Rock Creek Hollow

We waited Friday evening for the rest of the companies to get done and then were bussed about 2 hours to our next campsite. It's only 14 miles from where we were to trek to Rock Creek Hollow, but it's quite a trip on the bus on the highway that goes around. It was good, we all got another good nap. By the time we got to Rock Creek, it was 9-10pm. We were worried because we knew we still had to cook our tinfoil dinners and thought it was going to be midnight before we ate dinner. When we got there, the stake people announced that they had just thrown everything in dutch ovens and dinner was almost ready. We were so happy. It got dark pretty soon after we got there and it was a little crazy trying to find all of our stuff and get camp set up. We had flashlights, but a lot of us were thinking that the pioneers would have had nights like this as well, and no lights...

We ate dinner and then hiked down into Rock Creek Hollow. This was probably my favorite part. As you hike down in, it ends in these rugged cliff tops and there is no way out except to turn back, or hike up the only part of the hill that is flat on the left side. As I looked up that hill, I could just imagine that is how the Willy Company came in. This hollow is significant because after the Willie Company hiked Rocky Ridge (one of the most grueling parts for their company) they walked another 12-14 miles into this hollow and rested for a few days. They burried 13 people who had died along this part of the trail in one grave, and then the next morning, burried two of the men who had dug the grave. There is a monument for these 15 people there in the hollow with each one of their names. There is also another monument that says, "REMEMBER." It has Pres. Hinckley, Monson, and Faust and the times they visited engraved. Pres. Hinckley dedicated this site as "hallowed ground" and we were to be reverent and respectful while we were in there. As if we were in a temple. The spirit there was strong. We had a testimony that night until about 1am . Our stake pres. spoke to us, and then our stake young mens leader. Very touching. Then about 12-15 youth and leaders took some time to share their testimonies. It was late and very cold. We couldn't see much, but were able to go back in the morning before the busses left. That night as we got back to our sleeping bags, there was already frost on them. We knew we were in trouble. We huddled around the fire and got warm and then crawled in our bags to sleep. Scott decided to stay by the fire and keep it going all night. He put his glasses on his hat and a few hours later woke up, grabbed his hat to fan the fire, and lost his glasses in the fire. He didn't realize it until a few hours later that he had dropped them in there..... so Scott lost his sight on TREK! :)

The next morning we were able to go back in the cove and see the graves and the monument. We hiked up the trail where the pioneers must have come in and all you could see for miles was rolling rocky hills. It looked so HARD. There are two other gravesites in there that are fenced in and are covered with shale and rocks. We know this is how they burried their dead because the ground was to frozen and they dug shallow graves, and covered them in rocks to keep the wolves out. These people sacrificed and suffered so much to be obedient and heed the call to come to Zion. They knew...they knew and they came! I'm so glad I was able to experience this. It truly changed my life.