on that! Cheers!
You can travel down 20 between where it cuts off of I80 down the ridge into Grass Valley/Nevada City, on the bike trails that follow 20, the wagon wheels cut so deep that the ruts are 4 feet deep exist to this day! I am always amazed how they got those wagons up the clifts above Truckee.
My 5 times great Aunt crossed the Black Rock to southern Oregon. Unschooled, she was a wilderness doctor. Your photos at Double Hot and High Rock Canyon made me think of her route and the qualities of endurance and cooperation the emigrants showed.
Thoroughly enjoyed that in fact I'll plan a trip I'm quite the desert Trekker these days I've been around for 12 years messing around in the desert and have not made it to that end of it but after your narration I have to go very good job by the way
It wasnt just the gold fields. California needed men of industry. Blacksmiths, wheelrights, millrights, etc. My 3rd great grandfather made that trip in 1853. Blacksmith by trade.
This is an interesting video. You did a great job on showing the locations and explaining the hardships these early settlers endured. Now I want to visit this area next.
Nice work producing this. Some great photography. The wide open desert expanses have a beauty of their own, although those early travelers likely cursed the landscape. I'm fortunate to have recently ridden through 7 western States by motorcycle. Mostly off road. There's such a range of beauty out west.
Thank you so much for making this eloquent video. I heard of the Gold Rush, but never thought about how people got out to California, and never knew about the Emigrant Trail. Thanks also for the sit-down, music, and images at the end. The guitar has a particularly appealing tone, and the band as a whole is terrific.
Enjoyed this video. The closing song sounds like something Neil Young could have done. Enjoyed the closing tune . I wish I could see this part of America for sure. I'll have to check out more of your videos. Thanks and good luck.
This stretch of desert was know in the wagon train days as the Hastings Pass. It was a very risky shortcut that those who chose to take it, were quickly filled with regret.
Great drones shots. The higher perspective makes it easy to see the wagon marks. I've always been interested in these trails since my state of Nevada featured prominently on several 19th century trails. Down South we have the Old Spanish Trail, not much left to see there though.
Thank you for this most interesting video. I'm from California and found myself in Fallon, NV and fell in love with the desert. I used to wander north into the 40 mile desert 4 wheelin' and found at least one of the markers you mentioned in the video. That was Churchill County. I consider myself a Nevadan at heart and appreciate the history lesson. I subscribed and I loved your song and band at the end. Keep up the good content my friend!
Lived in fernley 20 years learned about the donner party in school. Drive passed that sign 14:01 at least once a month. Been binging donner party and related material for two days only now am i putting together that i live essentially directly at the spot wher the donner party found the truckee and their salvation from the desert. Im hiking that 40 mile desert next spring for sure, never been out there beyond shooting and 4x4 in the flats. Literally drive over the old railroad bed to get to where I go shooting. It’s funny you grow up in an area and know so little of its history.
Yea, the area must have been absolute hell to pass through. I lived in Fallon for almost 10 years, and spent a lot of time poking around at historic sites (there are so many in this area--to also include primitive people's chipping areas and newer Native American sites), and saw much of what you show in the middle of your presentation; simple rock graves, remains of wagons, and areas crudely dug out pits to reveal ground water--especially heavy in salt. You gave a great presentation!
Driving north from Vegas to Tahoe with desert on both sides of the highway, I wonder if it looked any different 170 years ago except for the highway itself and the occasional motel, diner or rest stop. That desert is sure spooky at night on a road where you barely see other cars even.
At 8:15 he describes rocks demarking immigrant graves. He also says that they are unlike any other rocks in the area. I cannot imagine anyone finding rocks of that size in the desert, nor lugging them back into the desert to mark graves- no matter how much they loved their families. Are there any other theories about where the rocks came from?
Maybe I should define area - rocks like this can be found out there close to washes - just not on the smooth playa - so they probably poked around a bit to gather these and bring them back to the burial. Thanks for watching!
I'd never heard of this desert, which ought to be mentioned in history classes given how many people died in its brief years of use. Thanks for the research.
