Although Jonathan Mabry had discussed the route with Maddock, he was sometimes doubtful about the way to be taken, so the other Quakers and Ethan helped make decisions when the trail forked or crossed another. The backwoodsmen usually carried a small compass, because they could be confused about directions even near their own homes. In the flat regions such as those in the creek swamps, without topographical landmarks, it was not possible to know directions when the sky was overcast and no heavenly bodies were visible.

On the long trip, Ethan and Epsey managed their own oxen and packhorses and took their turn with the other families to drive the herd of sheep and cattle, each of which had its ears marked by its owner. The Pratts had two dogs, one a bluetick hound and the other a mixture of shepherd and terrier. The hound usually stayed close to the trail, almost always in sight. The other, named Squire, was much more energetic, and Ethan soon taught him to help with herding the animals. Within a few days, Squire became accustomed to this work and assisted each of the men as they rotated on the job.

Ethan was glad to do even more than his share of the common work required to assure the safe and orderly procession, which was not difficult as long as the group moved together on established trails. When not acting as a drover or off hunting, Ethan usually walked along the trail, and Epsey rode on their one saddle horse, leading the other draft animals. They were all docile and naturally tended to follow the animal in front of them, so when Epsey dismounted and walked, she needed to give them little guidance, only to yank on the halter when they tended to lag behind or paused to take a bite of grass. She was often nauseated, and felt better while walking and leading the animals with a short guide rope.

After ten days of slow travel, they camped for two nights near Wilmington, where the men went into the town to buy some supplies and to replace a packhorse that had wandered off one night and could not be found. They found the coastal road to be much more convenient, often wide enough for horses or people to walk abreast, but frequent ferry crossings were both time-consuming and relatively costly.