 After crossing the continent the Methodists met Thomas McKay of the British Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) at Wyeth's recently created Fort Hall.McKay guided the group all the way to Fort Vancouver, headquarters of the HBC Columbia district, in what is now Vancouver, Washington.Lee and his companions were greeted by Chief Factor John McLoughlin, district director of the HBC recommended the Willamette Valley as a better spot for settlement than the area to the north where the Flathead lived.