As we left Utah, we began meandering our way through Wyoming to our next destination of Slough Creek Campground in Northeast Yellowstone National Park. Along the way, we spent time visiting South Pass City, the 1838 Rendezvous, and several points just south of Yellowstone. The good news about this portion of our trip was most of it was in the mountains we love!

1838 Rendezvous

So some of you are probably saying “What the heck is a rendezvous”? Well, in the early 1800s, the beaver trade beckoned a number of hearty men to the mountains of the northern territories of what was to become part of America. Their primary purpose was to trap beavers for their pelts. Hats and coats made of beaver pelts were very popular in Europe at the time, making pelts a very marketable commodity.

As these solitary trappers accumulated their pelts, they needed some way to trade them for necessities of their life in the wilderness. As a result, they came together as a group once a year to trade, socialize, and acquire the necessities for survival. However, not only mountain men attended the rendezvous’. Indians from surrounding areas also came to participate in trade.

Several years ago, we attended a rendezvous at Fort Bridger in Southwest Wyoming, and we have been looking forward to attending another one. The significance of the 1838 Rendezvous (held yearly in Riverton, WY) is that it is still held at the sight of the original rendezvous in the year 1838! Of the other rendezvous’ still held around the country, this is the only one that can make this claim.

South Pass City

South Pass City was the site of Wyoming’s largest gold mining location. The town got its name from a nearby pass called South Pass where virtually all the westward travelers (e.g., wagon trains, Mormons with their handcarts, and the Pony Express) passed through on their trek to Oregon, California, and Utah. As we made this trip, one can still see some of their wagon tracks etched deeply in the soil.

On a previous trip, we visited South Pass City and were looking forward to this visit. Unfortunately, the site has changed…and not for the better. Since our last visit, some significant restoration has been done. This restoration is not historically correct and thus the authenticity of the place (at least for us) has diminished.