In the autumn of 1862, it was thought best to again visit the Moqui villages. President Young recommended that we cross the Colorado River south of St. George, and explore the country in that direction, with the view of finding a more feasible route than the one we had before traveled.
A company of twenty men were set apart for this purpose, by Apostles Orson Pratt and Erastus Snow.
A team accompanied us to the river with a small boat, in which we conveyed our luggage across. Our animals swam the river.
Expecting to return the same way, after crossing the river we cached our boat and some of our supplies.
The first day we traveled south, up a "wash," for about thirty miles. We then traveled three days through a rough, bushy country, with some scrub cedar and pine timber. The fourth night from the river we camped at a small "seep" spring. The San Francisco Mountain lay a little to the southeast of us, and in sight.
In the morning our Indian guide refused to go farther with us, his reason being that we were going into a country destitute of water. We counseled together, and decided that we could reach the foothills of the San Francisco Mountain without perishing.
The first night from the "seep" spring, a light fall of snow came on. It melted and ran into the hollows of the rocks, and furnished an abundant supply of water. This seemed like a special providence in our favor.
The second night we made a dry camp. The third night we arrived at the foot of the San Francisco Mountain, where we again found snow.
The second day after leaving this mountain we reached the Little Colorado River, and then traveled a little northeast to the Moqui towns.
We spent two days in visiting among them. We left Brothers Jehiel McConnell, Thales Haskell and Ira Hatch to labor among them for a season.