PEAK TO PEAK - As I contemplated how I should continue to discover Colorado in 2025, I decided to trudge around the property, admiring the freshly fallen snow, glistening in the sunshine. The wind made me grateful for the heavy coat I wore.

I climbed above the cabin onto the observation deck, the view was surreal. Slowly, I turned my body 360 degrees to take in every angle. I looked up, and to my sides, sighing, drowning in gratitude and disbelief.

Looking down toward my humble abode, I noticed one of my wagon wheels toppled over. I made my way to it and put it back in place. I had forgotten how heavy a wagon wheel is. As I struggled in the snow, rolling the wheel back in place, I began thinking about the Old West.

Curiosity got the better of me and my mind traveled to the past. I wondered what it’d be like to travel in a covered wagon to all the places I’ve discovered in Colorado. Naturally, this led to the desire to learn about wagons in the Old West.

Did you know there were more than one type of wagon? The Murphy Wagon was the best known on western trails. The Murphy Wagon was made by Joseph Murphy and used by traders heading west from Missouri to Santa Fe.

These wagons were typically nine feet high with a twelve-foot-long bed and had a straight box. They could haul up to 2,200 pounds. The Murphy Wagon’s more famous counterpart is the Conestoga Wagon, which was generally crafted with a curved box.

The Conestoga Wagon is often seen in films. The Conestoga was the primary choice for shipping goods to the western frontier. Used during the 18th and 19th centuries in the United States and Canada, the Conestoga Wagon was large enough to transport loads up to eight tons.

Though wagons were a common mode of transportation between the 1800s and 1920s, in Colorado, not everyone could afford a wagon or the animals to pull these wagons. Many folks opted for a handcart, measuring three feet wide by four feet long.

Handcarts had a nine-inch-high shallow box and four-foot-tall wheels. A handcart could carry several hundred pounds. The catch was that a person had to push or pull the handcart. How about that for a means of transportation?

Just as recognizable on the trail as the Murphy Wagon was the Studebaker Wagon. The Studebaker brothers were blacksmiths. They provided the hardware for many of the early wagon manufacturers. The Studebaker brothers would later manufacture wagons for emigrants, freight companies, and, eventually, the Studebaker automobile.

Perhaps, in 2025, I’ll explore Colorado via new means of transportation, making history of my own kind. To learn more about wagons, visit https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/wagons-on-the-trails.htm or hike around the Rockies to find the many historical surprises waiting to be discovered.