Sinker Creek Grade, 1997

Riley Root, 1848

"24 miles to camp on Snake river, at the mouth of a small dry branch [Rabbit Creek]. Grass scarce. No place for encamping, short of this place, except at 8 miles from last night's camp, where a small stream affords very little grass. Our way, to-day, has been over a very uneven and dusty road. We ascended one hill, so steep and sandy, that we were obligd to double our teams to surmount it [the grade]."

A Guide to the Oregon Trail in Southwest Idaho, Cultural Resources Information Series: Number 2, Boise District, Bureau of Land Management; pp. 62.
Directions: Southwest of Murphy off Hwy 78

Must See: Ruts worn into stone in the hillside

Current Observations/Journal Entry:

"I always seem to visit this site when it's sunny and hot. Walking up the grade gives me an appreciation for its steepness and what the emigrants went through to haul their livelihood up through the rocks and sagebrush. It is amazing to see the deeply worn ruts from those wagons so visible today."



Ruts on Sinker Creek Grade, 1997


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