The Value Of A Shortcut

The Value Of A Shortcut (HM20LB)

Location: Soda Springs, ID 83276 Caribou County
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Country: United States of America
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N 42° 38.866', W 111° 42.12'

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Hudspeth's Cutofff

When they left the main trail leading to Fort Hall, emigrants heading to California thought that Hudspeth's Cutoff would save them considerable time and miles in the race to the gold fields. To their surprise, they were still in Idaho's Raft River drainage when they again encountered the main trail. They had saved about 25 miles, but the route crossed over four mountain ranges and consumed more time than they would have by following the established trail. Even so, the cutoff soon became the route of choice for most emigrants.
If you were traveling by covered wagon in the 1850s, would any of the following factors have influenced your choice of routes?
· The main trail had a number of difficult crossings - especially over bluffs and getting to water along the steep cliffs of the Snake River.
· While there was wood along the Hudspeth, it was mainly sagebrush on the Fort Hall route, and the emigrants preferred wood for cooking.
· Grazing opportunities for oxen were more plentiful on the Hudspeth and in most years water was reasonably available.
· Then too, there is the American disposition for taking shortcuts, especially if it meant that the would be able to get ahead of others and reach California first.
When the Applegate Route from Humboldt, Nevada to Dallas, Oregon opened in the fall of 1846,
Oregon bound emigrants were able to chose an alternative to floating down the Columbia River. A few years later, Hudspeth's Cutoff made this option even more appealing.
Details
HM NumberHM20LB
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Placed ByDepartment of the Interior, National Park Service
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Wednesday, August 9th, 2017 at 10:01pm PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)12T E 442455 N 4721939
Decimal Degrees42.64776667, -111.70200000
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 42° 38.866', W 111° 42.12'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds42° 38' 51.96" N, 111° 42' 7.1999999999998" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)208
Which side of the road?Marker is on the right when traveling South
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 1501-1599 Soda Point Power Plant Rd, Soda Springs ID 83276, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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