Zykovian makes his way to the river's edge to perform his tests. He descends easily and tests the water. The visibility of the water is excellent as he can see the bottom sediment of the river. Fish swim quickly by as the river flows, which indicates to Zykovian that the speed is between 5-8 mph. The swift current prevents many living things from making a home at the edge or at the bottom of the river which causes the water to be devoid of smell. The temperature of the water is very cold, approximately 48 degrees.
Zyrial lurches into the water with a rope attached to him, swimming powerfully towards the middle of the river. As he swims, he feels that the river is shaped into a sharp V-pattern, which causes a swift undercurrent. Eldavyan rushes to grab the rope and secures it to Shyl's saddlehorn before the river can pull his cousin under.
Dragging Zyrial back to shore, the party decides to split up and search north and south of the river for a spot for the troops to cross.
Zyrial, Zykovian, and Ulysses travel for nearly a half hour with few breaks in the treeline. It does seem that the trees that grow along the banks of this river are indeed indiginous to the area and are quite common. Small woodland creatures are encountered and a large spotted feline of some sort (this creature is quadrapedle, unlike the Felin) but nothing of any threat or out of the ordinary.
Eldavyan, Hanilee, and Jalenne travel north for the same amount of time. However, their luck differs from their southern-bound cousins. It seems that a small rope bridge has been constructed across one of the narrower parts of the river and seems in good condition. The trouble is, the group travelled uphill, and the river stayed at the same angle of descent as they went along, so the distance from the bridge and the river is greater. The three elves surmise that it would take approximately 1 day to move the troops across the bridge (along with supply wagons, which would need to be partially dismantled - and can be quickly done, thanks to elven ingenuity - to make the trip). The northern group encounters similar flora and fauna as the southern group.
Both groups meet at the appointed spot within the time frame, the northern group arriving a little bit behind schedule because of their deductive reasoning.