101a-IC From Erebord and Dale they came
Word - and silver coins! - came from Bree, with a very large order for top quality items to build forges, and for tools used during blacksmithing and such work.
Both Erebor, mainly, and Dale - still a lucrative order for them - had a bit under two years to make all this and transport it to the Spring Fair in Bree-land, in 2965.
Thus a merchant-caravan was prepared, with many mules to carry the boxes, crates, bushels of prods and pincers, the anvils, two teams of four mules for the two gigantic bellows - nearly as big as the ones under the Mountain!
Guards, of course, but with the many Barding and Dwarven merchants coming along, bandits should be detered.
As light late-winter snow falls on your heads, the caravan that set out from Erebor to Dale, where it picked up the Mannish merchants and delivery-men, you leave the Lake, heading around to the West and the North, to move up with Mirkwood on your left-West-hand, and reach the foothills of the Grey Mountains.
You are to move west, between Mirkwood and the Mountains, heading for the Anduin Vales, where you will move South to then head West again after the Old Ford, across the Misty Mountains.
You pull your cloaks tight, secure your hoods, and off you go, trudging along for this long trek.
You look around, to see who you will be spending this many weeks with.