Theodore Roosevelt Presidential LibraryPublic Lands Directory

Alerts and conditions

All clear. The managing agency, the National Weather Service and wildfire reporting show no current alerts.

Overview

It is hard to believe that young men once rode horses to carry mail from Missouri to California in the unprecedented time of only 10 days. This relay system along the Pony Express National Historic Trail in eight states was the most direct and practical means of east-west communications before the telegraph.

From the National Park Service

History

The designation history for this site (every law, proclamation and order, and the administration behind each) is being researched and checked by the Library’s historians.

What to see and do

Activities

  • Auto and ATV
  • Scenic Driving
  • Guided Tours
  • Self-Guided Tours - Auto
  • Hiking
  • Horse Trekking
  • Horseback Riding
  • Living History
  • Reenactments
  • Junior Ranger Program
  • Museum Exhibits

Plan your visit

Hours

Pony Express National Historic Trail: The Pony Express National Historic Trail is not a clearly marked hiking trail. Instead it is a route that passes through communities, urban areas, public lands, and Wilderness. The route travels across a variety of land ownerships and management, including private land. Each location varies as to the hours of operations and access. Please contact individual trail sites before your visit for more information.

Getting there

You can visit many sites of the Pony Express National Historic Trail over the 1,800-mile historic route that crosses 8 states.

Weather

Due to the length of the Pony Express National Historic Trail, be sure to consult local weather sources for the region you'll be visiting. Check out the forecast with the National Weather Service and search for the area you'd like to visit: weather.gov

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Whose lands these are

These lands are the ancestral and present-day homelands of Native nations. A section on whose lands these are is being prepared with tribal review. In the meantime, Native Land Digital offers a starting point.

Photos

A tall rock buttress with a cleft in the center sits behind a sagebrush covered valley.
Devil's Gate, Wyoming · NPS photo
A footbridge leads to a dark steel silhouette of a Pony Express rider.
Schelbourne Station, Nevada · NPS photo
A tall obelisk monument with bronze plaques sits on a paved pathway in front of a building.
Fort Laramie NHS monument, Wyoming · NPS photo
A large brick historic stable.
Stables at St. Joseph · NPS Photo

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