Book of Mormon Explorers Claim Discoveries in the Desert, Part Two
by Bruce Santucci

After battling two thousand miles of desert trails, sand dunes that tower seven hundred feet into the air, occasional sand storms that remove the paint from your truck, scorpions and six years of Arabian temperatures that fluctuate from freezing to 130 degrees Fahrenheit, George Potter and Richard Wellington are now ready to tell their story.

Potter originally set out with Craig Thorsted and Tom Culler to find the mountain some people believe is the real mount Sinai.  Not only did they locate the mountain they were looking for, but they discovered something that quickly took on greater importance.   While chasing a lead to a remote place the locals called the waters of Moses, Potter and Thorsted came upon a spectacular canyon that opened upon the Red Sea at the Gulf of Aqaba (see picture). 

More than fifty years ago, Dr. Hugh Nibley had theorized that the valley of Lemuel would be found in these very mountains, and here was a mighty canyon.   Dr. Nibley had theorized that the river of Laman would be only a “small local stream.”   Even so, Potter and Thorsted were unprepared for what they saw as they entered the canyon.  

Valley of Lemuel candidate from shoreline.

The US Geological Survey had studied the water resources of the entire land known as Saudi Arabia, and had concluded, after 44 years of surveying, that the nation had “no perennial rivers or streams”.   Yet as the two LDS explorers walked into the canyon a spring fed stream appeared from the sands near the Red Sea.  The small stream wound up a 3 mile-long solid granite canyon. 

As he walked through the narrow canyon, with its granite walls jetting straight up some 2,000 feet, Potter recalls that it was impossible not to recall the words “firm, and steadfast and immovable” ­ Lehi’s terminology certainly fit this valley.  Indeed, the valley and the stream they found met every descriptive quality attributed to Nephi’s valley of Lemuel.  In November, 1999, their discovery was published in the Journal of Book of Mormon Studies (FARMS, BYU). 

Knowing the likely starting place for Lehi’s crossing of Arabia helped Potter find its likely ending place, southern Oman.   Potter then set out to find the other locations mentioned by Nephi.  His knowledge of travel in ancient Arabia and the unwritten laws that control tribal lands led Potter to believe that Lehi would have, by necessity, taken the Gaza branch of the ancient Frankincense trail down western Arabia.  This branch ran somewhat inland from the Red Sea. Potter’s theory contradicted the position held by many current Book of Mormon scholars who believe the prophet followed the shoreline of the Red Sea.  As it turned out, this theory has served Potter well.

The problem with exploring the Gaza branch of the frankincense trail (that passes within 12 miles of Potter’s Valley of Lemuel) was that no one alive seemed to know its exact course, and no one had tried to retrace it. 

Stream in Valley of Lemuel candidate

The task required the help of someone well versed in desert exploring and the Book of Mormon.  In 1997 Richard Wellington from the United Kingdom joined Potter as a full research and exploring partner.   Plotting the course of the frankincense trail required four steps.  First, Potter and Wellington studied the writings of the early Arab geographers (900 to 1100 A.D.), who provided crude descriptions of the pilgrim’s trail from Cairo to Medina.  It is known that the pilgrim’s followed the ancient trade route.  The second step was to use Tactical Pilotage Charts (detailed maps used by airplane pilots to navigate), maps of wells, topographical maps and satellite images to identify the probable route of the ancient trail.  This was not as easy as it might sound, because the names of most of the caravanserais (halts) have changed over the ages.  Third, with the help of German Michael Bellersen, Potter and Wellington loaded their proposed trail into their Global Positioning Systems (GPS).  Finally, the American, Brit, and German trio and their colleagues headed into the Arabian outback traveling hundreds of miles of Bedouin trails verifying their proposed route.   Fortunately, their preparation paid off.  Where they had predicted the old trail halts would be found, they discovered the remains of the ancient caravanserais. 

Based on an exhaustive review of the literature and their own field studies in Arabia, Potter and Wellington believe that they have located every important site mentioned by Nephi in the Book of Mormon.  These include, the “borders near and nearer” the Red Sea, Shazer (where they stopped to hunt), the most fertile parts, the more fertile parts, the trees from which Nephi made his bow, Nahom (where Ishmael was buried ­ the particular part of the area that Warren Aston believes is Nahom), Nephi’s eastwardly trail to Bountiful, the land Bountiful (correctly identified earlier by Nibley as Salalah), and the place Bountiful where Lehi camped and where Nephi built his ship.

George and Michael plotting Lehi’s Trail.

Potter and Wellington have written a book on their explorations.  It is due to hit the shelves of LDS bookstores in 2002.   The book includes over 2000 scholarly footnotes from non-LDS sources.  Their citations include personal correspondences with scholars from universities, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Saudi Arabia and Oman.  Their theories on Nephi’s ship include insights from correspondence with the well known explorer Tim Serverin, Tom Vosmer (Director of the Ancient Omani Ships Project of the Western Australian Museum of Maritime History), and Frank Linehan (of the United States Maritime Administration).

Since finishing their research on the western branch of the frankincense trail, Potter and Wellington spent their 2000-2001 field work season exploring the eastern branch of the trail which crossed the infamous Empty Quarter, the largest sand desert in the world.   They believe that the eastern branch, might provide clues as to the route of the Book of Mormon Jaredites.  Their research efforts can be followed by visiting their web site www.nephiproject.com.

Potter notes that one of the real joys in researching Lehi’s trail is the wonderful support he has received from members, who like him, live and work in the Middle East.  LDS members who have accompanied him into the desert have come from the USA, UK, Germany, Fiji, New Zealand, and the Philippines.  An early member to lend a hand was Timothy Sedor a professional artist and photographer.  Tim brought with him a digital video camera and recorded much of their field work.  

With Sedor’s footage, The Nephi Project, Potter and Sedor’s research group, is now producing six videos on Lehi’s trail.  Sedor is clear about his goal in making these videos, “We want to visually take every reader of the Book of Mormon into the Arabian desert, show them what is there, and then let them judge for themselves if Nephi walked in these places”. 

Even so, Potter states with confidence, “if anyone doubts that the Book of Mormon is a literal history, they won’t after reading our book and seeing our videos.  The evidence that is found in Arabia is straight-forward and quite remarkable”.

About the Author
Bruce A. Santucci has helped George Potter by serving as his editor, narrator and supportive companion.

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Bruce A. Santucci has helped George Potter by serving as his editor, narrator and supportive companion.