West of the Mississippi River, Route 40 follows in the pathways of many pioneering trails.

Boone's Lick Trail. In eastern Missouri, Route 40 follows the path blazed between St. Charles and Boonville by Daniel Boone's sons.
Santa Fe Trail. One of the earliest pioneering trails to the west, Route 40 follows the approximate path of the Santa Fe Trail between Boonville, Missouri and Kansas City.
Oregon Trail. Probably the most famous of the Overland Trails. Route 40 follows the path of the Oregon Trail between Lawrence and St. Mary's, Kansas. In many places, you can see the wagon ruts by the side of the road!
Smoky Hill/Butterfield Trail. From Fort Riley, Kansas to Denver, the Smoky Hill/Butterfield Trail was a route for both military and commercial efforts.
Edward Berthoud and Jim Bridger. Between Denver and central Utah, Route 40 follows the paths blazed by explorer Jim Bridger and railroad surveyor Edward Berthoud.
California Trail. A split in the Overland Trail, Route 40 follows the path of the California Trail through central Utah, along the Humboldt River valley in Nevada and across California's Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Hastings Cutoff. If ever there was a wrong turn, the Hastings Cutoff was it. Scouted by the ever opportunistic Lansford Hastings, and cut through virgin wilderness by the Donner-Reed Party, this supposed short cut meanders from Fort Bridger, Wyoming, across the Utah Salt Flats and through Nevada's Ruby Mountains before connecting with the older and less troublesome California Trail. Following the Hastings Cutoff proved to be the single most critical error the Donner-Reed Party made during their 1846-47 attempt to reach California's gold country. As one of the Donner-Reed group wrote many years later, "...don't never take no cutoffs." Route 40 roughly follows the path of the Hastings Cutoff west from Salt Lake City, across the salt flats and into eastern Nevada.

 

© 2002 Frank X. Brusca. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Unless otherwise noted, all content by Frank Brusca.
Route40.net Legal Notice.