With this wise warning -- which we will do well to heed -- Garcilaso proceeds with his account of the crossing of the extensive swamp. Of all the landmarks described by the various chroniclers, the most intriguing after that of the bay itself is the Great Swamp which constituted the first formidable obstacle.

Garcilaso devotes lengthy descriptions to the swamp and the difficulties it caused:

Having arrived at the town of Urribarracuxi, where Captain Baltasar de Gallegos was awaiting him, the Governor sent messengers offering friend-ship to the cacique. The Indian in the meantime had withdrawn to the woods, and no effort was sufficient to persuade him to come out in peace. Aware now of this fact, the Governor bothered him no further and set about sending out runners in three directions to find a passage through the swamp.

This swamp, which lay three leagues from the town, was broad and very troublesome to cross. Besides being a league in width and very deep at its banks, it contained a great amount of cieno or slime -- from whence it takes the name cienage or swamp. Two thirds of its area, along the edges, was mud; and the other third, which was its center, consisted of water that was too deep to be forded. Notwithstanding these obstacles, the guides found a passage and at the close of eight days returned to announce that they had done so and that the passage was very good.

With the receipt of this report, the Governor and all of his people set out from the town and in two days arrived at the swamp. Then, since the passage was indeed good, they crossed over the swamp with ease. Because of its breadth, however, it required the entire day for them to do so.

Once across, they encamped on a good plain half a league beyond. The following day the same explorers, who now had gone out to see which direction they must proceed from this point, returned to say that the army could by no means move forward.

Streams that ran out of the main swamp flooded the countryside and formed numerous marshes. Thus it was that even though the main swamp might be crossed satisfactorily by means of the aforementioned passage, one still found it impossible to travel through the surrounding areas because of the great amount of water flowing over it from the channel of the river.

Pause for a moment to note that the swamp was comprised of the low banks of a river. This was, and still is, typical of many streams in Florida particularly in the headwaters areas. The Withlacooche and Kissimmee were swampy throughout most of their length. The upper reaches of the Peace River was known to early settlers as the Deadening, and the Caloosahatchee was impassable swamp above its falls toward Lake Okeechobee.

Garcilaso continues:

Since in matters so laborious and dangerous the Governor could not be satisfied with the report of another, he now resolved to make his own exploration. Having reached this decision he selected 100 horsemen and 100 foot soldiers to accompany him. Leaving the rest of his army where they were in charge of the Campmaster, he returned once more to the other side of the swamp so as to cross it elsewhere. Then for three days he traveled up one side of it, sending out individual scouts at intervals to ascertain if any new passage might be located.

During these three days, Indians were never lacking. Emerging from the forests lining the banks of the swamp, they would rush up and fire their arrows at the Spaniards only to take refuge again among the trees. Some, however, were snared and killed or captured. Then to free themselves from the hardships and afflictions the Spaniards bestowed upon them while demanding the way and passage to the swamp, those who were seized offered to serve as guides. But being hostile, they merely led their captors into difficult passes and places where Indians lying in ambush came out to hurl arrows at them.

On sensing the malice of their guides, the Spaniards permitted the dogs to kill four of them. In consequence, another whom they had seized was moved by fear of death to offer to direct his cap-tors faithfully. This he did, taking them from their present unfortunate location to an open, flat and broad road that lay far from the swamp.

When they had traveled four leagues along this road they turned once again toward the marshes where they found another passage. This passage had no mud at its entrance and exit and could be waded for a distance of one league in water that came only to the chest.

For a space of a hundred feet in the center of the channel, the water was too deep to ford, but here the Indians had constructed a rude bridge of