University of Virginia Library

Saturday June 1st 1805.

The mor[n]ing was cloudy and a few drops of rain. Set
out at an early hour and proceeded as usual by the help of our
chords. the river Clifts and bluffs not so high as yesterday
and the country becomes more level. a mountain or a part of
the N. Mountains appears to approach the river within 8 or
10 Ms. bearing N. from our encampment of the last evening.
Capt. C. who walked on shore today informed me that the
river hills were much lower than usual and that from the tops
of those hills he had a delightfull view of rich level and extensive
plains on both sides of the river; in those plains, which in
many places reach the river clifts, he observed large banks of
pure sand which appeared to have been d[r]iven by the S. W.
winds from the river bluffs and there deposited. the plains
are more fertile at some distance from the river than near the
bluffs where the surface of the earth is very generally covered
with small smothe pebbles which have the appearance of having
been woarn by the agitation of the waters in which they
were no doubt once immerced. A range of high Mountains
appear to the S. W. at a considerable distance covered with
snow; they appear to run Westerly. no timber appears on
the highlands; but much more than yesterday on the river
and Islands. rockey points and shoals less frequent than
yesterday but some of them quite as bad when they did occur.
the river from 2 to 400 yards. wide, courant more gentle and
still becoming clearer. game is by no means as abundant as
below; we killed one male bighorn and a mule deer today;
saw buffalow at a distance in the plains particularly near a
small Lake on Lard. side about 8 Ms distant. some few drops
of rain again fell this evening. We passed Six Islands and
encamped on the 7th.; they are all small but contain some
timber. the wind has been against us all day. I saw the
choke cherry the yellow and red courant bushes; the wild
rose appears now to be in full bloom as are also the prickley
pear which are numerous in these plains. We also saw some
Indian Lodges of sticks today which did not appear to have
been long evacuated. some coal appea[r]s in the bluffs.

---

107

Courses and distances of June 1st. 1805.