University of Virginia Library

[Lewis:]

Friday July 26th. 1805.

Set out early this morning as usual current strong with
frequent riffles; employ the cord and seting poles, the oars
scarcely ever being used except to pass the river in order to
take advantage of the shore and current. at the distance of 3 3/4
M. passed the entrance of a large Creek 15 yds. wide which
discharges itself on Lard. near the center of a Lard. bend it is
a bold runing stream this we called Howards' Creek[37] after
Thomas P. Howard one of our party. at the distance of one
mile further we passed the entrance of a small run which falls
in just above a rocky clift on Lard. here the hills or reather
Mountains again recede from the river and the valley again
widens to the extent of several miles with wide and fertile
bottom lands. covered with grass and in many places a fine
terf of greenswoard. the high lands are thin meagre soil covered
with dry low sedge and a species of grass also dry the
seeds of which are armed with a long twisted hard beard at the
upper extremity while the lower point is a sharp subulate, firm
point beset at it's base with little stiff bristles standing with
their points in a contrary direction to the subulate point to which
they answer as a barb and serve also to pres it forward when
onece entered a small distance. these barbed seed penetrate
our mockersons and leather legings and give us great pain
untill they are removed. my poor dog suffers with them excessively,
he is constantly binting and scratching himself as if
in a rack of pain. the prickly pear also grow here as abundantly
as usual. there is another species of the prickly pear
of a globular form, composed of an assemblage of little conic
leaves springing from a common root to which their small
points are attached as a common center and the base of the
cone forms the apex of the leaf which is garnished with a circular
range of sharp thorns quite as stif and more keen than
the more common species with the flat leaf, like the Cocheneel
plant.[38] on entering this open valley I saw the snowclad tops

of distant mountains before us. the timber and mountains
much as heretofore. saw a number of beaver today and some
otter, killed one of the former, also 4 deer; found a deer's
skin which had been left by Capt. C. with a note informing
me of his having met with a horse but had seen no fresh appearance
of the Indians. the river in the valley is from 2 to
250 yds. wide and crouded with Islands, in some places it is 3/4
of a mile wide including islands. w[h]ere it passed the hills it
was from 150 to 200 yds. the banks are still low but never overflow.
one of the men brought me an indian bow which he
found, it was made of cedar and about 2 F. 9 Inh. in length.
it had nothing remarkable in it's form being much such as is
used by the Mandans Minetares &c. This morning Capt.
Clark left Sharbono and Joseph Fields at the camp of last
evening and proceeded up the river about 12 miles to the top
of a mountain from whence he had an extensive view of the
valley of the river upwards and of a large creek which flowed
into it on Std. side. not meeting with any fresh appearance of
Indians he determined to return and examine the middle fork
of the missouri and meet me by the time he expected me to
arrive at the forks. he returned down the mountain by the
way of an old Indian road which led through a deep hollow
of the mountain facing the south the day being warm and
the road unshaded by timber in the deep valley he suffered
excessively with heat and the want of water, at length he arrived
at a very cold spring, at which he took the precaution of
weting his feet head and hands before [he] drank but notwithstanding
this precaution he soon felt the effects of the water.
he felt himself very unwell shortly after but continued his
march rejoined Sharbono and Fields where the party eat of
a fawn which Jo. Fields had killed in their absence Capt. C.
was so unwell that he had no inclination to eat. after a short
respite he resumed his march pass [ed] the North fork at a
large island; here Charbono was very near being swept away
by the current and cannot swim, Capt. C however risqued him[self]
and saved his life. Capt. C. continued his march to a
small river which falls into the North fork some miles above
the junction of the 3 forks it being the distance of about four
miles from his camp of last evening here finding himself still
more unwell he determined to encamp. they killed two brown
or grisley bear this evening on the island where they passed
the N. fork of the Missouri. this stream is much divided by
islands and it's current rapid and much as that of the missouri
(Qu) where we are and is navigable. emence qty of Beaver

Courses and distances of July 26th. 1805.

                           

N. 45°. W.	1/4	to an object in a Stard. bend
S. 60°. W.	1.	to a point in a Lard. bend passing 9 small Islds.
S. 55°. W.	1/2	to the center of a Stard. bend passing one Ild. and opt. a 2ed.
S. 65°. E.	1.	to a clift of rocks in a Stard. bend passing 2 Islands.
N. 65°. E.	1.	to the entrance of a creek 15 Yds. wide on Lard. in a Lard. bend. we call [it] Howard's Creek. pad. I. Ild.
S. 15°. E.	1.	to the entrance of a small run in a Lard. bend the Monts. here recedes from the river. this run Capt. C. has laid down in mistake for Howard's Creek.
S. 55°. W.	1 1/2	to the center of a Stard. bend
S. 12°. W.	2 1/2	to a point in a Stard. bend
S. 15°. E.	3 1/2	to a point of high timber on the Lard. passing 3 Ids. on Lard.
S. 25°. W.	1.	to the center of a Stard. bend
East	1 1/4	to the center of a Lard. bend passing 3 Islds. on Lard. side
S. 20°. E.	2 1/2	to the center of a Lard. bend passing 4 Islds. on Lard. Sd.
S. 48°. W.	1 1/2	to a rock in the center of a Lard. bend opposite to 2 Islds. where we encamped for the night on Lard. shore.[39]
Miles	16 1/2	[18 1/2]