Emigrant Gap
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Emigrant Gap or Emigrant Pass is a place on the California Trail where it crosses the Sierra Nevada mountain range, on the western side of what is now known as Donner Pass. Here the cliffs are so steep that, back in the 1840s, the pioneers on their way to California had to lower their wagons on ropes in order to continue.
There is a California historical marker (number 404) on Interstate 80 commemorating this brave and arduous task. Dedicated on June 25th 1950, it reads:
- The spring of 1845 saw the first covered wagons surmount the Sierra Nevada Mountains. They left this valley, ascended to the ridge, and turned westward to old Emigrant Gap. The wagons were lowered by ropes to the floor of Bear Valley. Hundreds followed before, during, and after the gold rush. This was a hazardous portion of the overland emigrant trail.[link]
Emigrant Gap is located at . Nearby is the town of Emigrant Gap, California.
Emigrant Gap, seen from Interstate 80.
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