Great history lesson. I spent part of the summer of 1971 in the truckey, Incline area decompresing from Vietnam. Love you band and song.
Thank for watching and your service!!
Several years ago, I took the train from Denver to Sacramento. It's one of the best train trips in the U.S. What I didn't know at the time, was that I was going to see the last great undeveloped expanse in the west. It is a stark, unforgiving, and seemingly relentless patch of earth. There is, however, a great beauty that should not be missed! 🇺🇲
I'd like to take it back to Chicago someday - cheers!
Lol, that's the very last one in the whole entire 'west' huh? I'm sure it's very nice but we've got a lot of great undeveloped expanses in the Pacific NW, and we'd like to keep it that way. They don't have trains going through them, so that must be why you haven't seen them.
My neighbor works for Amazon - He said 2 people quit right in the middle of their delivery route yesterday - No pioneer spirit I suppose . . .
*@**9:05** would that be four graves, two adults two children? Some tragic event no doubt.*
When the sage brush bloom in the fall it's really amazing. I lived in Reno and it took me a few years to discover that there were pink sage brush flowers along with the 2 yellows. The first time I saw the pink, it was a dark overcast early evening and the lighting was surreal. Nevada is a beautiful state and it really has everything from desert, to mountain lakes. Tahoe is the prize there, but Pyramid and Lahontan are great for camping and outdoor rec. Or you can pop up to Frenchmen's or Bucks Lake in Cali, not to mention all the rivers, Truckee, Feather, Yuba. All of those are in gold country and that route is always a great day trip drive even if you don't want to hit the lakes. We used to stop at the old roadside graveyards and read the headstones. You could tell who the elite were vs the paupers. Most paupers and town drunks were buried by the gate. The rich folks were in the back with "deluxe" headstones. Lots of infants and children too. I think we learn more by seeing things than reading it in books. As we know, not all history is real. Most of it has been manipulated by the victor.
Well done for keeping the history alive!!
My Dad was the outrider for the Oregon Wagon on the Bicentennial Wagon Train in 1976 when he was 16. It took him 6 months just to get from fort Laramie Wyoming to valley/pigeon forge Pennsylvania. They took the exact trail west to east as the pioneers took back in 1876 (of course east to west) and a lady who was a lil over 100 went along on the journey and shared true stories of her experience in 1876 on the trail. I've never met someone besides my Dad who was on the 1976 Bicentennial Wagon Train. Anyone here have family that was involved in the 1976 Bicentennial??
was a fife and drumer in 76 and family and i were involved in 1968 bicentenial in my home town of myerstown pa pigeon forge was familiar
I live in RI. I'm a couple years older than your Dad. I remember reading about those on his trip. And on other trips. We had the Tall Ships come to visit Newport as well as parades and a lot of historic exhibits. In my town, 1974 was a locally bigger deal because it was our town Tri-Centennial.
The people on your Dad's trip, did they take Conestoga wagons or farm wagons? In the video he said farm wagons because they were lighter. But if you had the animals to pull them Conestoga were tanks. but apparently they were not used west of the Mississippi because of the weight.
@@kitefan1 @kitefan1 in 1876 and the centennial of 1976 Conestoga wagons were mostly used because they were tanks and super easy to fix on the go. Prairie wagons were also used, but couldn't take the cross country abuse like a Conestoga can. Prairie wagons were also used for smaller journeys for going state to state/territory hopping. The Oregon wagon my dad was on was a Conestoga. He was an outrider for the Oregon State Wagon. He also told me quite a few places they rode through groups of indigenous people had rifles pointing at them and the national guard was called in to escort them through. As you can imagine the Native Americans had mixed emotions about the 1976 bicentennial wagon train. My dad could also whip a 6 shooter out of his holster and put it between your hands faster than you can clap 😎 some Doc Holiday shit right there hahahahaha. More people need to be taught about the bicentennial wagon train of 1976 and what it stood for. I'm surprised no movie has been made on it or documentary. I only found old video clips from news crews which had a certain narrative. Even back then...
Thanks for sharing stories and reminiscing about the bicentennial and your states 3rd centennial.
