Idaho

Bonneville Point is named for U.S. Army Captain Benjamin Bonneville, an early Idaho explorer whose party reached this viewpoint along an old Indian trail in 1833. Later, it became a fondly remembered location for emigrants on the Oregon Trail as they took in their first view of the Boise River Valley from the here. Trail ruts can be seen at this site.

The southern part of Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument contains steep terrain and loose sandy and silty soils. Traveling through this area was difficult for emigrants on the Oregon Trail. Heavy wagons dug into the ground, leaving behind deep ruts that are still visible today.

Hooper Springs , the most famous of the area's soda springs, is one of several natural fountains in the area that emigrants considered to be one of the marvels of the Oregon Trail. Hooper Springs was noted for its picturesque scenery and its cold, naturally carbonated water spring. Emigrants added flavorings to this water to create natural soda-fountain drinks.

Massacre Rocks State Park received its name from a grouping of boulders that created a narrow break through which the Oregon Trail passed. Emigrants, fearing that American Indians might be waiting in ambush, named the boulders "Massacre Rocks." Skirmishes between emigrants and Shoshone Indians did occur in August 1862, but these took place east of the park. The state park still contains visible trail ruts.

In 1862 an emigrant party asked guide Tim Goodale to lead them west from Fort Hall on the cutoff pioneered by Jeffrey. They hoped the alternate trail would enable them to reach the Salmon River gold fields more directly. Goodale succeeded in leading a group of 1,095 people, 338 wagons, and 2,900 head of stock safely from Fort Hall to Boise. In 1863, seven out of every ten wagons en route from Fort Hall to Boise took Goodale's Cutoff instead of the main Oregon Trail.

The southern route of the Oregon Trail passes through Hagerman Fossil Beds National Monument . This southern Idaho route was typically hot, dry, and dusty and exhausted travelers. Stopping at the Snake River made for a welcome respite.

Three Island Crossing was the most important and difficult river crossing in Idaho. Crossing the Snake River was always dangerous, but when the water was low enough to negotiate, everyone who could, forded the river here. This allowed emigrants to take the more favorable northern route to Fort Boise. If they were unable to cross, emigrants were forced to travel along the alternate south route into Oregon.

Three Island Crossing Overlook is located on top of the bluff across the river from Three Island State Park (directions available at the park's education center). 30 miles eastward from this spot, the Oregon Trail left the Snake River and traveled across dry plains until near the overlook, where once again the trail descended to the Snake River. Emigrants would then attempt to ford the river, a risky undertaking that not all of them survived.

The National Oregon/California Trail Center offers visitors a unique and entertaining interpretive indoor adventure; simulating an actual wagon train experience of the 1850s. Re-enacted entirely within our comfortable center, this interpretive experience features historically accurate interpretive areas and live actors. Patrons will go back in time to visit a gun shop, mercantile, ride in a covered wagon and spend time around a wagon train.