Morning beautiful, no wind and warm. We have not been disturbed by
the Indians; all is peace in the camp. At eight o'clock we continued
our journey, making a more crooked road than usual, having to bend
south to near the banks of the river. The prairie somewhat soft and a
little uneven. After traveling five and a half miles we crossed a very
shoal creek about twenty feet wide. The bluffs and river about a mile
apart, but on the other side, the bluffs recede two miles back from
the river and have lost their craggy and steep appearance, the ascent
being gradual, while on this side they begin to be rocky, cragged and
almost perpendicular though not very high. We traveled till half past
eleven and then halted for noon, having traveled seven and a quarter
miles, the road on this side the creek being better. Our course about
west of northwest with a light breeze from the east. Elder Kimball and
others ahead as usual. The creek above mentioned was named Crab Creek
because some of the brethren saw a very large crab in it. A mile east
of this creek is a dry creek, down which, from appearances, a heavy
stream runs at some seasons of the year, perhaps during heavy storms.
The water running from the bluffs swells it to a considerable height
and it is certain there are tremendous storms here. A while after we
halted, Porter Rockwell came in and said he had been on the high bluff
about a mile northwest of us and had seen the rock called Chimney Rock
which appeared a long distance off. We have been in hopes to come in
sight of it today and feel anxious in order to ascertain more certainly
the correctness of Fremont's distance. In order to satisfy myself,
although my feet were blistered and very sore, I determined to take my
telescope and go on the bluff to ascertain for myself whether the noted
rock could be seen or not. At half past twelve I started out alone. I
found the distance to the foot of the bluff a good mile, the ascent
gradual. From the foot the bluff looks very high and rough, many huge
rocks having broken from the summit from time to time and rolled down a
long distance. I found the ascent very steep and lengthy in comparison
to its appearance from camp. When I arrived on the top I found a nice
slightly arched surface of about a quarter of an acre in extent, but
barren and very little grass on it. Huge comparatively smooth rocks
peeped through the surface on one of which I wrote with red chalk:
"Wm. Clayton. May 22, 1847." On the highest point I sat down and took
a view of the surrounding country which is magnificent indeed. On the
south at the distance of two miles from the river, there is a range of
cedar trees on the bluffs which very much resemble some of the parks
and seats of gentry in England. East I could see where we camped last
night, the high grass still burning. Northeast, north, and northwest,
alternately, appeared high swelling bluffs and valleys as far as the
eye could see or the glass magnify. West, the course of the Platte for
ten or fifteen miles and at about four or five miles distance, a large
bend to the north brings it in contact with the bluffs on this side.
At the distance, I should judge of about twenty miles, I could see
Chimney Rock very plainly with the naked eye, which from here very much
resembles the large factory chimneys in England, although I could not
see the form of its base. The rock lay about due west from here. After
gratifying my curiosity, and seeing the men collecting their teams
for a march, I descended on the west side of the bluff. The descent
at this point looks more alarming than on the other. The side being
very steep and all along huge rocks standing so critically, that to
all appearance, a waft of wind would precipitate them to the prairie
below with tremendous force. In one place in particular, a ponderous
mass of rock appears to hang from the edge of the bluff without any
visible means of being retained in its position, and by gazing at it
a little while, it is easy to imagine you can see it move and ready
to overwhelm you instantly. At a little distance from the base of the
bluff, I turned to gaze on the romantic scenery above and was struck at
the appearance of a large rock projecting from one corner, which very
much resembled a frog's head of immense size with its mouth part open.
The thought was, those bluffs ought to be named and what name more
appropriate than Frog's Head Bluffs. After this reflection, I walked on
to where I thought the wagons would come which started out at half past
one. After traveling three and a quarter miles we crossed a dry creek
about six rods wide, and a quarter of a mile farther, another about
five feet wide and a half a mile farther, still another about six rods
wide on an average. These all appear to be the sources of heavy streams
of water at some seasons of the year. Soon as we crossed this last
one, I saw Elder Kimball wave his hat for the wagons to turn off to
the north in order to cross the bluffs which struck the river a little
farther. But a little to the west was a very high ridge and I concluded
to walk on to it. Found it to be a perfect ridge of gravel, very high
and rounding on the top, not more than four or five feet wide and from
north to south about 150 feet long. Elder Pratt names this Cobble
Hills, the gravel or cobbles varying in size of from fifty pounds in
weight to the smallest pebble. At the north foot of this hill is what
might be named a clay bank, being composed of a light colored kind of
sandy clay and forms a kind of large table. A little distance farther,
we crossed another dry creek about eight rods wide and then ascended
the bluffs. The ascent is pretty steep for nearly half a mile, but
hard and not difficult to travel. The wagon had to wind about some to
keep around the foot of the bluffs, crossing the dry creek three times
before we emerged from the bluffs to the banks of the river. We crossed
another dry creek pretty steep on each side and then found ourselves
once more on the prairie bottom. The bluffs are two and a quarter
miles from the east to the west foot following our trail. The wind has
blown from the southeast all day until lately, when a dead calm has
succeeded. In the west a heavy thunder cloud has been gathering for
two hours and vivid streaks of lightning observed in the distance. At
twenty minutes to five the wind struck suddenly from the northwest, the
blackest part of the cloud then lying in that direction. We had a few
drops of rain only. Then it seemed to turn off to the east. The scenery
after this was indeed sublime, the sun peering out from under the heavy
clouds reflecting long rays upwards which were imitated in the east.
