"For fun and pleasure" is why seventeen year old Lewis Garrard went west with Ceran St. Vrain's wagon train in 1846. What unfolds is a unique first hand narrative of overland travel along the Sante Fe Trail to Bent's Fort, Colorado and then on to Taos, New Mexico. This book is supposedly the only eye witness account of the trials and hangings of the revolutionaries who attempted to overthrow the newly acquired American occupancy in Taos by murdering Govenor Charles Bent and several others. Garrard's writing is commendable, being such that the reader feels they are right there with him. We read descriptions of how it was to live with, travel and meet trappers, frontiersmen, mountaineers, and Indians (both friendly and hostile), go on buffalo hunts, endure starvation, lack of water, the forces of nature, etc. while in the mountains and deserts of the southwest. Considered an historical masterpiece and rightfully so.

Garrard's book, besides being of particular interest, ties in with others about the west that combine to inform the reader as no other way can. The language used by such a young author is remarkable, but we must recall that usage changes with time. It helps to keep a dictionary handy. The first person account puts the reader not only on the trail, but in Cheyenne teepees and Bent's Fort where so much of the history of the west, and of those who opened it, came together. Susan Magoffin's book (Down the Santa Fe Trail, and into Mexico) is of another trip along the same route six months apart, and lends a womanly and complimentary view to that of Way To Yah. For those who found Garrard's book less than five star value, I say, read the book again. Often when I do this, appreciation of the work is enhanced. The more one reads of Santa Fe and those who traveled it's trail, the greater will become their respect for Lewis who opens to us the eyes of a young man thrilled with his situation, and who expresses himself as honestly as anyone I have had the joy to read. We are fortunate that he lived to weave into the fabric of the west his wonderful tale. Susan Magoffin reveals another side of the "trail" in her book, both of which combine to inform the reader while revealing truths of a time unfortunately past. Fascinating reading and a must for anyone seriously interested in the Santa Fe trade. Susan died at home, age 26. Lewis and she each wrote just one book.

This newsy contemporary recounting of a trip that includes being a guest in Cheyenne lodges, freezing on the Texas plains, witnessing the trials of the murderers of New Mexico Governor Charles Bent, and wonderful conversations with mountain men and French Canadian voyageurs is written by a boy with an enthusiasm for his experience and a good eye and ear. Lots about horses, mules, food and dancing. A lovely book and fine language.