@@robertbrodie5183 Oh wow that's so cool! 😎 Being a drummer in that was a really solid role! I bet you have some epic memories of those historic/western and patriotic moments being brought back to life 🙏
@@kitefan1 btw a team of 6 draft horses were used for Conestoga wagon. Sometimes 8 were used. If it wasn't draft horses pulling them it was Mules. If it wasn't either then it was 2 ox of some kind. I have seen pictures of a team of 10 non draft horses pulling wagons though it was not very common because that way was of course always a pain in the @$$ even with 2 outriders and a shotgun rider.
The 1976 wagons rode for 15-25 miles a day and had to switch out horses here n there along the journey. Wayyyy back in the day they didn't have the means to switch out horses/trade for a fresh horse whenever they wanted like my dad back in 1976.
Thank you for making this video and for making history come alive! Well done!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Very well done. Took some time I’m sure. You do a good job. Thanks for the Nevada history lesson. Looking forward to the next one.
Thanks for connecting! Appreciate the feedback! More on the way - cheers!
Outstanding! Thank you for producing this. You did a great job of explaining what we are seeing out there. Incredible that we can still see the trail and artifacts nearly 200 years later.
Also - your song and slide show are both terrific! 👍
I appreciate your comments! We camped out there the second night so I could take the time.
amazing indeed. reminds me of old times growing up in Nevada, old antique old west paraphernalia decorating all kinds of beaten-up casinos. Probably mostly thrown away as the places were renovated. But the desert has a way of preserving things. Loved the musical bit at the end of this video.
Thank you for doing, and sharing this!
I appreciate your time in watching!
Wow! Thanks for the history lesson. 10/10!
Our pleasure! Cheers!
History, geography, maps, music. Excellent experience! Thanks
Many thanks!
And beer!! 😂
Good video. Even today, with all the public water systems, the water around Fallon and Fernley tastes horrible and you have to add filters to your home system. That water then full of alkali was a killer. Even on foot you will sink into that stuff and all that super fine dust floats up with just a footfall, let alone hundreds of hooves and wagons churning it. A light breeze will make dust clouds and any real wind (this area is known for 30-60 mph winds) would turn it into a Hell.
It’s amazing you can still see the tracks in the ground. It makes it so much more real.
Those that I imaged stop abruptly before a sandy, sagebrushy area, underscoring how old they are. Cheers!
Dude, loved the song and video. I've always found the Oregon trail and really enjoyed the way you presented the info.
Thanks for your kind feedback!!!
ill never forget in the 1970's i was in winnemucca, and marked on the topo map was the emigrant trail in ' town ' . it was a fenced off squarish piece of land , maybe 20 acres, and the ruts were so deep and hard no grass or brush would grow in them to that day.
Cool!
An excellent job of recording the history of the CA trail. Many of the things you pointed out, I have seen with my own eyes over the last 60 years.
Appreciate your comments!
Great historical presentation. You're a natural teacher. I'm looking forward to more.
I actually thought about being a history teacher a million years ago. I didn't work out that way! Thanks!!
Love this... my wife and I have followed several sections of the Truckee & Carson Emigrant trail on foot through the forests of the Sierra and we are amazed by what they went through to make it here to the Golden State.
Plenty of history can still be found hidden in plain sight along the trail in the National Forest lands.
Agreed - I've poked around trail sections in the Sierra as well. Thanks for being here!
I rememder going through this desert, or at least the north rim of it, at 9 years if age in 1965 on highway 80 with the family. Did not know the history of it then but was mesmerized anyway, probably from watching so many episodes of Death Valley Days and Bonanza at home in Sacramento. This is a really good video.
Thanks - and it still looks the same. Pretty much what you see today out there is what they saw.
Great video And Awesome song sounded great. Well done
Thanks for the kind words!
Insane photo of the horse remains. The age of those poor animals and how "well" preserved they are for being on top of the ground is crazy to me. I guess it goes to show how cruel the desert can be. Fantastic photos, haven't seen any like that online or in the few books I've read. Great video!
Glad you enjoyed!! Thanks!
