In Louisiana, the Red River campaign had been repulsed, enabling the Confederates to focus on Steele. Isolated and running low on food, the Union troops abandoned Camden on April 26, and were harried by pursuing Confederates during their retreat. The 14th Missouri Cavalry Battalion participated in skirmishing during the pursuit. When Steele's column reached the crossing of the Saline River, they were caught by the Confederate pursuers, who launched several futile attacks on April 30, in the Battle of Jenkins' Ferry. The Union soldiers were able to escape across a pontoon bridge and eventually reached Little Rock. The 14th Missouri Cavalry Battalion had been held out of the Jenkins' Ferry fighting as a reserve unit. It then spent mid-1864 defending an outpost at Princeton, Arkansas.