Continuing with the diary of James Field:
Frid. 6. – Went 16 miles, camping for the last time on the south side of the Platte river; however, it was only the south fork of it. We camped at the ford, and saw the company spoken of yesterday pass over. Their teams were many of them light, and they had considerable difficulty in crossing, as when a wagon once stopped it sand deep in the quicksand at the bottom of the river. Sat. 7. – Forded south fork of Platte river this morning, it being a half mile or more wide and a little over knee deep in places. We doubled the teams, taking half the wagons at a time, and were an hour and three quarters getting everything over; then went 15 miles up the north side, and camped.
Frid. 6. – Went 16 miles, camping for the last time on the south side of the Platte river; however, it was only the south fork of it. We camped at the ford, and saw the company spoken of yesterday pass over. Their teams were many of them light, and they had considerable difficulty in crossing, as when a wagon once stopped it sand deep in the quicksand at the bottom of the river. Sat. 7. – Forded south fork of Platte river this morning, it being a half mile or more wide and a little over knee deep in places. We doubled the teams, taking half the wagons at a time, and were an hour and three quarters getting everything over; then went 15 miles up the north side, and camped.
Sat. 7. – Forded south fork of Platte river this morning, it being a half mile or more wide and a little over knee deep in places. We doubled the teams, taking half the wagons at a time, and were an hour and three quarters getting everything over; then went 15 miles up the north side, and camped.
Sun. 8. – Continued up about 3 miles, and then struck across to the north fork, traveling about 20 miles. Had a pretty hard pull up the bluff, and then found a gently-rolling prairie across 6 or 8 miles, and the remainder of the way led down a wild rocky glen called Ash Hollow. Both the companies that originally belonged with ours missed finding this hollow, and camped on the prairie all night without water, although McNary’s started up the divide in the afternoon, so they would have been compelled to camp without water any way. They followed the dragoons’ trail, who missed it only a mile or two, but Waymire, T’Vault, & Co. traveled 6 or 7 miles up and down before getting into the head of the hollow, and they were the company who had Clark the pilot with them, too. On getting to the head of this hollow, we came to a succession of barren, rocky knobs and hills that appeared to have no way of getting through or over, which appear to extend as far as we could see northward. The road leads along a channel apparently torn out by the torrents of water which annually descend at the time of the melting of the snow on the plains, and it was one of the wildest-looking places I ever passed through, the desolate-looking hillsides, with a few stunted cedars growing upon them, rocky ledges overhanging our wagons, with a few ash trees and wild currant bushes growing in the depth of the hollow, along the sandy bottom of which we wound our way, made one almost imagine he was traveling some mountain pass. Found ourselves, on camping, within a few rods of T’Vault & Co., who were laying up to recruit, in a very pretty camping place, near a fine spring, with plenty of wood around them, which was also the case with our camp, and the clear, bright blaze of a cedar fire was to us a luxury worth enjoying after using buffalo fuel near a week.
Sun. 8. – Continued up about 3 miles, and then struck across to the north fork, traveling about 20 miles. Had a pretty hard pull up the bluff, and then found a gently-rolling prairie across 6 or 8 miles, and the remainder of the way led down a wild rocky glen called Ash Hollow. Both the companies that originally belonged with ours missed finding this hollow, and camped on the prairie all night without water, although McNary’s started up the divide in the afternoon, so they would have been compelled to camp without water any way. They followed the dragoons’ trail, who missed it only a mile or two, but Waymire, T’Vault, & Co. traveled 6 or 7 miles up and down before getting into the head of the hollow, and they were the company who had Clark the pilot with them, too. On getting to the head of this hollow, we came to a succession of barren, rocky knobs and hills that appeared to have no way of getting through or over, which appear to extend as far as we could see northward. The road leads along a channel apparently torn out by the torrents of water which annually descend at the time of the melting of the snow on the plains, and it was one of the wildest-looking places I ever passed through, the desolate-looking hillsides, with a few stunted cedars growing upon them, rocky ledges overhanging our wagons, with a few ash trees and wild currant bushes growing in the depth of the hollow, along the sandy bottom of which we wound our way, made one almost imagine he was traveling some mountain pass. Found ourselves, on camping, within a few rods of T’Vault & Co., who were laying up to recruit, in a very pretty camping place, near a fine spring, with plenty of wood around them, which was also the case with our camp, and the clear, bright blaze of a cedar fire was to us a luxury worth enjoying after using buffalo fuel near a week.
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| Photo from Flickr CC Public Domain |
Tues. 10. - Lay in camp to-day, recruiting, as the cattle had become jaded and many of them lame. It is a singular fact that the working cattle's feet stand better than the loose stock, for, whilst numbers of the latter have become lame, and so much so as to compel us to leave them, but few of the working cattle have exhibited any signs of lameness. An accident occurred yesterday which I omitted mentioning. Another child, a girl of 13, passed under the wagon-wheel, and was seriously injured, but is in a fair way to recover. It was the wagon I was driving myself, and I had expected it during the whole journey, from their habitual carelessness in getting in and out whilst the wagons were in motion. T'Vault and Co. Passed by about noon.
Wed. 11. - A party of us out hunting yesterday, on going up one of the hollows that lead up into the bluffs, saw a road which leads up into the high prairie beyond the bluff, and apparently had been traveled by some company this spring. It is a much better way to get down into the river bottom than the route we came, the descent being so gradual as not to require the locking of a wheel. We went about 15 miles to-day, and camped near the river, finding driftwood sufficient for out fires, which is better fuel than buffalo-chips, although the latter was a better substitute for wood than any of us anticipated, and is far preferable to green wood. One solitary cottonwood was the only tree or bush I saw growing on the river bottom this whole distance, and but few cedars are seen upon the bluffs. The bluffs present the appearance of naked mountain sides, and appear to rise in a variety of shapes, some looking like castles, citadels, and fortresses, and I noticed two peculiar peaks of naked sandstone rock rising close together like large haystacks. These are called the Two Ovens, from their resemblance to the exterior of a baker's oven.
Thurs. 12. - Went 17 miles to-day, camping on the largest branch we have yet seen putting into the Platte river. It is called Horse Creek. Noticed a long point of cedar or pine timber upon the bluffs to our left to-day, which is a rare sight to us, as the last timber grove we saw upon high ground was between the Wolf and Missouri rivers. In the afternoon, met 4 Mackinaw boats which had started from Fort Larimie for St. Louis, with furs and peltries, but there was not sufficient water for them, and they had tied up, unloaded their goods, and sent back to Fort Larimie for wagons to go on with.
From “The Diary of James Field” Willamette Farmer (Portland, OR, Fridays: April 18 – August 1, 1879).
25 Apr 1879 (May 28-June 17)
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