Wednesday September 18th. 1805.
Cap Clark set out this morning to go a head with six hunters,
there being no game in these mountains we concluded it would
be better for one of us to take the hunters and hurry on to the
leavel country a head and there hunt and provide some provisions
while the other remained with and brought on the party.
the latter of these was my part; accordingly I directed the
horses to be gotten up early being determined to force my
march as much as the abilities of our horses would permit.
the negligence of one of the party (Willard) who had a spare
horse, in not attending to him and bringing him up last evening
was the cause of our detention this morning untill ½ after
8 A. M. when we set out. I sent willard back to serch for his
horse, and proceeded on with the party at four in the evening
he overtook us without the horse, we marched 18 miles this
day and encamped on the side of a steep mountain; we suffered
for water this day passing one rivulet only; we wer[e]
fortunate in finding water in a steep raviene about ½ maile
from our camp, this morning we finished the remainder of
our last coult. we dined & suped on a skant proportion of
portable soupe, a few canesters of which, a little bears oil and
about 20 lbs. of candles[43]
form our stock of provision, the only
recources being our guns & packhorses. the first is but a poor
dependance in our present situation where there is nothing
upon earth ex[c]ept ourselves and a few small pheasants, small
grey Squirrels, and a blue bird of the vulter kind about the
size of a turtle dove or jay bird. our rout lay along the ridge
of a high mountain
course S. 20. W. 18 m. used the snow
for cooking.
