On January 31st, 1847, a Ragtag group of men left a collection of winter settlements

in California on a rescue mission into the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

Some were volunteers, some were paid to be there, but all were on a mission of mercy.

History would come to know them as the first relief.

Two men were chosen to be leaders, Aquila Glover and Reason Tucker.

And among them were two brothers, pioneers themselves, named John and Daniel Rhodes.

They braved swamp, mud as high as their horses' bellies, and then dizzying amounts of snow

as they went higher into the mountains.

And the snow became four feet deep, they could no longer travel by horse.

They made a base camp at a place called Mule Springs and made plans to set on foot as

they continued the journey.

They lost the first members of the party before they could even leave.

Some of the younger men were left behind at the camp to care for the horses three more,

all who'd been there for the money, dropped out.

The money they decided wasn't enough to risk their lives for.

The remaining members of the first relief left on February 11th.

Each man carried with them a hatchet, a tin cup, and a blanket.

Each man also hold between 50 and 75 pounds of meat and flour.

They hiked in single file in the hard-crusted snow.

Each man walking in the footprints of the man in front of them.

When the leader who broke the trail wore down, he took the spot at the back of the line,

and the next man took his place.

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