John C. Fremont Campsite

The help that saved the survivors came from the south. On December 26, 1848, with every mule dead in the snow of the La Garita Mountains north of here, Frémont sent four men toward the New Mexican settlements; when they failed to return he followed, reaching Rio Colorado on January 20 and going on to Taos. Villagers and soldiers carried relief back up the river. One of the Rio Colorado men, Jesús Valdez, came back to settle at Del Norte in 1859. Ten of the party died.

What the plaque says

This memorial is the property of the State of Colorado Near this spot John C. Fremont camped on his disastrous attempt to cross the mountains December, 1848 Erected by the State Historical Society of Colorado from the Mrs. J. N. Hall Foundation and by the Del Norte Community Club 1928

Where it stands