In late summer 1540, soldiers from Francisco Vasquez de Coronado's Spanish expedition became the first Europeans to see Grand Canyon. After six months of travel, Coronado's army reached the Hopi mesas east of the canyon. Guided by Hopi Indians, Garcia Lopez de Cardenas then led a small party to find a reported great river, and after 20 days they reached the south rim, coming out of the forest onto the edge of the vast chasm. The party spent three days trying unsuccessfully to descend to the bottom before returning to Coronado. The exact place where they first saw the canyon is unknown, but descriptions by Pedro de Castaneda, written around 1560 from memories of the expedition 20 years earlier, place it between here and Desert View. Coronado had begun the journey near Mexico City in February 1540 with more than 300 soldiers, 4 priests, hundreds of Indian allies, slaves, and 1500 stock animals, and over two years his army explored lands as far east as present-day Kansas while searching for the legendary seven golden cities of Cibola. Although no wealth was found, the expedition opened a new era for the lands explored and the people encountered.