View source for Emigrant Gap

{{about|the ridge gap|the community|Emigrant Gap, California}}
{{distinguish|Emigrant Pass (disambiguation)}}
{{Use American English|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox mountain pass
| name = Emigrant Gap
| photo = Emigrant Gap - Flickr - Joe Parks.jpg
| photo_caption =
| elevation = ~5,200 ft. / 1,585 m
| traversed = {{Jct|state=CA|I|80}}, 
[[Union Pacific Railroad]]
| location = [[Placer County, California]], [[United States]]
| range = [[Sierra Nevada (U.S.)|Sierra Nevada]]
| coordinates = {{coord|39.303|N|120.666|W|type:pass}}
| embedded = {{Designation list|embed=yes|designation1=California|designation1_number=403}}
| topo =
}}
'''Emigrant Gap''' is a gap in a ridge on the [[California Trail]] as it crosses the [[Sierra Nevada]], to the west of what is now known as [[Donner Pass]]. Here the cliffs are so steep that, back in the 1840s, the pioneers on their way to California had to lower their wagons on ropes in order to continue.

The Emigrant Gap was so named because it was a low gap on a ridge where the emigrants' wagons crossed from the [[American River]] drainage to the [[Bear River (Feather River tributary)|Bear River]] drainage. It was part of the Truckee Route, a portion of the [[California Trail]] by which pioneers, heading west, emigrated from the [[United States]] to [[California]], which was part of [[Mexico]] until it was captured by the United States in the [[Mexican–American War]] (1846–1848).

There is a California historical marker (number 403), dedicated on June 25, 1950, on [[Interstate 80 in California|Interstate 80]] commemorating this brave and arduous task.
:''The spring of 1845 saw the first covered wagons surmount the Sierra Nevada Mountains. They left this valley, ascended to the ridge, and turned westward to old Emigrant Gap. The wagons were lowered by ropes to the floor of Bear Valley. Hundreds followed before, during, and after the gold rush. This was a hazardous portion of the overland emigrant trail.''<ref>[http://ceres.ca.gov/geo_area/counties/Placer/landmarks.html http://ceres.ca.gov/geo_area/counties/Placer/landmarks.html] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050416200721/http://ceres.ca.gov/geo_area/counties/Placer/landmarks.html |date=2005-04-16 }} ''ceres.ca.gov''</ref>

The small unincorporated community of [[Emigrant Gap, California|Emigrant Gap]] is adjacent to the gap.

The [[Stephens–Townsend–Murphy Party]] were the first to cross Emigrant Gap and the Sierra, doing so in 1844–45.
[[File:Emigrant Gap Memorial.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Historical marker, Emigrant Gap]]

==Climate==
[[Blue Canyon–Nyack Airport]] has a [[warm-summer Mediterranean climate]] (Csb) according to the [[Köppen climate classification]] system. Summers are generally warm with cool nights, while winters are cold and extremely snowy.

{{Weather box 
|location = Emigrant Gap, California ([[Lake Spaulding]]), 1981-2010 temperature and precipitation normals, snowfall and extremes 1902–2003
|single line = Y
| width = auto
|collapsed = Yes

|Jan record high F = 72
|Feb record high F = 80
|Mar record high F = 78
|Apr record high F = 85
|May record high F = 96
|Jun record high F = 96
|Jul record high F = 102
|Aug record high F = 104
|Sep record high F = 97
|Oct record high F = 94
|Nov record high F = 79
|Dec record high F = 75
|year record high F = 104

|Jan avg record high F = 60.2
|Feb avg record high F = 62.3
|Mar avg record high F = 65.7
|Apr avg record high F = 71.9
|May avg record high F = 79.5
|Jun avg record high F = 86.7
|Jul avg record high F = 90.4
|Aug avg record high F = 89.5
|Sep avg record high F = 86.4
|Oct avg record high F = 79.4
|Nov avg record high F = 69.1
|Dec avg record high F = 61.9
|year avg record high F = 90.8

|Jan high F = 45.1
|Feb high F = 47.0
|Mar high F = 51.0
|Apr high F = 57.2
|May high F = 65.3
|Jun high F = 74.7
|Jul high F = 81.6
|Aug high F = 81.5
|Sep high F = 75.4
|Oct high F = 64.9
|Nov high F = 49.2
|Dec high F = 44.0
|year high F =

