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Set out a little after sunrise passed the creek a little above our encampment. [1]
| East | 14 | M. to the point at which the river leaves the extensive plains and enters the mountains these plains I called 〈the knob plains 〉 the prarie of the knobs [2] from 〈the〉 a number of knobs being irregularly scattered through it. passed the N. fork 1 of the Cokahlarishkit River [3] at 7 M. it is 45 yds. wide deep and rapid. had some difficulty in passing it. passed a large crooked pond [4] at 4 ms. further. great Number of the bur- rowing squirrls in this prarie of the speceis common to the plains of Columbia. [5] saw some goats and deer. the hunters killed one of the latter. the trail which we take to be a re- turning war-party of the Minnetares of Fort de prarie be- comes much fresher. they have a large pasel of horses. saw some Curloos, [6] bee martains woodpeckeres plover robins, doves, ravens, hawks and a variety of sparrows common to the plains also some ducks. the North fork is terbid as is also the main branch which is about 50 yds. wide the other streams are clear. these plains continue their course S 75 E. and are wide where the river leaves them. up this valley and creek a road passes to Dearbourn's river and thence to the Missouri.— |
| N. 60 E | 1 ½ | up the river. here we halted and dine and our hunters over- took us with a deer which they had killed. river bottoms narrow and country thickly timbered. Cottonwood and pine grow intermixed in the river bottoms musquitoes extreemely troublesome. we expect to meet with the Minnetares and are therefore much on our guard both day and night. the bois rague [7] in blume.— saw the common small blue flag [8] and peppergrass. [9] the southern wood and two other speceis of shrub are common in the prarie of knobs. preserved specemines of them. [10] passed several old indian encamp- ments of 〈stick〉 brush lodges.— |
| S 80 E | 2 | m. to two nearly equal forks of the river [11] here the road forks also one leading up each branch these are the forks of which I presume the indians made mention. passed a creek on N. side 12 yds. wide shallow and clear. [12] |
| N 75 E. | 8 | m. to our encampment of this evening over a steep high balld toped hill for 2 m. thence through and to the left of a large low bottom 2 M. thence three miles through a thick wood along the hill side bottoms narrow. thence 1 m. to our encampment [13] on a large creek some little distance above it's mouth through a beatifull plain on the border of which we passed the remains of 32 old lodges. they appear to be those of the Minnetares as are all those we have seen today. killed 〈another〉 five deer and a beaver today. [14] encamped on the creek much sign of beaver in this extensive bottom. |
| Ms. | 25 |
Some frost this morning the last night was so cold that I could not Sleep. we Collected our horses which were much scattered which detained us untill 9 A. M. at which time we Set out and proceeded up the Creek on which we camped 3 Miles [15] and left the road which we came on last fall to our right and assended a ridge with a gentle Slope to the dividing mountain which Seperates the waters from [NB: of] the Middle fork of Clarks river from those [NB: of Wisdom ] [16] and Lewis's river and passed over prosueing the rout of the Oat lash shute band which we met last fall to the head of [NB: Glade Cr:] a branch of Wisdom R and down the Said branch crossing it frequently [17] on each Side of this handsom glades in which I observe great quantities of quawmash just beginning to blume on each side of those glades the timber is small and a great propotion of it Killed by the fires. I observe the appearance of old buffalow roads and some heads on this part of the mountain. [NB: proving that formerly Buffs. [18] roved there & also that this is the best route, for the Buffs, 〈who〉 and the 〈Buffs.〉 Indians always have the best route & here both were joined] The Snow appears to lying in considerable masses on the mountain from which we decended on the 4th of Septr. last. [19] I observe great numbers of the whistleing Squirel [20] which burrows their holes Scattered on each Side of the glades through which we passed. Shields killed a hare of the large mountain Species. [21] the after part of the day we passed on the hill Side N of the Creek for 6 Ms. Creek [NB: down glade Cr ] and entered an extensive open Leavel plain in which the Indian trail Scattered in Such a manner that we Could not pursue it. the Indian woman wife to Shabono informed me that she had been in this plain frequently and knew it well that the Creek which we decended was a branch of Wisdom river [22] and when we assended the higher part of the plain we would discover a gap in the mountains in our direction to the Canoes, [23] and when we arived at that gap we would See a high point of a mountain covered with snow in our