The Search for Snake River Page 5

  If you run in the same direction as the animals, turn to page 104

  If you try to climb out of the fire’s reach, turn to page 27

  Return to page 58

  You lunge for the wheel, stretching your arms out as far as they will go. Almost! The wheel is just inches out of your reach. Taking a deep breath, you let go of the rope you were holding on to and swim as quickly as you can toward the wheel. The current is moving rapidly, carrying the wheel downstream. But you are a strong swimmer and manage to catch up to it.

  Got it! You wrap your fingers around the wheel, and pull it close to you. It’s still floating and starts to carry you like a raft.

  “Pa!” you shout, realizing that no one saw you swim away and that they won’t know where you are. You see Pa moving the oxen along, and try to wave to get his attention. But your family and wagon are only getting smaller as you move farther and farther away.

  Desperate, you use all your strength to swim in their direction. Your muscles start to burn, but you can’t make any progress against the powerful current. It continues to pull you away from where you want to be. Suddenly, you see some rocks in front of you. You manage to steer the wheel and yourself away from them just in time.

  BAM! The next rocks are too big to avoid. You crash into them, and right before you are knocked out forever, you wonder if the wagon wheel will still make it to shore.

   THE END

  Return to page 82

  Almost everyone agrees to wait for the ferry to be repaired. Even though it will take a few days, you’ve heard too many stories of pioneers slipping and falling off the gravel path into the swift current of the Green River. Many wagons were lost this way, and both dreams and lives were destroyed.

  Luckily the banks of the Green River make for a nice, grassy place to camp where the animals can graze. Pa and Caleb volunteer to help repair the ferry, which gets it operating a day sooner.

  When it’s finally your time to ride across, you sit in the wagon, which is taken over the rushing water on a wooden planked raft. You hold your little brother’s and sister’s hands tightly until you are safely across to the other side.

  It takes almost a full day for all of the wagons in your train to get across the river. While you’re waiting, you, Joseph, and Eliza organize the kids into a game of hide-and-seek.

  “You’re it!” Samuel shouts and runs away.

  You close your eyes and count to fifty.

  “Ready or not, here I come,” you announce, and look around. No one is in sight except for Archie, who barks and runs toward a bunch of bushes. You follow him to see what he finds.

  When you get to the bushes, you hear Archie start to growl softly.

  “It’s okay, Archie,” you say, expecting to see your little brother or sister curled up there. But instead, you gasp. Lying in the brush next to a little pond is a baby antelope! It stares at you with wide round eyes.

  “Aw, poor thing,” you say. “Why are you all alone?”

  You guess the antelope has been orphaned or abandoned, so you go ask Ma if you can give it a little bit of milk in a cup.

  “You shouldn’t touch wild animals!” she says, following you to the spot. But when she sees the baby animal, she softens and agrees to give you some milk.

  The antelope follows you and becomes your new pet. You name her Gertrude and tie a ribbon around her neck. When the wagon train moves, she travels with you, just like Archie.

  One afternoon, after you’ve stopped for your midday break, a bunch of dogs appear out of nowhere and start chasing Gertrude. A moment later, two Lakota men on horses race after the dogs. You run after them, waving your arms and yelling.

  “Stop! She’s mine!”

  A little while later, the Lakota men return with Gertrude tied to the back of a horse, lying limp.

  “No!” you cry, realizing the dogs must have caught up to her.

  One of the men gets off his horse and speaks to Pa. After the conversation, Pa approaches you.

  “The men are sorry their dogs killed your antelope,” he says. “They are offering us some deerskins in return.”

  It’s nice of the Lakota people to want to give you something in return for what happened to Gertrude. But part of you feels like you shouldn’t accept it. Their dogs didn’t know Gertrude was your pet. What do you say?

  If you say that you’ll take the gift, turn to page 21

  If you decline the gift, turn to page 108

  Return to page 70

  Let’s run,” Ma says. “I’m afraid we won’t be able to climb quickly enough, and the animals won’t make it up the steep incline.”

  You grab a few essentials from the wagon and start to run. You hold Samuel by the hand, and Pa puts Hannah on his shoulders. Ma is carrying water and some of your bedding. She tries to keep up, leading the cow behind her.

  “We have to move faster!” Pa shouts, as more wild animals run past you. Your oxen have already been unyoked, and they, too, are running in the direction of the other animals.

  You hear the breaking of branches and roaring of the flames, and the smoke gets thicker and harder to breathe through. You start to cough desperately, but keep running as quickly as you can.

  “You’re going too fast,” Samuel says. “I’m going to fall!”

  “Keep up,” you snap at him, yanking his arm. You feel bad for being harsh, but you know there is no other option. Sam has to keep running, even though his legs must be aching as badly as yours.

  You feel the heat of the fire grow more intense. It gets harder and harder to keep moving, and more and more difficult to breathe.

  “Sam!” you shout as your little brother stumbles and falls to the ground. He lies there, unmoving.

  “Sam! Get up!” You shake him hard and roll him over, and see a big gash on his head.

