111 days to Zion

by Hal Knight, Stanley B. Kimball

About Mormon pioneers and their adventurous journey.

Genres: History, Church

253 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1978

Reviews

[Michele · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have always loved being a descendant of Mormon pioneers. This year my celebration of Pioneer Day started early-Monday, April 5th. It was also Monday that rainy April fifth in 1847 when 6 wagons left Winter Quarters to begin their exodus to Utah.

Each night I quickly read two pages about the happenings of each day. Until I read this book I didn't know Missourians were competing with the Saints for the best nightly grazing spots for their animals. This was just one of the many interesting facts that has enlightened my understanding of this amazing journey. I always knew the pioneers left a trail for others to follow, but I never knew the difficulty of this task. I would encourage anyone with an interest in the Pioneer Trek to read this very good book.

[Christi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have hated books about pioneers in the past, I admit. So, while this might not be the most complete or correct book out there about the first trek to Utah, I loved how it presented the happenings of each day in easy-to-swallow chunks. It made me get a better picture of the company's day-to-day activities: Some days were super boring! Some days Brigham was grouchy and made everyone miserable! Some days they almost got themselves killed hunting buffalo! And some days they found ice and were really excited! And some days Wilford Woodruff caught more trout than anyone! It was funny and surprisingly exciting to witness the precarious birth of a new settlement in the brand new west and made me interested to learn more. (PS, This would be a good pioneer intro for kids; you could read a page each day on the same date as each entry.)

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm always amazed when I read books about the early pioneers and the hardships they endured as they made the trek across from Nebraska to Salt Lake City in wagons and handcarts. This book is about the first company Brigham Young was in to go to the valley. They traveled between 18 to maybe 22 miles on a good day. Forging the rivers were definitely challenging in some places. The dust on the trail - I would miss my daily shower! Sounds like they were good provision wise because they traded a lot to ferry other travelers across some of the rivers. The last 100 miles or so over the rocky mountains would have been intense. Not a smooth ride for wagons. They never did have trouble with the Indians. All were friendly. Those people who made the trek - whether in this party or others that came afterwards, were strong people to endure the hardships and trials of making that journey. I'm thankful to live in this time period and have my modern conveniences :)

[Cherlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wasn't going to pick this up, thinking I have heard and read so many stories about the Mormon Exodus to the Great Salt Lake Valley. What sold me was the format. Each day was a 2 page spread, short enough to read aloud to children, enough story to captivate attention, maps of the sections of the trek and pen and ink drawings. Also I think I was drawn to the book, having lived in Nebraska for over 6 years, I was familiar with a lot of the landscape of the trek. The book is oddly shaped for a book, and I made the comment to my husband that the only thing I didn't like about it was that it was hard to hold in bed while I read (my favorite place to read). He commented that it was that size so that it could fit easily into a glove compartment of a car, meant to be a traveling companion for anyone driving that route from Winter Quarters to SLC. Ah, complaint resolved!

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

A history of the Mormon pioneer trek taken from diaries and journals and notes of the people. I found it interesting to read of their trials, adventures and triumphs in their phenomenal journey.

[Jeff Crosby · Rating 3 out of 5]

Published for the sesquicentennial of the trail in 1997.