Elder and Sister Smart have been busy training our office replacements. Elder Smart was released from his Clerk duties and his Executive Secretary. He has also been very busy finishing the missionary yearbook and his last monthly newsletter. He has also been working on his last entry into the history for 2018. Sister Smart has had some time for work crew assignments. She has been weeding the area around the Visitors' Center, replacing mouse bait in all the homestead buildings and spreading new rocks on the trail to Martin's Cove.
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| Raking the Gravel on the Trail |
Sister Smart had a very interesting thing happen while she was working on the Trail. A hawk was on the trail and was not moving very easily. Sister Smart felt like his eyes kept begging for help. Elder Roberts picked up the hawk that we named, Willie. We took it in the rover and drove down to the homestead. He then handed Willie to Sister Smart. We contacted the Wyoming fish and game and they had us drive the hawk to Muddy Gap where they met us.
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| Willie |
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| Elder Roberts picked up the Hawk |
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| Sister Smart Held Willie While Being Driven to Muddy Gap |
Saturday the 25th some of Sister Smart's siblings joined us at Martin's Cove. They stayed in the ranch house behind our apartment.
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Dinner at Smart Apt.
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After settling in and saying our hello's we divided forces. Elder Smart took most of them on the rover to see things around the homestead. Sister Smart and Ranae and Cozette joined the missionaries for a moonlight walk to the Cove. It was very dark before we arrived at the top of the Cove. We watched the full moon rise over the mountain and illuminate the night.
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| Sisters about to Go to the Cove |
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| Missionaries Waiting to Walk to the Cove |
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| Moon Rising Before We Left on the Walk |
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| Moon Rising as it Came Over the Mountains in the Cove |
Sunday Jolene Allphin joined us at Martin's Cove. She arrived in time to join us at the Sunday Potluck. She is seated at the table with President and Sister Pace.
I guess we should share with you who Jolene Allphin is. She has studied the people and trails of the Willie and Martin Companies for more than 20 years. She has written many books about what she has researched. Two of her most well read books are "Tell My Story Too" and Follow Me to Zion".
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| Potluck Dinner |
After the dinner we all went to hear Jolene speak to us at a fireside.
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| Jolene Sharing With us at the Fireside |
Sunday evening we droved to the to the top of Martin's Cove.
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| Rover Chauffeur, |
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| Siblings at Statues |
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| Men Near Statues |
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Females at Statues
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Monday morning the family went to follow the trail of the pioneers from Casper to Martin's Cove. Jolene joined us and shared wonderful stories and locations on the trail that we were not aware of. We stopped at Willow Creek where the Martin Company found welcome relief with good clean water.
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| Elder and Sister Smart at Willow Springs |
After traveling all the way around Bessemer Bend, we followed our tradition of ice cream at Sloan's in Alcova. We then traveled through Fremont Canyon.
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| Fremont Canyon |
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Family on top of
Fremont Canyon ridge |
Tuesday we traveled to learn more about the Willie Company and the James Family. We got up and were ready to leave by 8:00 a.m. We then got the word that Highway 220 was closed due to a semi truck turning over and an accident. This is the only road out of here. We decided to take the back dirt and rut road to avoid the 220 Highway. We had to take all cars because after our tour of Rock Creek Hollow the Utah people were returning home. It wasn't bad for the Jeep but Larry's little car had its challenges. This slowed us down a couple of hours. We then stopped at Sixth Crossing while Jolene got help from the missionaries with much needed gas. While she was getting help with gas we went through the visitors' center there.
On we went to the base of Rocky Ridge. We left the two cars just off the highway and we traveled to the lower monument with our Jeep and Jolene's 4 wheel drive SUV. What a wonderful experience we had there. The spirit touched our hearts as we looked at the hill that our ancestors pushed and pulled up to get over Rocky Ridge. We read the story of the James family from Jolene's book, "Follow Me to Zion." Tears were spilled.
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| Family at the Lower Monument at Base of Rocky Ridge |
We then drove back to the cars to drive on to Rock Creek Hollow. We had another set back as we drove the rock road down to the Hollow. Larry had a rock jam into his tire and the tire went flat. We were almost to the Hollow and the missionaries were there to help rescue him. They got the tire off and found the big rock lodged in it. It was such a large hole that they knew he needed a new tire. Larry and Gerhard took off to Lander. Sadly no one in Lander had his size tire. He had to go home on his donut. He was blessed and and made it safely.
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Fixing Larry's Flat
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While they were gone the rest of us piled into the 2 four wheel drive vehicles and drove on the back roads toward the back side of Rocky Ridge. Jolene pointed out many fascinating things along this trail. She showed us where she believed Ephraim Hanks shot the buffalo, (watch the video "Ephraim's Rescue"). Jolene and Sister Smart and Cozette walked down to the site to get a closer look. We found amazing details of the meadow and hill that is described in Ephraim's journal. We knew without a doubt that this was the place. A special feeling confirmed the find. Jolene was so excited and wanted to take something back from the site. She found a dried cow pie and took it back.
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Jolene with Her Cow Pie
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The next stop on the trail was at Strawberry Creek. Jolene knew from research the spot the sick wagon had to stop while Levi Savage left the wagon to go and get some help to get it over Strawberry Creek. William James and Reuben James were among the sick. We saw the wagon ruts near the dried up creek. Cozette and Sister Smart stood in the ruts.
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| Dried Up Strawberry Creek |
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Standing in the Wagon Ruts
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The next stop was the spot that the James children waited at the river (Radium Springs or Gillespie Place) until their mother found them on the 23rd of October.
The road was getting so rough that Jolene's vehicle was having trouble navigating on it so we choose to turn around there. Cozette kept having to get out of the car to direct her around the huge ruts and rocks. Elder Smart was having no problems navigating the Jeep over the terrain.
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Cozette Directing Jolene
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With all the delays the Utah crew left late but made it home safely.
To make a long story short, with the help of Elder Smart, Jolene was able to reach a ranch owner near Bessemer Bend by phone and got permission to follow the trail on their property. Sister Smart got permission from President Pace to accompany Jolene back to Casper and Bessemer Bend on Wednesday morning.
They found workers on the ranch that helped us find the trail back to the North Platte River. They looked for a possible place of refuge that the Martin Company may have stayed in for the 9 days of storm. They found some possibilities, but nothing that clearly met the journal description. It was a rough road and they were once again glad for the Jeep. Jolene will research it further when she returns next Spring.
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Jolene Walking into a Possible Spot of Refuge
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Walking Through the Trees Near the River
Did the trees become the refuge? |
Needless to say this has been a very very wonderfully busy time. We were blessed to experience and share with family and Jolene Allphin.
We have had such spiritual growth on this mission and we believe our families have been blessed while we have served. We will be released from our mission on Sept. 27th. We have been given permission from our Stake President to drive to Mount Rushmore before we return home. This will get us home, probably on the evening of September 29th.
We love the Lord and have a strong testimony of service in His Kingdom. We also love all of you and hope our grandchildren will look at our example and also choose to serve a mission.
Grandpa and Grandma, Dad and Mom, Paul and Annie, Elder and Sister Smart
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