Well, I don't think there is a better topic to post about for my 200th post than an amazing handcart trek to Martin's Cove.
Since Brian is our ward Young Men's president, he had to go to youth conference. But I wanted to go. I didn't have any other reason to go at first, but eventually, they gave Brian and I an assignment to be family advisers. That was an incredible experience. We had an amazing Ma & Pa assigned to our group, and the other kids were so awesome to be around. I couldn't have handpicked a better group for myself to be a part of.
(Justice "Steve", Braydon, Tori, Jordan, Justice, Adam, Me, Brittany, Thalia, Brian, Aurora) The Martin's Cove visitors center is right by Devil's Gate
Brian & I had such a good time together.
We didn't know any of the kids from our family before we went. We had met our Ma & Pa, and we have had a little bit of interaction with one of the boys, but we didn't know him well.
Our family pulled 2 handcarts.
And total, I think that our stake had 26 handcarts.
Justice, Justice (Steve), and Adam in camp.
The moon was absolutely beautiful. Before it came up over the mountain it made the whole sky glow orange. I wish I was better at night pictures and could have made this a better shot.
Justice was full of information. And he loved looking at the rocks and "seeing animals" in them. He is so creative.
Braydon was a riot. He was our Pa. He took such good care of his real brother who struggled, but always made sure our family was taken care of too. I was impressed with him. Lots of the families couldn't find their pa's when they needed them, but Braydon always made sure our camp was taken care of. I did get the opportunity to take away his iPod that he wasn't supposed to bring.
Adam had fun and was always happy. He looked for animals in the rocks with Justice, and was almost always at the front of the cart pulling.
Brittany was our Ma. She has so much energy. On Tuesday, she didn't feel well at all, and it was very obvious, but she participated in all of the experiences without a word of complaint. She is tough and not afraid of the obstacles ahead of her. Thanks for helping me in the women's pull even though you didn't feel well Britt.
Thalia had such quiet strength. I had a hard time getting to know her because she is quiet, but I learned so much from her just through observation. She always did what she was asked, and never complained.
Aurora has such a happy spirit. She struggled so much with her allergies, and I could tell that she was miserable, but I never heard any complaints.
Unfortunately, I don't have any good pictures of these girls. I am so sad about this. There is a really cute one of Thalia, but it is so dark that it is impossible to see.
Justice (who we referred to lovingly as Steve) was so much fun. He always made us laugh but I was so impressed that he took the opportunity to feel the Spirit and grow in the Gospel. You can tell by the expression on his face in this picture how much fun he was to be with.
And I was so happy to get to know Tori and Jordan. These two are step-sisters. They are not members of the church, but they came and learned and had a good time. Tori was so happy, and Jordan was a work horse when it came to pulling the carts.
Braydon was too tired to walk to the bathrooms to put on his pajamas, so he did it in his sleeping bag!
Camp.
We had to make a family flag. We were so busy having fun that we didn't pay attention to it being upside down. It gave us one more thing to laugh about.
Tori and Jordan helped pull the handcart of our bishopric because they were away from it several times tending to other needs. Thanks girls for stepping up to the challenge.
It was quite a site to see us on the trail all spread out.
On Tuesday we had the option to pull one heavier cart with all of our supplies in it, or to pull both of our carts each loaded a little lighter. We chose to use just one so we could trade off and have more breaks from pulling. I think that we were the only family that did this. I am certainly glad that we did.
The statues depicting the rescue at Martin's Cove brought a lot of emotion. My great-great-grandfather Francis Webster was in that ill-fated company and was one who needed rescued.
Some of our stake group at a resting point.
Brian and I in front of the monument to those heroic handcart saints and their rescuers.
This sign made me laugh so hard. It's just not something you see everyday.
We had a short devotional in Dan Jones cove before we continued up the trail into Martin's Cove.
I have never seen a Sego Lily flower in real life. They are beautiful flowers.
Brain and I in Martin's Cove.
It is so humbling to think that at least 15 of the Handcart Saints lost their life here in jsut one night.
