Old Spanish National Historic Trail

Old Spanish National Historic Trail. North Branch 1239-1848. , Follow the Trail , It is 1829, eight years after Mexico gained independence from Spain. New Mexican traders travel overland to establish new commercial relations with frontier settlements in California. They carried locally produced merchandise to exchange for mules and horses. Items included serapes, blankets, ponchos, and socks; a variety of hides - gamuzas (chamois), buffalo robes, bear and beaver skins; as well as hats, shawls, and quilts. , The North Branch: , This route followed well-known trapper and trade routes north through the Rio Grande gorge to Taos into southern Colorado. It then went west through Cochetopa Pass, largely open during the winter when other passes were snowed in, and up the Gunnison River valley, location of Antoine Robidoux's trading post Fort Uncompahgre rejoining the Northern Route near present-day Green River, Utah. , Congress designated the Old Spanish National Historic Trail in 2002. It is jointly administered by the National Park Service and the Bureau of Land Management. , For more information about the Old Spanish National Historic Trail visit Fort Uncompahgre in Delta, or visit these websites: , www.fortuncompahgre.org , www.nps.gov/olsp , www.oldspanishtrail.org , www.blm.gov , [photo and image captions] , . With lucrative trade in tanned elk and deer hides, as well as beaver pelts, there was money to be made in the northern frontier of New Spain. The North Branch of the Old Spanish Trail was used by trappers and traders departing from Taos as they ventured to Fort Uncompahgre on the Gunnison River and Fort Winty (Uinta) near present-day Roosevelt, Utah. , . Historically, this was the homeland of the Ute People. They traversed the land from the valleys to the mountains in search of native foods and wild game. They used the extensive network of trails for family and tribal gatherings. When the Ute encountered Mexicans, they traded deer and elk hides for horses, textiles, and metal goods. , . Mule caravans left Santa Fe in the fall of each year carrying woolen textiles such as this Rio Grande blanket. Sheep, wool, and textiles were abundant in the fertile Rio Grande Valley. Traders found an eager market for the textiles in the cool coastal climates of Alta California. , . In the 1830’s the Mexican Governor in Santa Fe allowed Antoine Robidoux to trade with the Ute Indians in the Ute frontier. Robidoux established two trading posts , Fort Winty (Uinta) near present-day Roosevelt, Utah, and Fort Uncompahgre near present-day Delta, Colorado. , . In 1853, Captain John Gunnison and Lieutenant Edward Beckwith led an expedition to survey and explore a railroad route from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean. The party consisted of officers and enlisted men and all their equipment and provisions loaded into 18 mule-drawn wagons.