I dont get how the records recorded things like you can barely take a step without stepping on bones, and wagons and effects dumped and left behind, yet other than a few barrel hoops it looks like everything is just gone, but it doesnt seem like there is much in the way of what we would call "weather" in the desert like everywhere else that would quickly rot wood and rust iron away etc from torrential rains, storms, ice/snow, and big leg bones from animals like horses and oxen dont seem to me like they would just vanish, so what's the story?
Wow this has been an excellent video, thank you for sharing your pictures from your previous visit, shows some changes and some things that are exactly as they were during the wagon train days!! I really appreciate your message to folks to please not disturb any artifacts that may be spotted for future generations to see,also the message of modern day vehicles disturbing wagon wheel tracks as they are truly a living piece of history that the future should be able to enjoy
Thanks for watching - the experience of returning to document sites I saw 25 years prior was supremely satisfying!!!
Very informative video that illustrates just how amazing those pioneers were! Great song!
Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks and rock on!
Thank you so much for sharing this history with us. Your absolutely right about leaving these trails and any debris undisturbed for future generations to enjoy.
These trails were scavenged certainly a hundred years ago or more. We need to leave what is left! Thanks!
Another great video Steve! Also, I really liked your band and the song you wrote, that ended up being your outro. Very fitting.
Thanks so much!
Fascinating content and very well presented. It’s amazing there are still remains of emigrant wagon tracks after nearly 200 years. Thank you.
Appreciate your feedback! Cheers!
Wow thanks for the great video. My dad lives right near Coloma, I went and explored there when I was visiting him last in shingle springs.
Thanks and cheers!
Thank you. I have so much more appreciation for what my ancestors went through on the trail.
Glad to help - my great-great-great grandfather went up to Oregon on the trail - I get it - cheers!
There was another desert that was equally disastrous, the salt desert part of the Hastings cuttoff. Early in the rush, many still believed it was actually a shortcut.
"Don't take no cut-offs and get where you're going as fast as you can." - Virginia Reed Thanks for watching!
@SteveTRYK I recommend Charles Kelly's Salt Desert Trails. Kelly has compiled many journal excerpts from immigrants who traveled through the Salt desert from 1846 through the early 1850s.
@@SteveTRYK Thats just what she said,great job on this history lesson!
Lansford Hastings guide was one of the most reckless irresponsible publications ever. He had never been over it and apparently didn't care. It was a terrible route.
Born n raised N NV. Excellent production, beginning to end. Thanks
Thanks Chief!!
Very interesting video. Thanks for taking the time to make this video. Take care and have a great life
I appreciate your viewership!
That makes 2 of us that got those chills.
Absolutely fascinating share
Thanks! Cheers!
The hardest part for me is the development that covers so much history, and the teachers that no longer teach it.
appreciate bringing history back to life!
love the song! where are the credits? How to download/pay?
Thanks! At present the song only exists on our last CD - we kinda broke up before getting it online. However I might find an alternative - let me work on that! Cheers!
Thanks for hanging out at my channel!!
Your comment inspired me to get our CD up on our Bandcamp page! You can get the song or the CD here. Thanks and cheers! hotrodrebellion.bandcamp.com/
@@SteveTRYK its a great song yeah?!
Great Information!
Good work on the video. The old pics are great. Nice song too, keep it up 👍
Thanks for the comments! Cheers and rock on!
You can travel down 20 between where it cuts off of I80 down the ridge into Grass Valley/Nevada City, on the bike trails that follow 20, the wagon wheels cut so deep that the ruts are 4 feet deep exist to this day!
I am always amazed how they got those wagons up the clifts above Truckee.
I've seen the old wagon road as it winds around the 20 but haven't explored it more- thanks!
Very cool! I've heard, but can't verify, that most of the scrap metal left on the trail was collected during a WWII scrap metal drive.
That could be!
Enjoyed the video. Thank you!
Our pleasure!
My 5 times great Aunt crossed the Black Rock to southern Oregon. Unschooled, she was a wilderness doctor. Your photos at Double Hot and High Rock Canyon made me think of her route and the qualities of endurance and cooperation the emigrants showed.
