Wagon Road Adventure Tour

A Brief History
When gold was discovered by John Newsome in 1861, a large influx of miners and prospectors made their way to the gold fields at Newsome, Elk City, Buffalo Hump and Thunder Mountain regions via the old South Nez Perce Trail. For centuries this was the main route used by the Native Americans to travel to the Bitterroot country in Montana and points eastward. For nearly thirty years, the trail was used by prospector with pack mules and riding stock to transport supplies, mining machinery, mail and passengers to the gold fields.

LOCATION
The Elk City Wagon Road begins at Harpster, a small town on the South Fork of the Clearwater River. Harpster is 12 miles from Grangeville on State Highway 13, the Clearwater Canyons Scenic Route. The tour begins on the country road (Wall Creek Road) by a group of mailboxes along the highway in Harpster.

TOUR LENGTH
Starting in Harpster, the tour is 53 miles to Elk City. Traveling at 10 to 15 mph, the tour should take four to six hours. The route is marked at each mile and road junction with brown and white "Elk City Wagon Road" posts

ROAD CONDITIONS
Most of the road is unpaved. There are a few narrow spots and tight switchbacks. Large recreational vehicles are not recommended. Snow in higher elevations restricts travel to the summer season (June through September). Check with the Clearwater or Elk City Ranger District for current road conditions.

FACILITIES
There are no gas stations along the Elk City Wagon road. Gas is available at Stites, Kooskia, Grangeville and Elk City. Picnic and lavatory facilities are at Newsome Cabin, 32 miles from Harpster. There are no campgrounds along the route, but there are places to pull off and set up a tent. Elk city is a full-service community with hotels, restaurants, and gas stations. the return trip to Harpster via State highway 14 is 50 miles and takes an hour and a half.

On a spring day in 1900, a wagon was making its way along the Elk City Wagon Road. Loaded with mining supplies and mail, the wagon required a team of 10 horses. The driver knew he'd have to exchange his wagon for a sleigh when he encountered snow past Switchback Station. Wearing snowshoes, the horses would plod slowly to maneuver the heavy sleigh through drifts up to ten feet high. If he could make it to Mountain House Way Station before might, the driver could get a good meal and a place to sleep. With a little luck and no breakdowns, the freight would reach Elk City in another three days.
This was a common scene on the Elk city wagon Road in the late 1800's and early 1900's. The road was a freight and stage route prominent in the mining and homesteading history of Central Idaho. Starting at Harpster on the South Fork of the Clearwater River 80- miles upstream from Lewiston, the road stretched about 50 miles o the the mining town of elk city. A branch of the road ran from Stites and Joined the main route at the town of Clearwater. Beginning in the South Fork river valley at an elevation of about 1,600 feet, the road climbed as high as 6,200 feet in the Baldy Mountain vicinity and then dropped into the elk city Basin at around 4,000 feet..
The wagon road out originated from the Southern Nez Perce Trail, a trail used by Native Americans to travel from the Camas Prairie in Idaho to the bitterroot Valley in Montana. The first gold miners from Pierce used the trail on their way to explore the elk city area in 1861. During the mining boom which followed., the trail became a thoroughfare and was modified for pack strings and wagons.
By 1890, several way stations had been built along the trail including Harpster, Piebold Station, Newsome House, and a rest station for mail carriers can Ten Mile. Construction started on the elk city Wagon Road in 1894 and was finished in 1895. The road closely followed the original grail, but only overlaid it in a few places. By 1900, there were way stations at Switchback, Mountain House, Corral Hill and Mud Springs. These stations were some of the first homesteads in the area that provided room and food for travelers.
A stage trip from Stites to Elk City took two days in summer. Leaving Stites at 6:00 a.m. the stage arrived at Mountain House by noon and at Newsome by nightfall. There travelers spent the night. In winter, it took five days to make the trip with overnight stops at Switchback, Mountain House, Newsome, Mud Springs, and finally, Elk city. The stage fare from Stites to Elk city was $6.00 in 1910.

--Ron Carlson

Borrowed from Elk City Area Alliance Website