Tucked away in southwestern Wyoming, the Red Desert remains one of the last high-desert ecosystems in North America. Long before the West was settled, the region played a significant role in the lives of native peoples, including the Shoshone and Ute tribes, and its unique features helped guide pioneers on their way to Oregon, California and Washington.
The Red Desert encompasses more than eight million acres of public lands that contain many unique things. Among its inhabitants are the world's largest herd of desert elk, 50,000 pronghorn antelope, historic landmarks, rare plant species and primitive rock art.
The Red Desert and Native Americans
The Red Desert contains many cultural and historical sites. The National Register of Historical Places lists more than 9,300 such sites within the area. Native American tribes lived in much of the Red Desert and therefore there are many sites that are important to them.
Across the Red Desert are campsites people used for generations. Petroglyphs, or rock carvings by native people, show what symbols were important to them. They are found in throughout the desert where rock faces provide a suitable canvas. At Independence Rock, petroglyphs are joined by the carved signatures of 19th Century emigrants using the Oregon Trail.
The most recent Native American inhabitants were the Shoshone and Ute peoples, although peoples from many of the "Great Basin" and Plains tribes came through the area such as Arapaho, Lakota and Cheyenne. For the Shoshone people, the Red Desert has two names. The first is "the place where God ran out of mountains." The second name, "land of many ponies," relates to the major change in native cultures caused by the introduction of the horse. The Shoshone and the Ute tribes were among the first to develop horse-based commerce that stretched for miles across the Great Basin of Wyoming where the Red Desert is located.
Why is there not more information available about sites sacred to Native American peoples? Important cultural sites have been subject to vandalism and desecration. It is critically important for the non-tribal public to respect the value and context of these cultural areas. Usually, sensitive information regarding location and meaning is only made available to enrolled tribal members and only for their use. Tribal elders teach the ceremonies associated with each place, but it is not information shared outside the tribe.
Steamboat Mountain is the site of an ancient Native American buffalo jump site. Buffalo jumps were created when hunters stampeded buffalo and drove them over cliff faces.
The Indian Gap trail is another cultural area that has been identified by the federal government. This trail connected the Ute tribes further west in Utah, Colorado and Wyoming to the Shoshone in the Wind River Basin. The trail passed through gap between Essex and Steamboat Mountains.
Other geologic sites that are culturally important to the tribes and equally awe inspiring to non tribal members are the North and South Table Mountains, Pilot Butte, the Honeycombs and Oregon Buttes.
Today, Native American peoples continue to value the Red Desert. In September 2003, Shoshone and Arapaho youth in a group called the Eagle Staff Runners Association had a run "to pay respect to their ancestral heritage in the Red Desert." On the Wind River Reservation activists, including former NWF board member Dick Baldes, get people involved at slide shows and traditional feasts.
Pioneers in the Red Desert
While there are many natural wonders in the Red Desert, there are also man-made sights. An amazing sight is the still visible wagon ruts from the pioneers who crossed the Oregon and Mormon trails.
Most traffic on these trails happened between 1843 and 1869, ending when the railroad was completed. More than a half of a million people went on these trails. Pioneers departed from St. Louis and took the Missouri River west. There they waited until the right moment. The only safe time of year to leave was the spring when the grass grew high enough to sustain oxen. If they left too early or too late, they would not survive the 2000-mile, six month trip. Each person needed a few hundred pounds of food to survive, so they relied on covered wagons.
Pioneers followed the North Platte River through Nebraska to Wyoming. When they entered Wyoming, they came to Ft. Laramie. Often they found their wagons were too heavy, so they tried to sell their extra weight or they dumped it along the trail.
Crossing Wyoming was a challenge. Pioneers relied on rivers for water and used Red Desert landmarks such as Oregon Buttes to keep them on course.
Next they came to Independence Rock. It was named this way because often pioneers would reach it near July fourth and there would be celebrations. People carved their names in the rock. Independence Rock is located near where the North Platte River connects with the Sweetwater River. They would follow the Sweetwater River to Devils Gate, a narrow gap where the river ran through.
The key to the Oregon Trail was the South Pass. It was the only place where wagons could get through the Rocky Mountains. The pass is large - about 20 miles wide. It also marked the half way point for travelers going to Oregon.
After the South Pass, pioneers split in various directions. Some went to Oregon, while others went to California. Their journey through the Red Desert was done.
Animals of the Red Desert
The Red Desert is home to a rich variety of wildlife, with more than 350 species that call it home. Among its inhabitants are the pronghorn antelope, the largest migratory herd in the lower 48 states. desert elk, sage grouse, burrowing owls and several species of reptile including the eastern short-horned lizard and the midget faded rattlesnake.
The pronghorn antelope is the second fastest land animal in the world, almost as fast as the cheetah. It is the fastest in the Western Hemisphere. Neither a goat nor an antelope, the pronghorn is the last surviving member of an ancient species found only in North America. The pronghorn has forked horns (not antlers) which it sheds each year.
The sage-grouse is one of North America's most spectacular birds. As its name suggests, sage grouse depend on healthy sage grasslands habitat, which was once abundant throughout the West. Sagebrush provides the birds' primary source of food and shelter, and offers a setting for the birds' traditional courting ritual. In the spring, up to 100 male sage grouse gather on a traditional display ground, called a lek, to court the females. They have ornate and competitive springtime mating rituals.
Prairie dogs live in groups called colonies in territories called towns. Prairie dogs spend much time watching for predators. If one is seen, the prairie dogs lets out a sharp chirp before diving for cover beneath the ground. Prairie dogs build elaborate underground networks of tunnels. They fertilize the soil and increase the protein content and digestibility of rangeland grasses on which more than 100 other species depend.
Burrowing owls rely heavily on abandoned prairie dog burrows for nest sites and shelter. They are one of the smallest owl species, measuring only 10 inches. They eat small mammals like mice and voles.
There are currently 38 species of birds, mammals, fish, reptiles and amphibians that are on the Bureau of Land Management sensitive species list. These animals are considered to be declining but are not protected under the Endangered Species Act. Among the 38 species are white-tailed prairie dog, the ferruginous hawk and the greater sage grouse, all natives of the Red Desert.
Threat to the Desert
This truly untamed region is under threat of oil and gas drilling. Unfortunately, the problems that threaten the Red Desert threaten its wildlife too. The Bureau of Land Management, the federal agency responsible for safeguarding much of the lands and resources of the Red Desert, has proposed to increase oil and gas development in this region, threatening this wild landscape and its wildlife.
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