Rendezvous Pageant

Each year for the past 72 years, Pinedale has hosted the Rendezvous Pageant, a re-enactment of mountain men and Indians trading goods near the Green River. In the early 1800s, men from the St. Louis area traveled, hunted and mapped the uncharted West. It became necessary to designate meeting places and times in their new stomping grounds. Out of a need to trade supplies and enjoy the company of other “mountain men” (most of the year was spent in solitude), these hearty men created and attended the rendezvous. In the years of 1833, 1835, 1836, 1837, 1839 and 1840, six of the 16 fur trade rendezvous were held in Sublette County near what is present day Daniel (the annual rendezvous ran from 1825-1840). The rendezvous served primarily as a place of business – a place to trade fur and supplies. This, however, is not what the rendezvous is known for. Most perceive it as a great social event and party, and that it was. The rendezvous gathering lasted through September and the days were filled with purchasing, trading and gambling.

The Rendezvous Pageant includes nearly 100 locals who meet during the week prior to the pageant to rehearse their parts. There are no speaking parts as the entire pageant is narrated. I found out this weekend that I was in the pageant as a toddler, as was my brother. Mom dressed us up as Indians. My young cousin participated in her first Rendezvous this year as a pony dancer. J and I were both impressed with her riding abilities as she rode around the arena bareback. It's quite a tradition in our little community and something I haven't attended in 22 years.