"Oregon Trail" Scotts Bluff National Monument by Toughluck

Until Scott's Bluff, the overland migrants of the Oregon and California Trails had fairly easy travel. The plains to the east are relatively flat and only the rivers created difficult terrain. From here westward, the Rocky Mountains would be an ever present concern. There would still be long vallies and stretches of easy going, but each 'bump' in the road would be bigger and more challenging.

For more sites along the Overland Trails, see:
Kansas City, Missouri
Kearney, Nebraska;
Chimney Rock, Bayard, Nebraska;
Gering, Nebraska;
Fort Laramie, Wyoming;
Guernsey, Wyoming (Trail Ruts and Register Cliff State Historic Sites).