Why Moria?

[Elu Ancalime]

But there was also no Balrog, which is something I think Gandalf cared about more than goblins.

As far as the Fellowship traveling East, it came down to the lesser of all the other evils. Or just process of elimination.

-Boromir said they should make for the Gap of Rohan, but it was closed to them because of Sauruman's power in the area and the Eye looking West. Also, there were no real hospitable places to provide them with some up-to-date news on how fast Gondor was going to get beaten or some food or a bed(that would be Lothlorien). If The Fellowship could get across the Fords of Isen, would Theoden have accepted them under Wormtougne's power? And if they had deposed Grima, he would just tell Sauruman that the Ringbearer or Gandalf was there, and Sauruman's army was less than 100 miles away I believe. Then they would be tailed through the Entwash and Anorien until they reached the Drugs or Minas Tirith.

-It was also mentioned one about taking "the western way" by coming near Druath Iaur and passing around the western end of the White Mountains, and traveling through the fiefs of Gondor along the coast. This would take too much time, and although they would be in hostile territory, there was no land that they could be assured traveling in secret, because there were no places like Rivendell or Lothlorien that they could get the news and not have to worry about being revealed.

-And the High Pass? It wasn't really out of the way, and there wouldnt be more goblins than there were at the time of TH, and the actual pass dosnt even go under ground. They underground passage was just a cave network that the Thorin and Co tried to sleep in. It did however, stick them out in the Wild, and it would not take long to send a Ringwraith from Dol Gulder up the River if they were revealed to Sauron. Like Formedacil said.

The biggest problem of the High Pass was that they did not have to decide direction until it was behind them. They had already planned to take the Redhorn Pass (which compared to the alternatives was obvuously the most direct). Thus Moria was already less than 20 miles away and the next direct. They had to gamble danger with speed, and I think that if Gandalf had told everyone that a balrog was in there and they understood, they wouldnt have been as Gimli-eager, but they still would have felt it was the only "way."
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IOLITE VAPORIZER

[Kuruharan]

Gandalf did not know the balrog was there.

Nobody knew what Durin's Bane was.

[Elu Ancalime]

Really?

Surely the survivors of Kazad-dum (I do know that there were survivors ) would have passed down the story in the fashoin of a war veteran who-dosnt-like-to-talk-about-it-but-we-pretty-much-know-what-happened-but-didnt-experience-it-way, and someone who was as close to the dwarves who was not a dwarf would know?

It just lseemed logical, that although the Balrog had "shape shifting" powers or whatever, it seems that it would not move far out of the path from between the East Gate and West Gate. And the fact that it didnt anyway.

Do you think there would be any reason for the Balrog to move? The goblins might have revered him as an "evil role model" or something, but I dont know if balrogs have feelings, so would it care if it lived on the corpses of his enemies surrounded by 'lackys' and somewhere tangible wealth? Just Wondering.
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Mercedes-Benz Slr Mclaren Specifications

[goldfinger]

At the end of the Battle of Aznulbizar, Dain Ironfoot looked into the gates of Khazad Dum and saw the Balrog still lingered and would not permit his people to enter to reclaim Moria.

[CSteefel]

Originally Posted by goldfinger

At the end of the Battle of Aznulbizar, Dain Ironfoot looked into the gates of Khazad Dum and saw the Balrog still lingered and would not permit his people to enter to reclaim Moria.

I don't read it this way. I interpret what Dain experienced as more of a sense of great evil within the Gates of Moria, similar perhaps to what Aragorn sensed when he passed into Moria. I don't think that Dain actually saw the Balrog, or even knew that there was one there. The Balrog may not even have been the only foul thing in the depths--another could have been the Kraken that guarded the western entrance to Moria (presumably this came out of the depths of Moria).

I think the best interpretation would be that the Wise knew that there was some great evil in Moria, Durin's Bane presumably, whatever it was. Not knowing what was there, Gandalf could not judge whether he would be equal to the task or not. Certainly Galadriel and Celeborn did not know that there was a Balrog there.

Otherwise, the northern route seems a possibility, but this is a choice made with hindsight. Initially there was even a chance of passing through Dunland until the Fellowship found out that Saruman was watching that route. The route over Caradhras would normally have worked, except for the apparent intervention again of Saruman. Going back to the northern route after the failure of these two possibilities would have meant a long trek back north, and then following a route that was virtually guaranteed to be watched by Sauron's servants. Merely because others passed that way earlier (for that matter, Elrohir and Elladan had passed over the Redhorn Pass) does not mean that the Fellowship bearing the Ring would have had the same results.