Part 3: Martin's Cove

We happily (and hopefully noisily at 7am) left Guernsey, WY and headed to Martin's cove, a quick three hour jaunt away. We were there in time for church. The Church has quite an impressive campus there. [It includes the large meeting room, some housing, a visitor's center, and numerous smaller "period" buildings.] We met in a nice large room for testimony meeting. [The room was filled with dozens of missionary couples and other families visiting the area.] Bekah bore her testimony, it was so sweet. We all attended primary with Elder and Sister Grover, and our family members were the sole recipients of their wonderful lessons! [It was so great that these missionary couples had activities and lessons and snacks planned just in case they had someone there visiting!]
Roger and Louise of course know a couple that is serving in Martin's Cove. They are the Erekson's and are from Edgewood, NM. After church they took us to the "Route 66 Missionary RV Park" where all of the missionaries that are serving there live. Many of the missionaries bring their own RVs, but there is also some housing available there. We all enjoyed a really relaxing afternoon visiting with the Erekson's. Beau told me that night that he had the most fun that afternoon playing in the gravel at our campsite with Marianne. We were treated to dinner with all of the missionary couples at a pavilion at the campsite that night. I was feeling a little under the weather, and it was a shame because the food they made looked delicious.
Monday 8/4
Elder and Sister Erekson treated us to breakfast at their trailer - which the kids thought was a mansion compared to Nana and Big Papa's RV. (Which is a mansion in its own right when compared to our pop-up.)
Afterwards we headed back to the Martin's Cove campus so we could go on an authentic 5 mile trek - handcart and all, guided by the Ereksons.
We started by seeing the "baptismal font" in the Sweetwater. Isn't that neat that you can be baptized in the actual Sweetwater River?
Next we visited Fort Seminoe and learned about the "valley boys" who were part of the rescue group for the saints who were struggling and in very precarious circumstances on their way to Salt Lake City. These saints would not have survived had it not been for the rescue groups sent by President Brigham Young to give them aid and nourishment and hope at a very bleak part of their journey. Fort Seminoe is where the members of the church who were crossing the plains in wagons left many of their goods so that there could be room in the wagons to carry the sick. Martin's cove is where the rescuers took the saints, in the wagons, to get them out of the harsh weather conditions and give them respite so they could continue their journey.
The Sweetwater river snakes around and the saints had to cross it repeatedly. We only had to cross it twice and both times we had the option of using a bridge. But the first time, Big Papa wanted to carry the kids across the Sweetwater himself. I was really impressed with that.
Nana and Rus pulled the handcart across.
Marianne really latched on to Sister Erekson. They were buddies the entire time. That day, Marianne got dressed because of Sister Erekson, let me do her hair because of Sister Erekson, and walked more than she probably would have because she got to use a walking stick like Sister Erekson.
At one point in the trek, we left the handcarts and walked a mile back into Martin's Cove. Elder Erekson spoke with us there and told us how Wyoming doesn't have a temple, but it has Martin's Cove. It is a sacred place and the visitors there are asked to treat it as such.
Elder and Sister Grover, our primary teachers, were manning the station at the trailhead for Martin's Cove. We had to get a picture of the kids with them.
The rest of the trek wrapped up nicely.