Near daybreak, after a difficult march in which the British lost some of their cannon, Cornwallis's army reached Cowan's Ford. Cowan's Ford was actually two fords; one, the horse ford, though shallower than the other, was longer, because it crossed the stream at an angle; the other, called the wagon ford, went straight across the river but was much deeper. With very little hesitation, the British began crossing the swollen stream straight across along the wagon ford. Soon the horses were over their heads in the raging torrent.