|Jan mean F = 34.4
|Feb mean F = 36.2
|Mar mean F = 38.5
|Apr mean F = 43.4
|May mean F = 50.2
|Jun mean F = 57.8
|Jul mean F = 64.0
|Aug mean F = 62.9
|Sep mean F = 58.5
|Oct mean F = 50.5
|Nov mean F = 41.2
|Dec mean F = 35.8
|year mean F = 47.6

|Jan low F = 24.3
|Feb low F = 25.1
|Mar low F = 27.2
|Apr low F = 30.3
|May low F = 36.1
|Jun low F = 42.3
|Jul low F = 46.3
|Aug low F = 45.9
|Sep low F = 42.2
|Oct low F = 35.9
|Nov low F = 28.1
|Dec low F = 24.6
|year low F =

|Jan avg record low F = 8.1
|Feb avg record low F = 10.5
|Mar avg record low F = 12.8
|Apr avg record low F = 18.4
|May avg record low F = 25.7
|Jun avg record low F = 31.6
|Jul avg record low F = 37.6
|Aug avg record low F = 36.5
|Sep avg record low F = 32.0
|Oct avg record low F = 25.7
|Nov avg record low F = 17.1
|Dec avg record low F = 10.3
|year avg record low F = 4.1

|Jan record low F = -5
|Feb record low F = -8
|Mar record low F = -2
|Apr record low F = 6
|May record low F = 13
|Jun record low F = 24
|Jul record low F = 31
|Aug record low F = 30
|Sep record low F = 23
|Oct record low F = 13
|Nov record low F = 4
|Dec record low F = -14
|year record low F = -14

|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation inch = 12.63
|Feb precipitation inch = 13.86
|Mar precipitation inch = 10.95
|Apr precipitation inch = 6.20
|May precipitation inch = 3.76
|Jun precipitation inch = 1.38
|Jul precipitation inch = 0.28
|Aug precipitation inch = 0.31
|Sep precipitation inch = 1.63
|Oct precipitation inch = 3.77
|Nov precipitation inch = 10.77
|Dec precipitation inch = 13.10
|year precipitation inch =

|Jan snow inch = 53.8
|Feb snow inch = 49.0
|Mar snow inch = 49.1
|Apr snow inch = 23.5
|May snow inch = 6.4
|Jun snow inch = 0.5
|Jul snow inch = 0.0
|Aug snow inch = 0.0
|Sep snow inch = 0.1
|Oct snow inch = 2.5
|Nov snow inch = 17.9
|Dec snow inch = 40.5
|year snow inch =

|unit precipitation days = 0.01 in
|Jan precipitation days = 12
|Feb precipitation days = 12
|Mar precipitation days = 12
|Apr precipitation days = 9
|May precipitation days = 7
|Jun precipitation days = 4
|Jul precipitation days = 1
|Aug precipitation days = 1
|Sep precipitation days = 3
|Oct precipitation days = 5
|Nov precipitation days = 9
|Dec precipitation days = 11
|year precipitation days = 87

|source 1 = WRCC (temperature and precipitation averages 1981–2010, other values 1902-2003)<ref>
{{cite web
|url= https://wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?ca4713
|title= Lake Spaulding, CA (044713./)
|access-date=November 29, 2015
|publisher=Western Regional Climate Center
}}
</ref>
}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}
* {{cite book|
title=The California Trail: An Epic with Many Heroes|
last=Stewart|
first=George R.|
year= 1983| 
publisher=University of Nebraska Press|
isbn=0-8032-9143-4|
page=339}}
* {{cite web|
url=http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/tahoe/recreation/big_bend/bbvc-background.shtml|
title= Recreational Activities: More Information About Big Bend|
accessdate=2008-05-11|
work=Tahoe National Forest}}
* {{cite video
 |title=Forgotten Journey: The Stephens-Townsend-Murphy Saga
 |people=Krizek, John (producer)
 |url=http://thecaliforniatrail.com/teachers_guide.asp
 |accessdate=2008-05-11
 |url-status=dead
 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927180409/http://thecaliforniatrail.com/teachers_guide.asp
 |archivedate=2007-09-27
}}

== External links ==
* {{commons and category inline}}

[[Category:History of the Sierra Nevada (United States)]]
[[Category:Mountain passes of the Sierra Nevada (United States)]]
[[Category:Historic trails and roads in California]]
[[Category:1845 in Alta California]]
[[Category:Lincoln Highway]]
[[Category:Rail mountain passes of the United States]]
[[Category:Landforms of Placer County, California]]


{{PlacerCountyCA-geo-stub}}