Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
travelers wrote of its cabin, built so poorly that the wind blew through it. Yet many others
found it to be a welcome way station for food and company.
Emigrant Peak is a prominent landmark in Paradise Valley.
England's Earl of Dunraven came through in 1874 and reported from his camping spot:
“evening was drawing on apace, and the scenery was being glorified with sunset effects. The
level rays of the sun lit up most brilliantly the Eastern Mountains, striking full upon the sharp
angular masses of limestone, bringing out in bold relief against the sky background the cruel
jaggedness of their forms, which contrasted strongly with the smooth softness of the plain be-
neath, penetrating and searching into the deep rifts and gorges, and defining in detail all the
savage grandeur of the range.”
About 7 miles (11 km) south of Emigrant, near a wide spot in the river, you'll find a wel-
come picnic and rest area. The long
mesa
to the east,
Hepburn Mesa,
is made up mostly of
sediments, but it has a lava cap that has slowed erosion of the sediments below.
As you continue south, jagged formations to the west, called
Point of Rocks,
appear. You
can take a century-old, rough dirt road from here southwest into the
Tom Miner Basin,
named for an early prospector and poacher. This scenic basin has ranches, a forest service
campground, and trails into the Gallatin Range.
For Hikers and Mineral Collectors
You can follow a Gallatin National Forest trail into the mountains to find specimens of
petrified wood like those preserved in Yellowstone. The petrified trees are located about a
mile (1.5 km) from the end of Tom Miner Basin Road.
The specimens in Yellowstone Park are at the top of long and difficult trails up the west-
ern slopes of the Gallatin Range in the northwest corner. You're not allowed to collect them
there. From this east side of the mountains, however, you may take home samples of pet-
rified wood—but first ask for a free collection permit at the Forest Service Ranger Station
