Battalion Trek - Adventures and Aha Moments Hiking the Mormon Battalion Trail

On June 28, 2025 David and Tera Day with their daughter, Rachel joined us for a day full of stops along the Mormon Pioneer/Oregon Trail. We started at Twin Mounds and worked our way past South Pass, Charlotte Dansie's Grave, Dry Sandy, Little Sandy, Parting of the Ways, and Big Sandy Creeks. There was A LOT of open space filled with sagebrush and sandy washes in between.

Here, they share their impressions of the day.

What is it like to be on the trail? Mark & Becky Woodbury share their experiences and feelings after their first day with Trek 2025.

This last segment gives you an idea of HOW we will do thetrek - which is one of the most frequently asked questions.

The WHO is going is easy! Kevin & Denny except for a fewfriends who have expressed interest in coming at various points along the trail or... any of you who decide to pop in and surprise us.

We wrap it up describing the last minute items on our to-dolist and some thoughts from some of our 2009-2009 participants and what theexperience meant to them.

We did meet wonderful people and have many memorableexperiences and expect to do the same this time. We have our campground secured for the first few nights so... We'll see you in Pueblo!

Hint: Don't try to find us by looking for a porta-john.There won't be one this time. :)

In Part 2 Kevin explains the WHY of Trek 2025 - and one of the goals for this effort.

We'll also give our best information we have at this time about the HOW of finding us and following along with our travels.

Then Kevin will talk about WHEN we will be starting and ending.

I'm hoping the little sound clips will help you understand a bit better based on past experience about how things may go - not exactly as planned! We may not be as communicative as you wish, but... we will do our best to be where we are to be close to schedule.

We've been pretty busy to say much about our upcoming Trek but when we do mention it, there are lots of questions a-n-d- lots of raised eyebrows.

I thought it would be fun to reminisce about some of the reactions people had back on our 2008 trek and laugh at ourselves - amidst all the chaos of getting ready for this one.

With a mix of sound bytes from our trail friends and Kevin's explanations you'll get a little overview of what we've been up to, where we're going. The other "who", "why," "when," and "how" we'll catch in the next episode.

After listening to this - I asked Kevin who was going to be there to "detach" us? :)

So... here you go - the easiest way was for us to sit at the kitchen table and let Kevin give you the scoop.

The Battalion Documents have been found, digitized and partially transcribed. But now what? 17,000 archival boxes full of documents! How can we help Laura create order out of chaos? How can people be able to search with one click to pull up all the pages that have your ancestor or a certain place mentioned?

Laura explains the process and benefits but also sends out a plea for help.

Contact Laura if you'd like to help participate the discovery and research process by helping transcribe or review future transcriptions. email: [email protected]

To view the battalion documents that are currently on Kindex visit https://app.kindex.org/ and explore their archives. You may request access through the website.

Real historians rely on primary documents to explain

If you’d like to get access to the records that are posted on Kindex by the Mormon Battalion Association currently, contact Laura Anderson at [email protected]

Or, visit the Nauvoo Community Project https://nauvoo.byu.edu/

Have you ever wondered what it's like to visit the national archives? In this segment, Laura walks us through the process, procedures, and guidelines that are constructed to safeguard documents.

Next, she describes how she actually found the battalion records that have been so integral to acurately identifying who was in the group, and the historical background of previous efforts to locate the records.

She references Kristine Forbes' video detailing the incredible work the team did compiling and comparing the multiple lists from various roster and sources. Here is the link https://kristine.forbes.presentations.mormonbattalion.com/

Learn more at https://mormonbattalion.com/

Meet Laura Anderson - document-finding super sleuth --whose persistence and expertise have helped discover thought-to-be-lost original

We learn how Laura began her interest in primary documents, the experience she gained to help make

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