Pony Express National Historic Trail

Henry Avis

Johnson William Richardson

Jules Beni

Melville Baughn

As American settlers surged westward across the eastern woodlands and prairies in the early 19th century, they pushed American Indians out of their ancestral homes. The U.S. government resettled many of those displaced Eastern tribes —the Kickapoo, Delaware, Potawatomi, and others— in congressionally designated Indian Territory west of the Missouri River and south of the Platte. The resettled Eastern tribes were among the first Indians encountered by emigrants through Kansas.

Two original Pony Express stations still stand, windblown and lonesome, along US 50 between Fallon and Austin, Nevada. In the winter, especially, a visitor can explore those places in solitude and experience a bit of what the Pony riders and station-keepers endured out there some 160 years ago: biting cold and cutting wind.

Download one of these booklets and begin your state by state trail adventure! The Auto Tour Route (ATR) guides provide an overview of local trail history while giving driving directions to suggested points of interest along the trail. There are auto tour route guides available for the trail across MO, KS, NE, CO, WY, UT, and NV.

Learn about the National Historic Trails and earn junior ranger badges! These activities can be completed virtually or after visiting a site along the National Historic Trails. Booklets can be submitted either electronically or by mail. Take a look and start exploring the trails today!

Riding the Pony Express National Historic Trail on an off-road bicycle, such as a gravel or mountain bike, is as close as you can come to seeing and experiencing the original trail as it was back in 1860. Follow along with Scott Alumbaugh as he describes his experiences and tips for planning this epic adventure.

The Pony Express route went through a number of changes over time, to adjust to ground conditions, seasonal weather or other circumstances. Maximum efficiency was a priority. Not all the stations listed were used all of the time. Stations were added or deleted when necessary. Explore the California station listings, from east to west.

The Pony Express route went through a number of changes over time, to adjust to ground conditions, seasonal weather or other circumstances. Maximum efficiency was a priority. Not all the stations listed were used all of the time. Stations were added or deleted when necessary. Explore the Colorado station listings, from east to west.

The Rocky Mountains stretch like a jagged spine between Alaska and Mexico, splitting North America into East and West. The Continental Divide is not a simple line of peaks, easily threaded by tracks and roads, but a complex of overlapping mountain ranges and treeless sagebrush steppe, hundreds of miles wide. In the days of covered wagon travel, the Rockies were an imposing barrier to the movement of people, commerce, and communications. South Pass was the gateway to the West.