A Father’s Day Gift
Dear Dr. William Smedley Descendants,
We are all so blessed to be alive today because a young single 26 year old Quaker teacher had a wanderlust spirit (a strong desire to travel) and began on May 5, 1862, a journey that carried him "Across The Plains". Lara and Ross gave their dad a Father's Day card on June 20, 2021, that carried a challenging inscription: "How about we recreate Great Grandfather William Smedley's "Across The Plains" journey?
Lara has created a fun website and Ross has mapped out the "fascinating highlights" of the Oregon Trail that William took, and we would like to invite you, William's descendants, to actually join us in his "wagon wheel tracks". The overall plan is to take 5 days in late August, to travel from a starting point of Omaha, Nebraska, and to end up in Portland, Oregon, and see if we could gain a feel for what he experienced in 1862, stopping at historic sites, museums, actual wagon wheel tracks, and landmarks that he wrote about.
Here is a summary of the trip:
Day One - Monday, August 22, 2022. Omaha, NE to Scott's Bluff, NE (stopping at the Pioneer Courage Park, The Archway in Kearney, NE, Chimney Rock Museum/History Nebraska, Courthouse Rock near Bridgeport, NE, thendrive to Scotts Bluff, NE, where we spend the night).
Day Two - Tuesday, August 23, 2022. Scotts Bluff, NE to Casper, WY (stopping at the Fort Laramie National Historic Site & Fort Laramie:Exhibit CyArk, to the National Historic Trails Center and a Dutch Oven Evening Trek / Historic Trails West in Casper, WY, where we spend the night.
Day Three - Wednesday, August 24, 2022. Casper, WY to Fort Hall, ID (stopping at South Pass - California National Historic Trail (US National Park Service), then to Montpelier, ID and the National Oregon / California Trail Center - Visit Idaho, then drive to Fort Hall ID, where we spend the night.
Day Four - Thursday, August 25, 2022. Fort Hall, ID to Pendleton, OR (stopping at the Three Island Crossing State Park - Visit Idaho, then drive to Boise, ID (TBD), then drive to Pendleton, OR, where we spend the night.
Day Five - Friday, August 26, 2022. Pendleton, OR to Portland, OR (stopping at the Timberline Lodge in Mount Hood, OR, then to Silver Falls State Park, OR, then drive to Portland, OR, where we spend the night.
We would love to have you join us, for a day, or more, as we travel along "The Trail", reading from and studying William's words from his little diary. Please check out the website and communicate with us about the days or places you might like to meet up with us, and we can help make Airbnb reservations.
All the best to you and yours,
Tom, Lara and Ross Smedley
Tom's email: smedleycog7@aol.com Cell: 303-667-0443
Lara's email: lara.smedley@gmail.com Cell: 720-261-9415
Ross's email: rsmedley51@live.com Cell: 720-934-1046