Elder McDonald and company's deliverance from a storm-tossed voyage to the Yaqui river
Published October 11, 2026 at 8:08 PM
Contributed by
Millennial Star Research
During a missionary voyage across the Sea of Cortez to reach the Yaqui Indians, the boat party encountered a dangerous gale and rough seas. They sought shelter under the lee of an island, but were nearly wrecked by a series of waterspouts that formed and passed with great velocity. Later, caught in another gale near the mouth of the Yaqui river, the sailors successfully steered the small boat through a tortuous channel and over breakers into the safety of a quiet lagoon, escaping the storm that had made continuing the voyage impossible.
In Their Own Words
“On the 12th of December, 1890, in company with Elder Ray and a Mexican named Valenzuela, I left Guaymas in a small sail boat, intending to cross the Gulf of California to the Yaqui River. We had a fair wind for a few hours, but it soon died away, and we were left becalmed. The next day a strong wind sprang up from the north-west, which increased to a gale. We were then near the island of San Pedro Nolasco. We ran under the lee of the island for shelter, but the wind shifted and blew with such fury that we were in great danger of being dashed against the rocks. We then stood out to sea, and for two days and nights we were tossed about by the waves. The storm would have sent such a craft as ours to the bottom had we been exposed to it in the open sea. The gale was terrific during the night. Towards morning the rain descended in torrents; blankets and clothing were soon saturated, and general discomfort prevailed. In a council called during the day, I asked the brethren to tell me their feelings in relation to continuing our journey to the Yaquis. I did not wish to take the entire responsibility on myself in case we encountered danger or met with disaster. Several of them exclaimed in a breath, Why, we have been praying that you might know just what to do. I felt that the Lord would protect us, and that we should reach our destination in safety. We decided to make for the shore. We were then near the mouth of the Yaqui River. The sea was very rough, and the breakers were rolling in with great force. We had to pass through a narrow, tortuous channel, which was very dangerous. We felt that the Lord was with us, and we steered our little boat through the breakers and into the quiet waters of the lagoon, where we were safe from the storm.”
— Elder McDonald, The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star
Sources & References
The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star (Manchester, later Liverpool, England, May 1840–1970), 16 February 1891 (Vol. 53, No. 7). https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1891-02-16_53_7 (account extracted verbatim from the issue's Internet Archive OCR text; research confidence: high) Full first-person account: The Latter-day Saints' Millennial Star, Vol. 53, No. 7, 16 February 1891 https://archive.org/details/per_utah-and-the-mormons_the-latter-day-saints-millennial-star_1891-02-16_53_7
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