  Pa runs back and grabs Sam, handing Hannah off to Ma. You start to run again and for a moment everything seems quiet. You think you might have gotten away from the fire, and wonder if maybe it turned in a different direction. But you’re wrong. Within moments the fire catches up to all of you and you are engulfed in flames.

   THE END

  Return to page 95

  The group decides the cutoff is the better way to go. Not only will you save a week of travel, you won’t have to ford the Green River. Everyone tries to prepare for the challenges of the desert ahead. Your water-skins are fully loaded, and you’ve brought along extra barrels of water.

  “It’s important to think twice before drinking water,” Caleb warns everyone. “We have to make our supply last until we get to another source.”

  You try to follow orders, but by the second day, it’s really hard. The desert is drier and hotter than anyone expected, and it is making you extra thirsty. Plus you can’t stop coughing. As the oxen plod along, they kick up so much dust it creates a big brown cloud, making it hard to breathe.

  “We can’t continue like this,” Pa says. “We need to make it easier to travel somehow.”

  Caleb agrees. “We could travel by night and then rest during the day. The hot sun will be less of a problem that way. Or we could line up our wagons side to side instead of in a line,” he suggests.

  “What is the advantage of that?” Ma asks.

  “That way you won’t walk through the dust of the wagons in front of you,” he says.

  What do you do?

  If you travel by night, turn to page 135

  If you travel side by side, turn to page 61

  Return to page 11

  Pa, the dogs didn’t know that Gertie wasn’t just a regular antelope,” you say. “I would feel bad taking anything from them.”

  “I agree with you,” Pa says, looking at you proudly. “I’ll tell them what you said.”

  Pa goes back to the men and speaks to them. They nod their heads, then jump up on their horses and ride away. But just after you start to hike again, they return.

  “We will travel with you as far as the next village,” they say. One of the
men smiles warmly at you. You learn that his name is Roaring Cloud and his son is Bright Sky. They are part of the Lakota Nation.

  The next day, the men accompany your wagon train. Along the way, they point out various plants and tell you what is edible and what they use for making medicines. Ma listens carefully and makes notes in her journal.

  Everyone is grateful to have the company of people so familiar with the land. It makes you feel safer. When you make camp, the Lakota disappear, and you wonder if they have left to go back to their homes. But then they come back, just as quickly as they left, and hand Ma a jackrabbit to add to supper. Ma prepares it into a savory stew that everyone shares. And as you sit around the campfire after a satisfying meal, Roaring Cloud tells you stories of his family and Lakota legends.

  “Once upon a time, when the world was young, Porcupine had no quills,” he starts.

  “Really?” Hannah asks, her eyes huge as she listens intently.

  “Porcupines were smooth like mice,” Roaring Cloud continues, explaining how Porcupine, an animal who lived long ago, discovered prickly thorns from a bush. Porcupine put them on like a coat, then curled himself into a ball to keep Bear and Wolf away.

  “Wow,” Samuel says, enjoying the story as much as you are. You notice how your new friend’s dark eyes shine in the light of the fire and wish that he and Bright Sky would stay with you all the way until Oregon.

  The next day you arrive at the Lakota settlement, and your wagon train makes camp nearby. Roaring Cloud invites you to supper for a feast. You, Hannah, and Samuel gather a bunch of wildflowers to take with you. Pa brings some fuel that he’s collected for the fire, too.

  “This is so exciting!” Hannah says, smoothing her apron over her dress. Even though it feels like a celebration, you don’t have anything fancy to wear. You’re still in the dusty dirty clothes you wear on the Trail. You all help Ma wash the clothes by the rivers as often as you can, but it’s a process that takes hours. And your clothes get dirty again so quickly anyway.

  The settlement is bustling with people coming in and out of the teepees. But one area is set up for the feast. Roaring Cloud greets you with a warm smile and offers you a seat in front of a mat that is covered with plates of food. A woman dressed in elaborate skins smiles at you, and you wonder if she is his wife.

  “What’s that?” Samuel asks, wrinkling his nose at the sight of the food.

  “I don’t know,” you reply. “But it doesn’t look like anything we’ve ever eaten before.”

  There is a loaf of bear root bread and wild onion stew and a cake-like thing made out of another kind of root. Pa has eaten the cake in the past, and says it tastes like a sweet potato. But you’re not sure about any of this food.

  You feel Roaring Cloud looking at you, and wonder if he notices that you aren’t eating. You don’t want to hurt his feelings, but you are not used to this kind of food. Do you force yourself to eat it? Or do you wait until you get back to your camp and have something safe and familiar, like the leftover beans from last night’s supper?

  If you force yourself to eat, turn to page 63

  If you wait to eat leftovers, turn to page 35

  Return to page 100

  You don’t want to wake Caleb so you rummage through the medicine chest for the tonic. It’s too dark to search for a spoon, so you take a few gulps straight from the bottle. Then you get back to your tent and lie down again.

