PARTI 



INTRODUCTION 



LOCATION AND SETTING 



This management plan covers the Oregon and 

 Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trails on the 

 public lands managed by the Bureau of Land 

 Management in the State of Wyoming. The trails 

 are located in the Platte River Resource Area of 

 the Casper District, the Lander Resource Area of 

 the Rawlins District, and the Pinedale, Big Sandy, 

 and Kemmerer Resource Areas of the Rock 

 Springs District. 



The trail routes across the State of Wyoming 

 are shown on Map 1. The trail route follows the 

 North Platte River through most of the Casper 

 District. It follows the Sweetwater River nearly to 

 South Pass in the Rawlins District. In the Rock 

 Springs District, the corridor divides with 

 individual routes and cutoffs leading west, 

 northwest, and southwest through Fremont, 

 Sublette, Sweetwater, Lincoln, and Uinta counties. 



The land ownership pattern along the trail is 

 diverse. In the eastern part of the state, little of 

 the trails are on public lands. In the western part 

 of the state long stretches of the primary trail 

 routes and major trail alternatives are on public 

 lands. 



BACKGROUND INFORMATION 



National Historic Trail Designation 



In November 1978, with the passage of an 

 amendment (Public Law 95-625) to the National 

 Trail System Act (Public Law 90-543), the Oregon 

 and Mormon Pioneer Trails were designated as 

 National Historic Trails by Congress. The National 

 Historic Trails System Act, as amended, places 

 responsibility for administering the trails with the 

 Secretary of the Interior. 



The purpose of National Historic Trail desig- 

 nation is to identify and protect the Oregon and 

 Mormon Pioneer Trails, along with their historic 

 remnants and artifacts, for public use and 

 enjoyment. The National Trail System Act also 

 directs the Secretary of the Interior to prepare 

 comprehensive management plans and to adopt 

 uniform markers for both trails. 



In April of 1983, an interagency agreement 

 between the Rocky Mountain Region of the 

 National Park Service and the Wyoming BLM was 

 completed. The purpose of the agreement is to 

 provide the basis for cooperation between NPS 

 and BLM to implement the comprehensive plan 

 for the Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trail. 



National Park Service Responsibilities 



The National Park Service was delegated the 

 responsibility by the Secretary of the Interior to 

 complete comprehensive management plans for 

 both of the trails. The plans for both trails were 

 completed in 1981. Both are so-called "umbrella" 

 plans which provide general management 

 direction for the entire length of the trails. 



The National Park Service has the overall respon- 

 sibility to administer the trails and to play a 

 continuing oversight and assistance role for the 

 various interests involved with trail management. 

 Those interests include private landowners, state 

 governments, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau 

 of Land Management (BLM), and the U.S. Fish 

 and Wildlife Service. 



Specific National Park Service responsibilities 

 related to BLM management of the trails are as 

 follows: 



1. Encouraging and assisting in the implemen- 

 tation of the recommendations for the trails 

 as identified in the comprehensive plans; 



2. Encouraging and assisting the BLM to enter 

 into cooperative agreements with state or 

 local agencies, private landowners, and 

 private organizations or individuals for the 

 protection and interpretation of portions of 

 the two National Historic Trails, either within 

 or outside federally administered areas; 



3. Reviewing all detailed management and use 

 plans prepared by the BLM for sites and 

 segments of the trails. Those plans will be 

 reviewed to assure that they conform 

 generally with the intent of legislation and 

 with the concepts and guidelines in the 

 National Park Service Comprehensive Plans; 



4. Promulgating and issuing regulations which 

 have general application along the Oregon 

 and Mormon Pioneer National Historic Trails; 



