Upset by an increasing flow of miners heading for British Columbia gold fields, Indians lay in ambush through the length of this canyon on July 29, 1858, as 160 men led by David McLoughlin approached from the south. The warriors had camouflaged their stone breastworks with branches, but wilted leaves alerted McLoughlin's advance party, so the Indians opened fire prematurely. Firing continued for several hours near the mouth of the canyon. Three whites were killed. The caravan retreated to the Okanogan River and next day crossed over on rafts.