TUILLA VALLEY.—INDIAN GUIDES. 
21 
May 7.—A disagreeable night was followed by a bigb wind and a heavy snow-storm from 
the northwest, which drove in our faces for two hours while we were passing around the north 
end of Oquirrh mountain to Tuilla valley. The scenery in turning this point, in the storm, 
where we came directly upon the shore of the lake, with several islands rising abruptly from 
its waters, with high mountain shores and extensive mountain ranges in every direction, was 
very beautiful, and caused regret at the taste displayed in the selection of the site for the neigh¬ 
boring city, from which this beautiful sheet of water is seldom visible, and never appears 
picturesque. But as it is a city of farms, necessity doubtless dictated its own terms. 
The Mormons have several small settlements in Tuilla valley, which is ten or twelve 
miles in width, and extends south from the lake for some twenty miles, where it is crossed 
by a cross-range with low depressions at either end; the eastern leading into Cedar valley, 
and the western along the eastern base of the high range forming the western limit of this 
valley. The eastern side of this valley is finely grassed, but in crossing it the road lies 
through a continuous artemisia field, more or less interspersed with grass. For five or 
six miles in crossing, our road lay along an old shore-line of the lake, elevated some twenty 
feet above the general level of the valley, into which it gently subsides near a fine spring of 
water, flowing off in a bold little stream towards the lake. We encamped, after a march of 
20.59 miles, on Willow creek, three and a half miles above or south of the most western Mormon 
settlement upon this line, and directly at the foot of what had been favorably represented to us 
as a pass by which to cross the mountain. But its appearance as we approached it was too 
formidable to require further examination; and the Indians who came to our camp informed 
us, that it is with the greatest difficulty that a horse when led can ascend by this trail when free 
from snow—which it is not now—and that with a rider it is impassable. Altitude of camp, 
4,481 feet above the sea, and 170 feet less than at our morning camp. 
Sho-ish, a Utah chief, had sent a runner to his neighboring band, the Goshoots, upon whose 
territory we were just entering, to say that I was his friend and made very fine presents to his 
Indian brethren, who accordingly presented themselves at our camp, and were delighted with 
the trinkets which they received; and I employed two or three of them to accompany me across 
their own deserts and mountains, no reward being large enough to tempt them to introduce 
us to their western neighbors, of whom they stand in great fear. Snow-squalls continued 
during the day, whitening the valleys to the water-level of the lake, and ice formed during the 
night. 
May 8.—After some slight examinations of the mountains to the south, we turned down 
Willow creex, and passed north along the base of the mountain towards Great Salt lake, 
passing several saltish springs and one warm spring, and encamped opposite Stansbury’s 
island, 13.70 miles from our morning camp, and 4,238 feet above the sea. The rocks of the 
Oquirrh mountain, near Black Rock, and those near our present camp, are conglomerate and 
sandstone, with others changed (metamorphic) by igneous action, standing in nearly vertical 
planes. Ducks, gulls, and snipe of a large species, were killed in considerable numbers 
about our camp, and mosquitoes and gnats were very troublesome. The driving of the water, 
by the wind, upon the. nearly level marshes which border Great Salt lake, presents a 
marked resemblance to a flowing tide, which has its counterpart in the ebb at the falling 
wind. 
May 9.—Before passing around the north point of the mountain, three miles from camp, 
into Spring or Lone Rock valley, we passed several salt springs, one of which was blood-warm, 
sending out a fine stream of water beautifully clear at its source, at which gas was constantly 
bubbling out; and, as we entered the valley, these springs became more numerous—the finest 
of which sent out a volume of water two feet in width by three inches in depth. This spring 
issues through a mass of conglomerate rock, and is inhabited by a multitude of small fish two 
or three inches in length, which retreated into the spring under the rocks at my approach. 
Several other springs, as we passed on, were far less salt, but our horses drank of them 
