[Wilford Woodruff, one day before the pioneer camp enters the valley]
We Left Ogdens fork /webber river East Canyon Creek/ & travled to the west 5 miles up Hill an exceding hard hill to clime. 5 miles brought us to the summit of the Hill. We then descended the Hill 6 miles through a thick timberd grove of Aspen & Spruce Balsom &c. The timber had been cut out of the road yet it was full of stumps & it kept evry teamster vary busy to dodge the stumps & not break his waggon. One man turned over his ox w[aggon] smashed the top all to a rock. There was two children in the waggon but they were not Hurt. The last 6 miles was as bad as any thing we had found.
Having travled 5 miles up hill & 6 down total 11 miles we nooned by A splendid spring in A small Birch grove. ...
At the spring whare [we] nooned we were met by Brothers Pack & Mathews from the forward camps. They brought A letter to us, & informed us it was ownly 10 miles to the valley of the Salt Lake or great basan & 14 to their Camp. They had explored the country as far as possible & had made Choice of a spot to put in seeds. They considered it the greatest greazing country in the world but was destitute of timber as far as they had been. Several fine streams of fresh water cutting through the valley.
After nooning we travled up another vary tedious Hill & down it into a valley & camped for the night, with Hills miles high on each side of us. I climbed to the top of one hill over 2 mil high. Was in a high state of perspiration when I reached the top of it. Whole distance of the day 15 mi.
[Source: Wilford Woodruff's Journal: 1833-1898 Typescript, Volumes 1-9, Edited by Scott G. Kenney, Signature Books 1993, http://amzn.to/newmormonstudies]
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