Don Wildman

All the while, he's thinking about his Airstream wagon back behind him.

Darn it all.

How'd that thing get over the mountains, by the way?

Anyway.

It was not going to.

An elderly man named Hartkoop also was ejected from the wagon and forced to walk on his own to relieve the animal load.

I mean, they're basically losing their animals as they go along.

They find this guy a few days later sitting by a stream, feet swollen.

This is like a movie, you know, as far as like foreboding symbols, isn't it?

He was not ever seen again after that.

Yeah, so hard coup.

By that time, by the time we're moving into September, they have lost nearly 100 oxen and cattle, which of course means they can't take as many provisions as they would like.

They're having to leave things behind, I imagine, because they can't carry them.

So as we move into September, this becomes the fateful time.

There is a little bit of good luck.

One of the men has returned with provisions and two Native American guides, right?

Miwok guides named Salvatore and Luis.

Yes.

There must be a sense of, ah, good.

We're not that far away if they can find us.