![Two people on horseback, with flags, stand in the street lined with historic buildings.](24ec260f823e8336fd2e5a89671bce1cca5fce927acfebd859cc3253c7349692.jpg)

*The start of the 2023 Re-Ride in Old Town Sacramento. NPS photo.*

For ten days every June, the Pony Express runs again. Members of the **National Pony Express Association** carry real letters in a leather *mochila* over the original trail between St. Joseph, Missouri, and Sacramento, California — 1,966 miles through eight states, day 

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Every June, 750 riders carry about 1,000 real letters by horse between Missouri and California on the original Pony Express trail, around the clock for ten days. How to watch — and send a letter.

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The imported source text, rewritten as an article of its own.

![Two people on horseback, with flags, stand in the street lined with historic buildings.](https://d3rcuhnsww16gv.cloudfront.net/asset/24ec260f823e8336fd2e5a89671bce1cca5fce927acfebd859cc3253c7349692.jpg?Expires=1790395012&Key-Pair-Id=K1CWAV4W62RI0D&Signature=F~~gztEwV5dBZ0n~b8Pns3FNqq3lvkZYd3KPTSVk8jBvtZ6Q6CLuDZrP6SwuV~fwBdWHsWcW1BL60sWEgsJoZGHA78Wh8JG-5YXH3R9d-ca~b5r~T5sbtTNpLj7eWYLn8axJdLvo7iz1~xLO~dJp2IxkK-xw6ReLct589y4XyklWfS9EswrJJvBPM3flWfWWXkv1NtYhBoz9x2XaurcLIVneMY5SCBAi1eoe1u1oyQBqMFlZW7kidsZu1QnzSPfOkw2QTyZOKDJEvO~CG3JlySorFEpcO8EwKJIzz4yPQeV3tpWMnYuXKe4HBtU3Nt4e1JRmqk8HZpM1VvmsHk12jA__)

*The start of the 2023 Re-Ride in Old Town Sacramento. NPS photo.*

For ten days every June, the Pony Express runs again. Members of the **National Pony Express Association** carry real letters in a leather *mochila* over the original trail between St. Joseph, Missouri, and Sacramento, California — 1,966 miles through eight states, day and night, rider handing off to rider, until the mail is delivered.

## The ride

| | |
|---|---|
| When | ten days each June, the direction alternating between years |
| Distance | 1,966 miles, eight states, on the historic trail |
| Riders | more than 750, all association members, from every walk of life |
| Mail | about 1,000 letters a year, which anyone can send |
| Pace | around the clock; exchanges happen at all hours, some in the middle of the night |

At each exchange the incoming rider reins in, lifts the mochila off the saddle and throws it over a fresh horse; the next rider mounts and is gone over the horizon — as it was done in 1860 and 1861.

![A man hands another man a leather saddlebag, while standing next to a horse.](https://d3rcuhnsww16gv.cloudfront.net/asset/87542acf705841af5f12bce5c8d87e1ea8ac6810891e24aa4b97759f1dcbbc64.jpg?Expires=1790395012&Key-Pair-Id=K1CWAV4W62RI0D&Signature=hDN3mn6gU67PEe0EZ9v~gf3YGFp0XP9~JTDIz4ItCGLyI0Qldksk8HsTdKnPgwFhzKkyyF2mSH0J5SWk3EpY8hIVh6d5mv3r2bfwj1obuLtyaMeMFWNzqUI8H6UIv1FXgW9c4PR3z949e7RR3Oc7JhFnftqto~fPXQfk8ZV9j-1XHQ86gXd-4IlC1EEU9cNpjRCeOiI4NFWO4Mhx7wd3HM7M4kF1o3b4KO7UaWeC-nMzgu41f9Wg9N91nOQbtACqIn9f06d1~CF~RYzRs5IynvBV9IHQEiX4XkRUAiFSL8cWPVYLbCMM9DifRiHXMZqcNEIgY3LHkHJoAkWwbhKN5A__)

*Handing over the mochila. NPS photo.*

## How to follow it

- **In person.** The ride passes scheduled exchange points along the trail; the Park Service publishes the [schedule and best places to see the riders](https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/see-the-pony-express-re-ride.htm).
- **Online.** A GPS unit in the mochila reports every five minutes to a [live map](https://nps.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=9fe673f2faf24a11823fb2219d091889&find=Current%20Rider).
- **By phone.** The association's hotline, 1-855-809-8589, is updated as reports come in from riders, support crews and ham-radio operators.
- **Send a letter.** Mail carried on the ride can be ordered through the [National Pony Express Association](https://nationalponyexpress.org/re-ride/follow-the-ride/), which also takes new members.

![A map of the United States depicting a trail from Missouri to California. Envelopes at certain locations indicate special events.](https://d3rcuhnsww16gv.cloudfront.net/asset/6d0373cf0c40a83f11e59a214107762c64600697db38a44dfeec32f64542afa6.png?Expires=1790395012&Key-Pair-Id=K1CWAV4W62RI0D&Signature=joK8rguX5PCTj9vmyHvCK4ZDi5zHDbMLpww1oCrAcJvtiflPkPobwNmvb2fQmgWhoNx69XKt9GapLYYpcWpAuHw4SGDCBdGFbLz-N5KhvXcRIefotqTR51nerGZkmj-2kcdtMfEAesu~u3xXrngNHfSsX8ZeuNlPWo93dMntImdomdHuodcwN7-zIM9raBI9KZHniWlxEJBnw9RWRn-zNiUkzMoqZl5apV4ocAUjwJdJPnTABllLbkh6T~831eA8XDs-nuvkQ1g4JU3FXxxrwx6-lssIs0jY6p8~fUBV8ZbOaWfuCmCjxwYoVSV2AaVsdijQSymiIJWfMVv7sZ4C2g__)

*Places along the trail with events for the Re-Ride. NPS.*

## The trail

The route is the **Pony Express National Historic Trail**, part of the National Trails System, which the Park Service administers with partners across the West.

![A cowboy rides a horse in a vast shrub desert plain.](https://d3rcuhnsww16gv.cloudfront.net/asset/4db35fe2f5d83ed59fdf522b61d09af79bb2b5771e1f6cf4976766ee3b27e8f4.jpg?Expires=1790395012&Key-Pair-Id=K1CWAV4W62RI0D&Signature=VihSyLbwxCJPly~pFUDAGspm~TOWeEDkTOq13-1xYCHxQd~TkzJPbPOZsnEJ1ZVDSv~9t~2FaLrvXr~CXuxTrQpHUmrxuEyL7tmdibuE2MqsxJ57mu5SDpV4gouVfiCF~mNxYOKpVjwGYm9wpzKz89kRFlWLp6sIbzsSYYciv-p6-GtpWULftBRQtdxRMUie-4dSBt-qhg5TDIU5ChopriUynQIauew4bfdugDFY3vjkvIQlFEh3zR6fk2us66cDRfDORIbHgI2EfwGcoPKXb6BfiqJiYJQJdVPSraKu2qhmsFBGNvK393gwjMVbtcehgkm6fXXJ9XMgDOrqyiv0IA__)

## Sources

Written from "The Pony Express Re-Ride", National Park Service, Pony Express National Historic Trail, a work of the United States government in the public domain.

The Pony Express rides again: 1,966 miles of mail every June

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