Conversation so far:
What did Jedediah Smith do in the Third Rendevous of 1827?
Smith left to rejoin the men he had left in California almost immediately after the rendezvous. He was accompanied by 18 men and two French-Canadian women, following much of the same route as the previous year.

Question: What was his purpose in San Gabriel?
Self-contained rewrite: What was Smith's purpose in San Gabriel?