Deseret News

In 1847 members of the LDS church began their great historical trek across the American frontier towards the Great Basin of Utah. Their mode of travel included handcarts, covered wagons, horseback, and their own two feet. One hundred and fifty years later, in 1997, descendants of those pioneers, and others, launched a re-enactment of the great trek of the Utah Mormon pioneers using the same mode of travel. Hundreds of thousands avidly watched the three month progress. THE GREAT TREK chronicles this re-enactment with script and photography. What really sets this apart, and inclines the reader to forget that the photos here are not of the actual pioneers, is the incredible photography. Pictures of all aspects of the trip cover landscapes and sunsets, frolic and introspection, weariness and the joy of entering the Salt Lake Valley. As you consider that most of those involved here in 1997 are the offspring of these brave souls of 1847, all the stories you may have heard or imagined become vividly real. I especially appreciate the inside covers of the book, the front showing a large map of the journey that gives such a good idea of how vast this 1,100 plus journey truly was. It's also very helpful, on a more practical basis, for pinpointing the different spots of interest along the way. To illustrate the perfection of the narrative, I add this quote from page 84, "I tossed my sleeping bag in the back of the horse trailer and scrambled to catch up. Temperatures hovered in the mid-30's. Breakfast was hurried, and prayer meaningful. Again that morning the wagons put on a show as they circled out of the sagebrush bowl, rocking gently in the pale first light,their drivers, and passengers huddled in blankets or coats."...John Hart.… (altro)