Three members of the relief party stayed to help those remaining at the camps; Charles Stone at Truckee Lake, Charles Cady and Nicholas Clark at Alder Creek. While Clark was out hunting, Stone traveled to Alder Creek and made plans with Cady to return to California. According to Stewart, Tamsen Donner arranged for them to take her daughters Eliza, Georgia, and Frances with them, perhaps for $500 cash. Stone and Cady took the three girls to Truckee Lake, but left them at a cabin with Keseberg and Levinah Murphy when they started for Bear Valley. Cady recalled later, that after two days on the trail they noted and passed Starved Camp, but they did not stop to help in any way. They overtook Reed and the others within days. Several days later at the Alder Creek camp, Clark and Trudeau agreed to leave for California together. When they reached Truckee Lake and discovered the Donner girls still there they returned to Alder Creek to inform Tamsen Donner.