Wilderness Wanderings by Henderson Peggy L

Author:Henderson, Peggy L. [Henderson, Peggy L.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Amazon: B095XVPPG4
Goodreads: 58175404
Publisher: Peggy Henderson
Published: 2021-05-26T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

The day had started out miserable and was only getting worse. Cold rain had greeted the travelers earlier this morning, and by noon, it had turned into a torrential downpour.

“We can’t keep going in these conditions,” Blake called to Joe, who sat hunkered down in the driver’s box of his wagon. Water streamed off the rim of his hat. For once, the man looked miserable rather than surly.

“We should try for a few more miles,” he shouted to Blake.

Blake gritted his teeth. He shook his head, splashing water off his own hat in the process.

“Several wagons have already gotten stuck in the mud. The animals are exhausted and so are the people. We’re not making any headway by digging wagons out of the mud all day long. Best to stop and conserve our energy and wait out this weather.”

“Stopping out in the open like this ain’t any better,” Joe argued. His wife and daughters stood next to the wagon, drenched and looking cold and miserable. Martha Miner glanced up at Blake with a pleading look in her eyes. She was ready to stop for the day, but she didn’t dare speak up in front of her husband.

Everyone turned their heads at the splashing sound of an approaching horse. Nora came galloping toward the wagons. She’d disappeared earlier, riding ahead of the train without telling Blake or anyone else where she was going.

It was something she’d done since the day Blake had told her he needed her help. Sometimes she was gone for only an hour or so, while at other times she remained missing for nearly half the day. Each time, she returned with news of locations for good camping or grazing for the animals, or even where she’d spotted deer or other animals to hunt for some fresh meat.

Nora pulled her horse up alongside Joe Miner’s wagon. Her face was covered in mud. Blake stared at her. Despite the miserable conditions, she looked radiant and full of life. The storm didn’t seem to affect her spirits in the least.

“There’s a good place less than a mile up ahead where we can stop. The terrain climbs a bit and plenty of rocky outcroppings should give some shelter for when this storm turns into a wind gale. I think it would be wise to stop for the remainder of the day.”

She looked at Blake as she spoke, ignoring Joe who made sounds of disgust from his wagon.

“We’re already a few days behind schedule,” Joe called. “We can’t keep losing any more time or we’ll be stuck in the mountains when the snow hits. A little bit of rain will seem like a walk in the park then.”

“We’re not losing time,” Blake retorted. “We’re on schedule. Like I said at the beginning of this journey, I don’t want to exhaust everyone, including the animals. You think it’s rough out here on the open prairie. Wait until we get past Fort Laramie. The perils of that leg of the journey are too numerous to spell out to you right now.

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