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Spaniards found Pensacola villages but no people

Source: Early History of the Creek Indians and Their Neighbors #121

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Nevertheless, Barcia himself records encounters with Indians in the surrounding country by the Spaniards sent to make a reconnoissance of the harbor in 1693. His account is as follows:
"On the 11th [of September] starting from the "Punta de Gijon " and navigating in a depth of from one to two fathoms, they went along the coast, going northeast with easterly wind, and at a distance of about two leagues and a half, it looked as if the water had changed its colour. They tasted it and found it sweet, and one-quarter of a league further on it was very sweet and they were then sure it was the mouth of a river which ran east-southeast, about three-quarters of a league and its width was one fourth [of a league], being lost at the distance mentioned. On the north side there is a canal, which extends about a pistol shot. They entered the first inlet for about a quarter of a league and seeing some smoke rise on the south shore, they discovered three bulks which looked like tree trunks, but when these began to move towards the forest, they recognised them to be Indians. They jumped on land and although they tried to catch up with them they could not find them any more, not even their traces, for the soil was covered with dry leaves. They found the lighted fire, and on it a badly shaped earthen pan, with lungs [Note: Probably the whole lights, or haslet, i, e., lungs, heart, and liver.] of bison, very tastelessly prepared, stewing in it, and some pieces of meat toasting on wooden roasters. On one of them some fish was transfixed, which looked like "Chuchos." In baskets made of reed, and which the Indians call "Uzate" (Ucate) there was some corn, calabash-seeds, bison-wool and hair of other animals, put in deerskin bags, a lot of mussels (shell-fish), shells, bones and similar things. They found several feather plumes of fine turkeys [Note: Plumeras de plumas de pavos finos.], cardinal birds or redbirds, and other birds and many small crosses, the sight of which delighted them, although they recognised soon that those were spindles on which the Indian women span the wool of the bison. The Spaniards put into one of the baskets cakes, into the other knives and scissors, and, after erecting a cross, they returned to their boat. They navigated half a league when they saw to starboard four or five Indians, who, in order to escape more swiftly threw away all they carried. They [the Spaniards] landed and found several skins of marten, fox, otter, and bison and a lot of meat pulverised and putrid, in wooden troughs [Note: Pilones, probably wooden mortars.]. In one of the baskets which were strewn about, they found some roots looking like iris or ginger, very sweet in taste, bison-wool done up in balls, spindles and beaver-wool or hair in bags, very soft white feathers and pulverised clay or earth apparently for painting, combs, not so badly made, leather shoes shaped more like boots, claws of birds and other animals, roots of dittany [Note: Which might have been flaxinella or marjoram.], several pieces of brazil, a very much worn, large hoe and an iron adze. The Indian huts, which they saw here, were made of tree-bark and in the sea were two canoes or boats, one with bows and
arrows made of very strong wood and points of bone; the other was badly used [in bad condition). These boats showed that those Indians had probably come here by water . . .
. . . Toward the south-southeast went Don Carlos de Siguenza with captain Juan Jordan, Antonio Fernandez, carpenter, and an artillery man, and they found a hut, built on four posts and covered with palm leaves. Inside they found a deerskin, a sash made of bison wool, a piece of blue cloth of Spain, about a yard and a half long and thrown over the poles, many mother-of-pearl shells, fish-spines, animal-bones and several large locks of [human hair]. A little further on at the foot of a tall pine tree they saw in a hamper [Note: Pelaca means really a leather trunk fashioned after the style of a hamper.] a decayed body, to all appearances that of a woman; but, leaving all this as it was, they went to the spot where they had seen the two Indians and they found one, who fled, leaving in the place where he had been a gourd filled with water and a bit of roasted meat; which provisions, however, made them suppose hirn to be a sentinel, the more so as they soon found traces of children's and women's feet, but could find nobody."8
(Swanton)