  After a little tossing and turning you finally fall asleep. Soon you are in a heavy slumber and have weird dreams. In one dream, you have taken too much medicine and ended up poisoning yourself. Or is that your fate?

   THE END

  Return to page 43

  I think we should get off the Trail,” you whisper to Pa.

  “I think you’re right,” he replies. “If we don’t find some food for the oxen soon, they won’t make it much longer.”

  Luckily, everyone else finally agrees with you. You’re feeling hopeful that conditions are going to get better as you veer south off the Trail. But after you travel for several miles, the terrain hasn’t changed much, and you start to worry about whether or not you’ll really find more grass or water on this path.

  The wagon train stops for the midday break. Everyone starts snacking, but you can’t stand not knowing what’s ahead.

  “Pa, I’m going to climb up that rock to see what’s nearby,” you say.

  “Okay, but hurry,” Pa says. “We have to get moving again soon.”

  You scramble to the top of the rock, which gives you a better view. A deep sense of disappointment washes over you as you stand at the top. As far as you can see, there is nothing but barren land.

  Pa looks up at you and motions that it’s time to leave. You slide down the rock and hurry back to your wagon. You shake your head at Pa without saying a word. He nods sadly, understanding.

  Five days later, the oxen are weak and frail and you have not had a warm meal in days. It’s just too difficult to find fuel for fires. You set up camp for the evening, and Ma tries to lift everyone’s spirits by spreading the little bit of the molasses she has left on prairie biscuits, as a treat. You lick the sticky sweetness off your fingers, and are feeling a bit better when suddenly you hear the sound of hooves approaching. Is it Native American people, or maybe someone else who can help you? You’ve heard of groups of people who have made a business of helping weary pioneers.

  “Do you think they are bringing us supplies?” you ask Pa.

  “I’m not sure,” Pa responds with a concerned look.

  In the end, the riders don’t bring you anything but trouble. They are bandits looking for lost and helpless victims like you. They rob you of everything valuable, including what’s left of your money.

  After they ride away, you hear nothing but stifled sobs. Now you are left with even less than you had before, stranded in a harsh and unwelcoming land. As your oxen start to die, you realize that you won’t ever make it to Oregon.

   THE END

  Return to page 122

  You scrap the idea of rummaging through the medicine chest without anyone to tell you what to take. But soon you see Ma peeking through your tent to check on you.

  “How long have you been coughing like that?” she asks, concerned.

  You shrug weakly. Ma returns a few minutes later with some medicine and an extra blanket.

  “Here, take this and wrap yourself in this blanket,” she says.

  You drink the bitter tonic. And soon, under the weight of the blanket, you fall into a deep sleep.

  * * *

  Your wagon train is making its way along the Snake River. You’ve recovered from your cough and are feeling much better. That’s a relief, because sometimes coughs are the start of deadly illnesses. Suddenly you hear the loud rushing of water.

  “Those must be the Shoshone Falls,” Caleb says, listening carefully. “I’ve read they’re supposed to be very impressive.”

  “Can we go see them?” Eliza asks. She’s always on the lookout for an adventure.

  “We can, if everyone doesn’t mind extra hiking.”

  “I hear the falls are one of the wonders of the Trail,” Ma says. “I’d like to see them.”

  Everyone else is equally eager so you agree to make the trek. When you reach the falls, they are one of the most beautiful sights you have ever seen. The rushing sheets of water drop down, foaming and frothing, from the cliffs above. The force of the water is so loud it can be heard from miles away.

  A couple days later you come upon another amazing sight along the river. It’s an area between two rapids where dozens of Shoshone people are spearing massive fish. You recognize the pinkish fish as the kind you tried for the first time at Fort Hall.

  “Pa, look! It’s salmon!” you say. “Can we get some?”

  “Let’s ask,” Pa says, looking hungrily at the fish. You’ve had nothing but bacon and cornmeal pudding for days, and you could all use a change.

  Pa barters for several large fish, which
he grills over the campfire that night. Ma pulls out some potatoes that she has saved for a long time, and you all enjoy a delicious and satisfying supper.

  The feast brings out the celebratory mood in everyone. After everyone is done eating, fiddles and harmonicas fill the air with song. You, Eliza, and Joseph play a game of cards. Samuel and Hannah entertain themselves by stringing together colorful beads that Ma got from the Shoshone people.

  The evening gives everyone a nice break, which is important because of the big challenge ahead. You are about to approach Three Island Crossing, which is the hardest part of the Snake River to cross.

  “Even though it’s difficult, we need to cross the river here to avoid a rough desert route that would take us through massive sand dunes,” Caleb explains.

  “What is the crossing like?” Pa asks.

  “First we have to ford one section of the river, which is about a hundred yards wide, to an island,” Caleb says. “Then we cross a swift and dangerous branch to another island, and then there’s one more part of the river to get across.”

  Everyone starts to talk about the best way to get across the river.

  “I’ve heard we should tie the wagons together,” one man suggests. “The extra weight makes it less likely that the wagons will tip over or drift downstream.”