direction the canoes. [24] we proceeded on 1 mile and Crossd. a large Creek [25] from the right which heads in a Snow Mountain and fish Creek over which there was a road thro' a gap. [26] we assended a Small rise and beheld an open boutifull Leavel Vally or plain of about 20 [NB: 15] Miles wide and near 60 [NB: 30] long extending N & S. in every direction around which I could see high points of Mountains Covered with Snow. [27] I discovered one at a distance very high covered with Snow which bore S. 80° E. [28] The Squar pointed to the gap through which she said we must pass which was S. 56° E. She said we would pass the river before we reached the gap. we had not proceeded more than 2 Miles in the last Creek, before a violent Storm of wind accompand. with hard rain from the S W. imediately from off the Snow Mountains this rain was Cold and lasted 1½ hours. I discovd. the rain wind as it approached and halted and formd. a solid column to protect our Selves from the Violency of the gust. after it was over I proceeded on about 5 Miles to Some Small dry timber on a Small Creek and encampd. [29] made large fires and dryed our Selves. here I observed Some fresh Indian Signs where they had been gathering quawmash. [NB: This is the great plain where Shoshonees gather quawmash & cows &c. our woman had done so. many beaver]
| Miles | ||
| on the course which we had decended the branch of Clark's river to | } | 3 ½ |
| the first Flat heads or Oat lashshoot band the 4th of Septr. 1805— | ||
| Thence up a jintle Slope of the dividing mountain which separates | } | 3— |
| the waters of the [blank] from those of Lewis's & Clark's rivers leave- | ||
| ing the old rout on which we Came out to the right on a course | ||
| nearly S. E.— | ||
| Thence N. 80° E. through a leavel piney Country on the top of the | } | 2 ½ |
| mountain to a glade at the head of a branch which runs towards | ||
| the Missouri | ||
| Thence S. 50° E. down the branch Crossing it frequently & | } | 7— |
| through small glades on either Side of the branch the glades at | ||
| Some places a mile wide with Several Small Streams falling in on | ||
| either Side up which there is Small glades to the narrows N E. | ||
| Thence N. 68d E. keeping down the North Side of the Creek on | } | 4— |
| the Side of the hill. the bottoms of the Creek Small open and | ||
| much fallen timber to an extensive bottom S. Side | ||
| Thence S. 56° E. through an open Leavle plain passing a large | } | 6— |
| Creek from the right at one mile to a quawmash flatt through | ||
| which a Small Creek runs scattered through the bottom, and | ||
| Encamped— | ||
| miles | 26—0 |
Sunday 6th July 1806. a fair morning. we were detained a while hunting up our horses. then proceed. on as usal up the branch to the mount. and crossed over to the left in an Indian trail. at about 5 or 6 miles we got over on a branch running South [31] Shields killed a hair [32] of a different discription of any we have seen before. our Intrepters wife tells us that we She knows the country & that this branch is the head waters of jeffersons river &C. we proceeded on down the branch. large glades covred with Commass & fine grass about noon we halted at one of the glades to dine and proceeded on down the creek late in the afternooon we came to a large extensive plain contined our course about South in this plain got 5 or 6 miles out in the open plain came up a hard Thunder Shower of hail rain and hard wind. we halted a Short time in the midst of it then proceed. on at dark we Campd. [33] at a branch Saw Indn. signs abundance of Commass on this branch—
Sunday 6th. We had a fine clear morning with some white frost, and renewed our journey early; saw a great many serviceberries, not yet ripe, and some flax which grows on these plains. Having gone about seven miles we passed a north branch of the Co-qual-la-isquet, [34] which is 40 yards wide and was mid-rib deep to our horses, with a rapid current. About seven miles up the valley we passed a beautiful small lake; [35] where the river and road leave the valley, and bears towards the northeast between two hills not very large. We kept up the river, through a small brushy valley about the eighth of a mile wide, for a mile and half, and then halted for dinner. Here our two hunters came to us, and had killed a deer. We kept two men out every day hunting. In this small valley there is a considerable quantity of cotton wood timber; and the musketoes are very troublesome. At 1 o'clock we proceeded on, passed a number of handsome streams which fall into the river, and a number of old Indian lodges. As we advance the valley becomes more extensive, and is all plain. At night we encamped [36] on a beautiful creek, having travelled twenty five miles. Our hunters killed four deer to day.
Created by the Center for Digital Research in the Humanities
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