The romantic bluffs on the north and the lightning playing in the
southeast all tended to fill my mind with pleasant reflections, on the
goodness and majesty of the Creator and Governor of the universe, and
the beauty of the works of his hands. At 5:45 we formed our encampment
in a circle within a quarter of a mile of the banks of the river,
having traveled this afternoon, eight and a quarter miles and through
the day fifteen and a half, making the distance from Winter Quarters
440 miles in five weeks and three and a half days. The feed on the
lower bench of the prairie is tolerably good, while the higher land is
quite bare. We have noticed today a great many petrified bones, some
very large. All are turned into solid, hard stone, which proves that
the atmosphere is pure and the country would doubtless be healthy, but
is not adapted for farming purposes on account of the poor sandy soil
and no timber at all on this side the river. I have noticed a variety
of shrubs, plants and flowers all new to me today, many of which have
a very pleasant smell and in some places the air appears impregnated
with the rich odors arising from them. Among the rest are numerous
beds of the southern wood. There are also vast beds of flinty pebbles
of various colors, some as white as alabaster. About 6:30 I observed a
group of brethren standing together inside the camp. I went up and saw
a young eagle which had been taken out of its nest on one of these high
bluffs by George R. Grant and Orson Whitney. Although it is very young
and its feathers have scarcely commenced growing, it measures from the
tips of its wings when stretched, forty-six inches. Its head is nearly
the size of my fist and looks very ferocious. After this I went with
John Pack and Horace Whitney to the bluffs. On our way we saw a large
wolf about as large as the largest dog in camp. He was within a quarter
of a mile from camp. After traveling about a mile we arrived at the
foot of a stupendous mass of rocks almost perpendicular, with only one
place where it was possible to ascend. We went up with difficulty and
by using our hands and knees, gained the top. We had to walk over a
little space which was only about three feet wide and on the east side
a perpendicular fall of about sixty feet. Although from the camp this
peak looks only large enough for a man to stand upon we found it large
enough to seat comfortably about twenty persons. The top is composed of
large rocks and very uneven. The prairie below looks a long distance
under foot from this peak. Descending we viewed the surrounding scenery
which looks more like the ruins of an ancient city with its castles,
towers, fortifications, etc., on all sides, and a dry stream coming
through the center. We proceeded to the next high rock and found it
very difficult of ascent. The top is nearly level and very pleasant. We
discovered several other varieties of shrubbery, all smelling pleasant
and strong. We saw that a horse has sometime stood on the top, but how
he got there, we could not easily determine. At the east end there is
a cedar tree flat on the top and on the underside almost looks like an
umbrella. We made a calculation of the height of this bluff as well as
we could and concluded it must be at least 200 feet higher than the
river. The surrounding country can be seen for many miles from its
summit, and Chimney Rock shows very plainly. We descended at the east
end and arrived in camp at dark well satisfied with our journey. Some
of the brethren have discovered a cave in one of these bluffs, and one
went into it a little distance, but it being very dark and having no
torch, he did not venture far. Elder Pratt reports that he saw on the
top of one of the bluffs, a hole in a rock 15 inches in diameter and a
foot deep with five inches of very cold good water in it. He supposed
it to be a spring. Between the bluffs they also discovered a spring of
pure cold water of a very good taste. Dr. Richards names these bluffs
"Bluff Ruins" from their appearance being that of the ruins of castles,
cities, etc. A little to the left is a small perpendicular rock much
resembling Chimney Rock but smaller. The whole of the scenery around
is one of romantic beauty which cannot be described with either pen or
tongue. Last night a large black dog, half wolf, supposed to belong to
the Indians, came to the camp. He has kept within two hundred yards of
the wagons all day, and has followed us to this place. There have been
many rattlesnakes seen today and six or seven killed. In fact, this
place seems to abound with them. The evening was spent very joyfully by
most of the brethren, it being very pleasant and moonlight. A number
danced till the bugle sounded for bed time at nine o'clock. A mock
trial was also prosecuted in the case of the camp vs. James Davenport
for blockading the highway and turning ladies out of their course.
Jackson Redding acted as the presiding judge. Elder Whipple attorney
for defendant and Luke Johnson attorney for the people. We have many
such trials in the camp which are amusing enough and tend among other
things to pass away the time cheerfully during leisure moments. It was
remarked this evening that we have one man in camp who is entitled to
the credit of being more even tempered than any of the others, and that
is Father Chamberlain. He is invariably cross and quarrelsome, but the
brethren all take it as a joke and he makes considerable amusement for
the camp. Opposite the encampment there are quite a number of small
islands, but no timber on any of them.