I am also humbled to have had the opportunity to walk on that hallowed ground in the exact spot that those people suffered so much for the Gospel and freedom to worship. I have wondered many times if I would have had the courage to do the same thing.
There is a story of a handcart pioneer that was given the assignment by a rescuer to cut some firewood so that he wouldn't sit down and freeze to death. They believe that this is one of the stumps of a tree he cut down. It has been tested and dated to have been cut about that time.
This is some of the old fort that the pioneers originally took refuge around. It is near the visitor's center.
This picture is a little out of order. This is when we first arrived, filled our cart, and started trekking.
Braydon and "Steve" pulling the cart.
Brittany and Justice pulling the other cart.
Our first family picture on the trail.
Brian brought an American flag to put on our second cart. It looked so awesome waving in the breeze. We received many comments on what a good idea that was.
There are so many experiences that I didn't get pictures of. On Tuesday we had the special opportunity to cross the Sweetwater River close to where the saints crossed when they left the fort for the greater protection of the cove. It was icy and cold at that time, and this is where the story of the four boys who carried people across all day took place. Many of the starving saints couldn't stand the thought of crossing a partially frozen river even one more time in the condition that they were in, and so the four boys from the rescue party stepped up and carried anyone across who felt like they needed it. As we crossed, they had two rescue boys and invited any others that would like to help the sisters cross to do so. most of us chose to do it without help, but some were grateful for another hand to help them across safely.
The other testimony building opportunity that we had was the women's pull. During the real handcart treks, many of the men were called away on missions, or died. This left many of the women to continue the journey to the Salt Lake Valley alone, many with small children to care for. Our men were also called away, and the women and girls were asked to pull the carts alone without the help of the men on the toughest stretch of terrain that we faced during our 3 days. Many of the women were scared to death of this opportunity, and many of them had voiced their fears. I didn't understand the fear. I figured if worst came to worst, we could pull our handcarts aside and help others up the hill. This was the first time that I realized that all of the other families had chosen to pull two carts each and that they only had 2-3 women per cart. Brittany and I decided that we were going to help as many up the hill as we could and then go back for our own cart. We told Thalia and Aurora our plans and invited them to help us. But we also told them that if they didn't want to, that they could wait with our cart and we would come back to help them pull it up the hill. I was so glad to see that they chose to help us out. I know that Brittany and I each helped at least 3 other carts up the hill, but I was amazed to see about 25 or 30 girls come back down to help us with ours. It was so neat to see everyone work together for the good of the group.
Tuesday night we also had high winds. Many of the girls tents around camp were completely broken, and we had to scramble to find them all places to sleep. But even worse was the terrible fear of so many of the girls and a few of the boys. I assured them that Heavenly Father was aware of the experiences that we were having and would not let anything happen to us. I also assured several of them that this was truly part of the authentic experience. It touched my heart to see and hear of several in my family that knelt to pray to ask our Heavenly Father for protection and peace in their hearts until the wind passed. I truly saw that miracle come to pass.
This is an experience I hope never fades from my memory. I truly came to appreciate the sacrifices of my pioneer ancestors that gave everything they posessed for the gospel that they had only belonged to for such a short time. I know that they experienced heartache as well as miracles. And I know that they came to know God. They wouldn't have sacrificed so much if they hadn't. I am grateful to those people who saw to it that I was able to go when I had no real reason to go. And I am grateful to those youth who took me in as part of their family for a few days. I will remember you forever.
Amber and Zak both caught a fish. Les was excited for them, but a little bummed for himself. What more could a little boy want than to catch a slimy fish, watch it die a miserable suffocating death, and then to eat it....skin and all (Les loves the skin, I can't watch him eat it. Really, is fish skin supposed to be eaten....YUCK.)
And Les was in his own little heaven with a slingshot and a few rocks. I'm surprised they came home with all eyes in their sockets, and all the windows in the truck!
Apparently there was lightning and lots of rain. Thank heaven for an awesome Christmas-present-tent from Mom & Dad, every time we camp, the rains find us, and every time, we stay dry. Hooray for waterproofing!
