The Fish Lake Cut-off on the Old Spanish Trail

The Fish Lake Cut-off on the Old Spanish Trail. Pathway to Grassy Meadows and Water. , An Historic Trade Route Passed This Way , In the early 1800s, thousands of men, mules, and horses plodded along a well-travelled trail that paralleled the creek below the dirt road. Can you imagine the dust, noise, and smells of a trading caravan on the move?, The Old Spanish Trail , This pack trail, known as the Old Spanish Trail, stretched 1,200 miles and linked Sante Fe, New Mexico, and the Pueblo de Los Angeles (L.A.) in the Mexican Territory of California. Between 1829 and 1848, traders used the trail to carry New Mexican woolen goods-rugs, blankets, and serapes that were traded for California mules and horses., Why Did Traders Come This Way? , The Fish Lake Cut-off, which leaves the Old Spanish trail three miles south of here, was a 72-mile short-cut that skirted the western shores of Wahsatch Lake (Fish Lake). Reaching elevations near 9,000 feet, the trail crossed mountain valleys that provided abundant quantities of fish, grass, water, and cool summer temperatures for travelers using this alternate route. This "southern branch" rejoined the main Old Spanish Trail near Kingston, Utah.,