In 2000 I took a tour of that route - from Imlay, NV to Vya. It was incredible!
A beautiful area, too bad it's being used for a big party.
Thank you! I've learned a lot.
Glad it was helpful!
Amazing how much you found, excellent video, excellent music-keeping the good things going~
Great video, super interested. Loved your song! It would be fun to hear you and your band play, you sound awesome!
Thanks so much!! Rock on!
I loved the photography of the clouds and sky over desert time lapse At beginning of this video. Just beautiful.
Thanks - that was about thirty minutes of time lapse.
Thanks so much for video!
No worries!
Thoroughly enjoyed that in fact I'll plan a trip I'm quite the desert Trekker these days I've been around for 12 years messing around in the desert and have not made it to that end of it but after your narration I have to go very good job by the way
Hope this gives you perspective when you're out there! Thanx!
You came up on my feed, glad I clicked on this, great content, the SONG IS FABULOUS
Thanx!! Glad you liked!
So glad I came across your channel,great content👍👣👣👣👣
Thank you for this video. I am currently reading The Indifferent Stars Above and I I have become fascinated with the stories of those emigrants
You're so welcome!
Awesome video! Thank you Mr.James Hetfield for your efforts to bring history to us that cant get out there and i hope you do more
There is a resemblance! Thanks!
It wasnt just the gold fields. California needed men of industry. Blacksmiths, wheelrights, millrights, etc. My 3rd great grandfather made that trip in 1853. Blacksmith by trade.
My second mother-in-law absolutely loved going out to the desert outside of Fallon and looking at parts of the trail just to learn more history
Truly a renaissance man of culture and taste thank you for sharing.
Thanks for watching! Cheers!
What a wonderful video love the info thanks for taking the time to show us ! Thumbs up
We love it out there - thanks!
I read that in one of my books on the subject. A lot of things that would be collectibles today were scrapped during WW2 for the war effort.
Fascinating video. We’ll worth watching! Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Nice! Love exploring the California Trail.
Us too!
Fantastic video
Thanks! 😃
This is an interesting video. You did a great job on showing the locations and explaining the hardships these early settlers endured. Now I want to visit this area next.
Enjoy! Bring water! Thanks!
🎉I liked the song. Good job.
Thanks and rock on!
Nice work producing this. Some great photography.
The wide open desert expanses have a beauty of their own, although those early travelers likely cursed the landscape.
I'm fortunate to have recently ridden through 7 western States by motorcycle. Mostly off road.
There's such a range of beauty out west.
Thanks for stopping by!
It makes sense how this area is so flat and barren when you realize it used to be the bottom of the sea many millions of years ago
Thank you so much for making this eloquent video. I heard of the Gold Rush, but never thought about how people got out to California, and never knew about the Emigrant Trail. Thanks also for the sit-down, music, and images at the end. The guitar has a particularly appealing tone, and the band as a whole is terrific.
The boys would appreciate your kind words! Thanks!
Great 💪Band Dude 🎸☠️really awesome sound and I love the song 🎵🍀🎸❤️💙🇺🇸🇬🇧☠️
Thanks and rock on!!
Nice video. Thank you for putting this together
SO INTERESTING THIS ERA IN AMERICAN HISTORY!!
Enjoyed this video. The closing song sounds like something Neil Young could have done. Enjoyed the closing tune . I wish I could see this part of America for sure. I'll have to check out more of your videos. Thanks and good luck.
I appreciate that you appreciate!
I pass through this place on the I-80 every year to go hunting out in NE Nevada and never knew about this. Thanks for the information.
The Truckee River branch roughly parallels I-80 - once you pass Fernley you're pretty much seeing what they saw. Cheers!
Also that song is everything 👏🏻🙌🏻👌🏼👍🏼
Thanks! I wrote it.
Great stuff Sir- so interesting. I've been to Donner Lake and really started looking into the migration shortly after. Thank you-
This stretch of desert was know in the wagon train days as the Hastings Pass. It was a very risky shortcut that those who chose to take it, were quickly filled with regret.
Great video. I enjoyed your music too.
Very interesting, super tough people and animals, indeed!
