The party made less than adequate progress towards their destination. The winter was becoming a major obstacle for them, as the wagons and horses of the assemblage were being bogged down, along with the fact that the Mormon Trail they were following was becoming heavily snowed over and largely indistinguishable, forcing the men to rely almost solely on a compass. Packer's inexperience was also beginning to show itself, and the party ultimately became lost. Provisions quickly ran out, and the men were reduced to surviving for a considerable length of time on horse feed, and were nearing the point where the horses themselves were next to be eaten. On January 21, 1874, the party came upon the encampment of Chief Ouray, known as the "White Man's Friend", near Montrose, Colorado, within the Uncompahgre Valley. The men were desperate but still approached the camp with great trepidation, unsure of how they would be received by the tribe. Although they reportedly scared some of the Utes away with their haggard appearance, Chief Ouray greeted them as welcomed guests and supplied them with food and lodging, to their grateful astonishment. He recommended they postpone their expedition until spring, since they were likely to encounter dangerous winter weather in the mountains. He told them that no Ute would attempt such a journey, and that to chance it would be to risk almost certain death. Ouray offered to allow the men to stay with his tribe until the winter had passed, and promised to share all that he and his people had with them.