May 17th. Friday 1805
a fine morning wind from the N W. mercury at 60° a 0.
river falling a little. We set out at an early hour and proceeded
on verry well by the assistance of the Toe rope principally,
the countrey verry rugged & hills high and the river washing
the bace on each side, great appearances of the Salt substance.
a fiew cotton trees is the only timber which is scattered in the
bottom & the hills contain a fiew Pine & cedar, which is scattered,
river much narrower than below from 2 to 300 yards
wide, the bottoms muddey & hills rich earth except near their
tops. We passed 2 large creeks to day one on the Starbd Side
and the other just below our camp on the Lard Side each of
those creeks has a little running water near their mouthes which
has a brackish taste, I was nearly treading on a small fierce
rattle snake different from any I had ever seen &c. one man [of]
the party killed another of the same kind. I walked on Shore
after dinner & killed an Elk. the party in my absence killed
a female Brown or Yellow Bear which was meagre the appearances
of the Hills & countrey is as before mentioned except a
greater appearance of the white appearances of salts or tarter
and some coal which has been thrown out by the floods in the
last creek. Buffalow & Deer is not plenty to day.
Elk is yet
to be seen in abundance we camped in the upper part of a
small timbered bottom on the Lar
d. Side in which I saw a fortified
Indian camp, which I suppose is one of the camps of a
Minetarre war party of about 15 men, that set out from their
village in March last to war against the Blackfoot Indians.
We were roused late at night and warned of the danger of
fire from a tree which had cought and leaned over our Lodge,
we had the lodge moved soon after the Dry limbs & top of the
tree fell in the place the lodge stood, the wind blew hard and
the dry wood cought & fire flew in every direction, burnt our
Lodge verry much from the coals which fell on it altho at some
distance in the plain, the whole party were much disturbed by
this fire which could not be extinguished &c
Course & Distance May 17th. 1805
| S. 70°. W |
1 ½ |
miles to a wooded point on the Std. Side |
| S. 75°. W |
2 |
miles to a wood on the Stard. Side |
| West |
1 1/2 |
miles allong the Stard point |
| N. 70°. W. |
2 |
miles to a point of wood on the Lard. Side the hills
approach the river on each side |
| S. 80°. W |
3 1/2 |
to a point of timber on the Stard Side opposit the
enterence of a small creek on the Lard Side Brattens
Creek |
| N. 82°. W. |
2 |
miles to a fiew trees on the Lard pt. |
| West |
1 |
mile along the Lard Side to a point opposit the enterence
of a large creek on the Stard. Side, but fiew
cotton trees in the small bottoms and a fiew scattering
pine & cedar on the tops & sides of the hills
&c. I saw a Morking bird |
| S 70°. W. |
1 ½ |
under the high land on the Lard Side |
| S. 50°. W. |
1/4 |
allong the Larboard Side |
| S. 30°. W. |
1/4 |
allong the Lard. Side |
| S. 10°. W. |
1/4 |
allong the Lard. Side |
| South |
1/4 |
allong the Lard. Side |
| S. 15°. E. |
1/4 |
allong the Lard. Side |
| S. 30°. E. |
1/2 |
allong the Lard. Side |
| S. 35°. E. |
1/4 |
allong the Lard. Side to the commencement of a Bluff
in a Lard. bend |
| S. 2°. W |
1/2 |
to a point of timber on the Stard. Side opposit to a
Bluff on the Lard Side |
| S. 45°. W |
1/2 |
to a point of timber on the Lard. Side |
| S. 20°. E. |
1/4 |
to a point of timber on the Stard. Side |
| South |
3/4 |
allong the Stard. point |
| S. 15°. W. |
1/4 |
allong the Stard. point passed the enterence of a large
creek on the Lard Side |
| S. 80°. W |
1 1/4 |
to a point of wood land on the Lard. Side passing a
bluff on the Lard Side here we incamped for the
night |
|
20 1/2 |
|
