New Fork Park
100 acre, Lander Trail - New Fork River Crossing Historical Park.
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Gates have been opened
The park is open year-round, but the parking lot is closed during the winter due to snow and soft conditions.
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Park entry
The park is walk-in only, no motorized vehicles. Day use only. The path is a one-mile loop walking trail.
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Difficult river crossing
During high water, the New Fork River was a very difficult and dangerous river crossing. There are 9 interpretive signs along the 1-mile loop trail.
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Cattle damage
Cattle got in last fall and made a mess of this whole area in the tree grove. The trail proper has been raked clear, but could use some help clearing more out along the sides if anyone wants to volunteer with a rake and a shovel. The park is maintained entirely by volunteers.
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New Fork Park an option for spring fresh air and exercise
April 6, 2020
Looking to get out of the house? The Lander Trail - New Fork River Crossing Historical Park is now open. The park has been open over the winter, but the parking lot was closed due to snow. People can now drive in. There is a large parking lot so people can put the requisite extra social distancing space between vehicles when they park.
The park is day use, walk-in traffic only. There is a one-mile loop walking trail that has nine interpretive signs that tell the story of the emigrant wagon trains that passed through in the 1860s as people made their way west to Oregon and California. Hundreds of wagons a day passed through this location in the summer with thousands of head of livestock. The park interprets a river crossing and camping experience along the Lander Cutoff of the California/Oregon Trail.
The park is a little over 100 acres, with lots of room to explore. You do not have to stay on the trail – feel free to wander around if you like. Birdwatchers can find owls, flickers, and water fowl, along with the returning migratory birds.
People are welcome to bank fish along the river (of course, all Game & Fish licensing rules apply). Dogs are welcome and don’t have to be on leash. Please do have control over your pets. Deer and moose frequent the area – please don’t let dogs chase wildlife. There are 13 picnic tables in the park, use is "Pack-it-in, Pack-it-Out" – there is no garbage service.
We had a herd of cattle break into the park last fall and they did make quite a mess. The walking trail is now clear, but if you are looking for something to do and would like to help, take a shovel and rake during your hike and move any cattle crap at least 15 feet away from the edges of the trail.
We joke that it gives visitors a realistic idea of what that area probably really looked like when the emigrants came through with thousands of livestock each day. But it is probably too realistic an experience for visitors today.
If cattle crap is not your thing, we also need help with spring litter sweep along Paradise Road on the western side of the park adjacent to the road where litter tends to accumulate over the winter.
The park is maintained by volunteers, so any help is appreciated. You don’t need to call and ask for permission. Feel free to jump in at your convenience. Take pictures and send those along with the names of any helpers to info@newforkpark.org so we can maintain a list of volunteers.
If you visit the park please continue to observe the social distancing rules and regulations indicated by the local, state and federal officials due to COVID-19. Keep appropriate distance from other visitors and do not congregate even in the parking lot. The parking lot is large, so park away from each other. If there are already several vehicles in the parking lot, consider coming back at another time. The park is over 100 acres, so plenty of room to enjoy the outdoors and still stay away from others.
The park is owned and managed by the Sublette County Historical Society, a 501 C3 non-profit organization which also operates the Museum of the Mountain Man in Pinedale.
See www.NewForkPark.org for more information and directions.
Note: Visiting the park has been ok’d by the Sublette County Public Health Officer, Dr. Fitzsimmons. Visitors please abide by all the recommended social distancing advice and current orders.
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