Martin's Cove

Turn up the Heat!

We awoke to snow on our mountains! It is officially(no matter the calendar!) FALL here!

We have had a busy weekend. We went on a training seminar to Martin's Cove in Wyoming. For those of you that don't know what Martin's Cove is let me give you some history. In the early history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS-Mormon's) there was a huge exodus across the country to Utah. Thousands of Pioneers came across the plains in covered wagons and also handcarts. The first groups arrived in Salt Lake in 1847 but there continued to be great numbers of people that continued to come for many more years. In the year 1856 numerous handcart companies left Iowa--they left later than normal. When they reached Wyoming they were in a desperate situation. Their food had been rationed and was almost completely gone. An early winter storm overtook them. Their's is a story of faith. Many, many of these faithful pioneers lost their lives before a rescue team from Salt Lake City made it to them.

We are planning a "Trek" with my husbands single young adult ward next summer. In the course of the experience we will learn about these pioneers by dressing in pioneer clothing and by pulling handcarts and learning about their struggles and their faith.

This was our first time to participate in something of this sort. It was a humbling experience. This is not a vacation destination. There is no reason to ever drive to this part of the world. It is desolate, windy and full of nothing! However, the feelings that exist in that sacred place were felt as soon as you stepped on the trail. We were trained about how to carry out our groups trek. We actually participated in the different activities, saw videos of other groups, learned histories of those who survived and those that didn't.

My sweet hubby was exhausted after we finished. Not just from the physical strain of the trek but from the intensity of the Spirit that was felt there. The Spirits of those pioneers tarries there.

This is an experience that we will not soon forget.

(rarity for me but I took NO pictures)