My Oregon Trail Journal
By Dipper Northwest
Day #1
As we began on the journey in our wagon train, we made it to the first obstacle. We had to cross the Missouri River. Thankfully there was a ferry we could take. Or we could cross ourselves. I decided to pay 25 dollars to ride the ferry. I decided this would be the safest choice. We ended up crossing safely and as i could tell, those who did cross themselves made it safely too. I also decided to go hunting because as i was finding out, fresh meat was very sparse on the trail. I ended up getting the shot of the day with 50 pounds of buffalo meat. As the day went on we also bumped into a gambling indian. I tried to gamble with him for 25 dollars but he ended up winning. As the day turned to night i remained very hopeful of the journey ahead and for what we had in store.
Day #2
As the day went on, we made it to the first fork in the road. Our wagon train decided to go on the Burial Ground Trail. This trail was the faster choice but also the more dangerous one. I wasn't sure about taking this trail because of stories i had heard of native americans attacking those who decided to cross the trail. I didn't want to risk it, but our wagon leader had the final decision. He decided on the Burial Ground Trail. I was very nervous as we went down the trail and i decided i should be more cautious until we reached the end of the trail.
Day #3
I was horrified. She was so young, there was nothing i could do to save her. She died an hour later. I felt crushed and like i couldn't move on. I definitely wanted to turn back. I didn't see how i could continue on the journey. The only reason i risked loosing everything was to let my children have a better life in the west. With one of my children dead, i didn't see a reason to take anymore risks. It was my wife who convinced me it was wrong to turn back after everything. I couldn't let my children down even more. We decided to continue on the trail.
Day #4
At this point i thought nothing could get worse, until it did. There was a cholera outbreak in the wagon train. Cholera is a disease caused by drinking or eating anything contaminated with human feces and waste. Then my 4 year old son became ill. He had cholera. We had a first aid kit but nothing that could prevent a terminal disease. There was no cure. He died by the end of the night.
There was no reason for me to keep going. My family and i were devastated. It was horrible enough loosing someone so young, only 5 months old. Now another child dead, only 4. The only thing that kept me going was my son and daughter. I couldn't give up now after letting them loose two of their siblings. I was in despair but i was also very determined. I had to give my family a better life.
Weeks past and it felt as though the trail had no end. Until i realized we were actually at the end of our journey. There was only one thing that slowed up down, the landslide. Everyone remained determined to pass and as i could see no one ended up badly injured. After we made it across, we were there. We were actually the first wagon train to make it too Oregon. Although this was an exciting accomplishment, our family knew that life in Oregon would never be the dream we thought it would be.