Westward Expansion Trails the Great Salt Lake in Utah. The Mormon Trail followed part of the Oregon Trail and then branched off at the fur trading post called Fort Bridger, founded by famed mountain man Jim Bridger. Heading south and following river valleys southwestward to the valley of the Great Salt Lake, Brigham Young led the first Mormons into present-day Utah during 1847. The Mormon Trail is 1,300 miles long and extends from Nauvoo, Illinois to Salt Lake City, Utah. The Mormon Trail was used for more than 20 years after the Mormons used it and has been reserved for sightseeing. The initial
East Bench, Salt Lake City East Bench, Salt Lake City East Bench in Salt Lake City, Utah is a relatively affluent and primarily residential neighborhood of Salt Lake City that lies at the base of the Wasatch Range and extends west to approximately 1500 East. Foothill is the northern part of this area, divided by Interstate 80, and takes its name from the area's major traffic artery of Foothill Drive (State Route 186), which runs parallel to the base of the mountains and connects Interstate 80 with the University of Utah and downtown Salt Lake City. The East Bench is bordered on the north by