New Fork River Crossing

New Fork River Crossing. . The Lander Road or "Trail" crosses the New Fork River just beyond this sign. Here, the river was shallow enough to allow emigrant wagons to ford the river without aid of a ferry. The good water, livestock feed, and firewood made this a popular "layover: site. , Construction of the Lander Road was in response to complaints from earlier emigrants about exorbitant prices charged by ferrymen, and the lack of good water and feed along the southern trail routes. In 1857, Congress ordered the construction of a "practicable" route to serve the emigration; the Lander Road was one of the results. , Open in 1859 and named for its chief engineer, Frederick West Lander, the Lander Road served first the emigration, and later became the main link between ranches in the Green River Valley and people living in Star Valley in the west and Lander Valley to the east. Variously called the first fork of the Green River or the East River by early emigrants, the New Fork River was the first major river crossed in the Green River Basin. , The land behind this sign is private property. Enjoy your trail resources on public lands, but please don't trespass onto private lands without landowners permission.