Pony Express riders arrive at Fort Churchill, Carson City, Genoa and Tahoe this Wednesday
Submitted by Jeff Munson on Sun, 06/16/2019 - 11:10am
Event Date:
June 19, 2019 - 12:30pm
Imagine you live in the year 1860 with vast wilderness, wide-open plains and high desert between Missouri and California. You're one of the chosen riders on top of a horse with a mochila strapped on your saddle, navigating along the trail where unknown dangers may be ahead.
You're not on a leisure trip, you're one of a team of boys and young men traveling 1,966 miles in 10 days on horseback, delivering mail to and from the West.
Even though the Pony Express lasted just 18 months (having been replaced by the transcontinental telegraph line that started just 10 weeks after the Pony Express began), the lore and legend live on. In its short history, the Pony Express has become synonymous with the Old West. In the era before easy mass communication, the Pony Express was the thread that tied East to West.
Just as they did in 1860, a rider left St. Joseph, Missouri on June 10, 2019, as part of the National Pony Express Association's annual 1966 mile-long re-ride. Hundreds of riders will move along the same trail, the Pony Express National Historic Trail, just as they did 159 years ago, 24-hours-a-day. Riders will travel through Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada and California.
Not only are riders part of the annual event, but so are HAM operators who provide communication support along the trail. Gary Lefler, owner of All Seasons Plumbing in South Lake Tahoe, will be one of those out on the trail in the middle of Nevada.
Since this is an odd-numbered year, the re-ride began at the end of the original route, St. Joseph, Missouri on June 10. On June 20 the final rider will pull into Old Town Sacramento (even-number years they travel the opposite direction).
On Wednesday, June 19 riders will reach Fort Churchill State Park in Silver Springs at around 7:45 a.m. and Carson City at around 12:30 p.m. on Carson Street between 2nd and Fifth streets. Last year's Mochila exchange was near Second and Curry streets. We will update on exact locations the Express draws closer to the capital city. Go here for the Nevada ride schedule.
Then the ride heads to Genoa at the courthouse from around 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. and over Kingsbury Grade and arrive at Stateline at Lake Tahoe at 5:30 p.m. Riders can get delayed so it's best to follow their progress. After the South Shore, they'll head over Echo Summit for a planned arrival in Placerville at 6:56 a.m. June 20.
For a complete schedule, visit https://nationalponyexpress.org/annual-re-ride/current-reride/ and you can go here to follow the ride in real time.
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