Great drones shots. The higher perspective makes it easy to see the wagon marks. I've always been interested in these trails since my state of Nevada featured prominently on several 19th century trails. Down South we have the Old Spanish Trail, not much left to see there though.
Thanks! I went out to those wagon traces way back in the day with my film camera and held it as high as I could! Drone is way better!
Great video, thanks for your hard work.
I lived in Reno. Everyone told me, "Reno is so close to hell, you can see Sparks!"
It's true!
Thanks for showing that part of the trail.
You bet!
Thank you for this most interesting video. I'm from California and found myself in Fallon, NV and fell in love with the desert. I used to wander north into the 40 mile desert 4 wheelin' and found at least one of the markers you mentioned in the video. That was Churchill County. I consider myself a Nevadan at heart and appreciate the history lesson. I subscribed and I loved your song and band at the end. Keep up the good content my friend!
Thanks for the comments!
Excellent video and thank you for posting!
My pleasure - I loved doing this one.
Got my DVD today!thanks Steve
Enjoy - cheers!
Thanks for the great video.
I research and explore the Applegate trail. I've probably found ninety percent ofbut every little piece is exciting
thanks for recording this. I had no idea.
Glad to be of service!! Thanks!
This video is the first ive seen or heard of you. Definitely subscribing!
Cool - thanks!
Thank you for your efforts!
Thank you. This was wonderful.
Thanx for taking time to watch!
Lived in fernley 20 years learned about the donner party in school. Drive passed that sign 14:01 at least once a month. Been binging donner party and related material for two days only now am i putting together that i live essentially directly at the spot wher the donner party found the truckee and their salvation from the desert. Im hiking that 40 mile desert next spring for sure, never been out there beyond shooting and 4x4 in the flats. Literally drive over the old railroad bed to get to where I go shooting. It’s funny you grow up in an area and know so little of its history.
this is my kind of video. just what i was looking for. thanks!
Glad to hear it!
@@SteveTRYK cool song too btw!
Yea, the area must have been absolute hell to pass through. I lived in Fallon for almost 10 years, and spent a lot of time poking around at historic sites (there are so many in this area--to also include primitive people's chipping areas and newer Native American sites), and saw much of what you show in the middle of your presentation; simple rock graves, remains of wagons, and areas crudely dug out pits to reveal ground water--especially heavy in salt. You gave a great presentation!
Thanks for your viewership!
Great job, love the videos.
I just discovered your videos and now I’m reviewing them all. Please let me know if you have a playlist or order. Thanks
Thanks - no order - just what you'd be interested in - cheers!
excellent video, thanks a lot I'd love to go see this stuff
Thanks! If you go, admission is free!
great job and info...plus, I like the song!
Thanks - glad you liked it!
Well done, good song too
Driving north from Vegas to Tahoe with desert on both sides of the highway, I wonder if it looked any different 170 years ago except for the highway itself and the occasional motel, diner or rest stop. That desert is sure spooky at night on a road where you barely see other cars even.
Great song guys 👏👏👏👏👏👏
Rock on!
Well done!
Thanks Scott!
Thank you for doing this!
My pleasure!
At 8:15 he describes rocks demarking immigrant graves. He also says that they are unlike any other rocks in the area. I cannot imagine anyone finding rocks of that size in the desert, nor lugging them back into the desert to mark graves- no matter how much they loved their families.
Are there any other theories about where the rocks came from?
Maybe I should define area - rocks like this can be found out there close to washes - just not on the smooth playa - so they probably poked around a bit to gather these and bring them back to the burial. Thanks for watching!
Great video. Love this stuff!!
Glad you enjoy it!
Great video. Maybe next time you can take some drone footage of some of the areas. Thank you for sharing this history with us.
Good video. Good music!
Thanks for watching and listening!
Great story telling 🎉
Thank you 🤗
We enjoyed it very much, thank you!
Glad to hear that!
I'd never heard of this desert, which ought to be mentioned in history classes given how many people died in its brief years of use. Thanks for the research.
I think our 4th graders might be taught about it - I'm not sure. Cheers!