In 1846, before he became the first great chronicler of the American frontier, Francis Parkman headed West to follow the trail of the pioneers making their way to Oregon and California. When he got to the Rocky Mountains, Parkman and his party of two turned south, traveled down the Front Range, and came back via the Santa Fe Trail to Missouri. The Oregon Trail recounts a trove of page-turning adventures along the way. Parkman frequently was lost, very nearly starved, narrowly escaped Indian war parties?and clearly had the time of his life. ?A month ago,? he writes along the way, ?I should have thought it rather a startling affair to have an acquaintance ride out in the morning and lose his scalp before night, but here it seems the most natural thing in the world.? The Oregon Trail, ranked number 31 on Adventure?s top 100 classics list, remains a popular favorite a century and a half after publication. Accessible and handsomely designed, this new edition also features an exclusive introduction by adventure historian Anthony Brandt that illuminates the text with details about Parkman?s role in popularizing the American West to a generation of pioneers as well as his vast influence on subsequent historians