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because somewhere along their route they met a man named Wales B. Bonney who was carrying an open letter from a man called Lansford Hastings. This letter told travellers of a newly-discovered route to the south of the Great Salt Lake, and encouraged people to go this way to save time. It pointed out that this route was shorter and would save the travellers around 400 miles. Despite being previously warned by experienced travellers not to take the shortcut, the Donners thought it sounded promising and decided to go against their advice.
    Veering off from the normal route, the Donner party travelled on towards Fort Bridger, where they expected to find Lansford Hastings waiting for them. However, by the time they reached the Fort it was already quite late in the season and Hastings had already left, taking with him a large wagon. He had left directions for any parties that would like to follow him along his new trail. Convinced that this was the right thing to do, the Donners stocked up with supplies, and four days later their party of nine families, plus sixteen single men, left the Fort on the last day of July.
    A little way out of Fort Bridger the party came across a fork in the road. The fork to the right would lead them up the old road towards Fort Hall, but as the tracks of Hastings’s wagon were clear on the left fork, this is the way the Donner party headed. It wasn’t too long before the countryside became very mountainous and the road barely passable. In certain places along the route they had to actually lock the wheels of their wagons to stop them sliding down the narrow ravines and steep hillsides. Still convinced that this was the way to go, the party continued to follow the wheel tracks made by the Hastings’s wagon. They managed to make around 10 to 12 miles in a day, but by the time they reached the Red Fork of the Weber river the trail had stopped. Attached to a bush was a note written by Hastings, warning any party that decided to follow him through the Weber canyon, that the route was very treacherous. His advice to the party was for them to make camp and send a messenger ahead to catch up with him so that he could return and give them exact directions across the mountains. Reed, along with two other men were the appointed messengers, and they left on horseback to see if they could catch up with Hastings.
    They waited for several days and on the fifth day Reed returned looking very weak and dishevelled. He was riding a different horse from when he left and he explained to the anxious party about the difficulties they had experienced in trying to catch up with Hastings. The other two men who had accompanied Reed had decided to stay with Hastings, as their horses were exhausted and Hastings could only spare one fresh horse. Despite his promise on the note, Hastings was not coming back to meet up with the group. However, on his way back Reed had managed to explore a route through the canyon which had been suggested to him by Hastings himself. Although he knew it would be difficult, he felt that they could get their wagons through. Although the party was very dubious, they decided to take Reed’s word for it and they voted unanimously to take this route.
    The determined emigrants pushed on and on as the terrain became more and more difficult to cross. They were growing weaker and weaker by the day as they had to constantly use axes, picks and shovels to clear the way, and gradually their spirits became lower and lower. It was now August 27 and not only were they totally exhausted, the fear was starting to set in. They had been on their new route for 21 days now and so far they had only managed to travel 360 miles. Their provisions were running low and they knew that soon the weather would turn against them. On August 29 the party arrived at the spot where Reed had met up with Hastings. Apparently Hastings’s own party had managed to get through, and no doubt the Donner party would have been successful as well