The Mission

Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery  

“The object of your mission is to explore the Missouri River & such principle stream of it, as, by it course and communication with the water of the Pacific Ocean ,…”

President Thomas Jefferson to Meriwether Lewis ~ June 20, 18 03

President Thomas Jefferson’s vision for the United States was “a continental power, stretching from sea to sea.”  He longed to explore the west and to discover the long sought water route to the Pacific Ocean , the fabled Northwest Passage .   

Commanders of the Corps of Discovery  

President Jefferson began planning the 3,000-mile-long expedition in 1802, and on January 18, 1803 , he secured from Congress the sum of $2,500 to implement his plan.  He chose his personal secretary, Meriwether Lewis, as the expedition's leader. Lewis later selected his close friend and a former officer William Clark as co-commander.

Onto New World  

After months of preparation, the Corps of Discovery left St. Charles , Missouri on May 21, 18 04 .  The journey up the Missouri River required backbreaking labor to drag the expedition’s keelboat and two large pirogues upstream.  Danger surrounded the men. Sandbars, collapsing riverbanks, sandstorms, wild animals and illness often impeded their progress.  Through it all, the men proceeded on with great endurance.  

In October 1804, the Corps built winter quarters on a wooded riverbank near several Mandan Villages.  Here Lewis hired Toussaint Charbonneau, a French fur trader, as interpreter for the expedition. Charbonneau brought his young wife Sacajawea and their two month old son Jean Baptiste on the journey.  

Water Route Ends

In April of 1805, the party resumed their upstream travel. Awed by the panoramic view of the Great Plains , the expedition passed through uncharted territory.

In August, Lewis  met Sacajawea’s people, the Lemhi-Shoshoni, near the upper reaches of the Salmon River .  Realizing that a water route was no longer possible, the Corps traded for horses with the Shoshoni and began their crossing of the Rocky Mountains .  On September 9, they reached Travelers’ Rest, the last stop before following what is now known as the Lolo Trail across the Bitterroot Mountains .

…over the most terrible mountains I ever beheld…”

Crossing the Bitterroot Mountains

Standing at the summit of Lemhi Pass on August 12, 18 05 , Meriwether Lewis was greeted by great waves of snow-capped mountains for as far as he could see.  The Lemhi Shoshoni Indians advised him that his party would not be able to navigate the Salmon River near here, but must cross the mountains over land.  The easy one-day portage over the continental divide was not to be.   

Against the advice of their host, Chief Cameahwait, Lewis chose not to winter with the Shoshoni but to push on across the mountains.  Old Toby , a Lemhi Shoshoni guide, and his son were hired to lead the Corps of Discovery along the trail towards the Columbia River . 

 Across the Lolo Trail

At Travelers’ Rest in the Bitterroot Valley , the Corps rested before starting across the mountains.  On September 11, 18 05 they set out along the very ancient Nez Perce trail “Kusaynu Iskit,” known today as the Lolo Trail.  

“The road through this hilley Countrey is verry bad passing over hills & thro’ Steep hollows, over falling timber, continued on & passed Some most intolerable road on the Sides of the Steep Stoney mountains, which might be avoided by keeping up the Creek which is thickly covered with under groth & falling timber…”  
                                                                             William Clark ~ September 12, 18 05  

By September 16, 18 05 the party had climbed out of the Lochsa River canyon to the high ridges of the Lolo Trail.  Patrick Gass recorded, “We renewed our march early, though the morning was very disagreeable, and proceeded over the most terrible mountains I ever beheld.”  Three days later, Lewis wrote, “… the road was excessively dangerous along this creek being a narrow rocky path generally on the side of steep precipice, from which in many places if ether man or horse were precipitated they would inevitably be dashed in pieces.”

 At times, there seemed to be no trail, no relief, nothing but one mountain after another. 

“…thickly timbered country…”

Difficult Passage for the Lewis and Clark Expedition

Traveling over the Bitterroot Mountains became the toughest part of the entire expedition for the Corps of Discovery.  Many of their journal entries describe the difficulties of passing through the thick timber found in this country.

“The Mountains which we passed to day much worst than yesterday the last excessively bad & Thickly Strowed with falling timber & Pine Spruc fur Hackmatak & Tamerack, Steep & Stoney our men and horses much fatigued,…”

William Clark ~ September 14, 18 05

 “Steep hills Side & falling timber Continue to day, and a thickly timbered Countrey of 8 different kinds of pine,… we Encamped at this Branch in a thickly timbered bottom which was Scercely large enough for us to lie leavil,…”

William Clark ~ September 16, 18 05

Naturalists of the Trail

Snow- A Stubborn Enemy

The Retreat

Faithful Companions

  
 Meeting the Nez Perce at Weippe

   
     Canoe Camp

   Camas

“ Lake of Blossoms ”

 “…the quawmash is now in blume and from the colour of its bloom at a short distance it resembles lakes of fine clear water, so complete is this deseption that on first sight I could have swoarn it was water.”

Meriwether Lewis ~ June 12, 18 06

Meriwether Lewis described many species of plants new to western science during the journey of the Corps of Discovery.  Camas was one of these, which he described in detail on June 11, 18 05 .  Camas, a member of the lily family, grows in meadows that are boggy in spring and dry in summer.  This perennial bulb species, which propagates by seed and grows from one to three feet high, has long linear blossoms with blue, white, or purple petals.   Expedition journals refer to the camas by many different names “quawmash,” “quamas” and “kamash” and the Shoshoni names for the plant “passhico,” “patter” and “pashequaw.”                                  

   A Nez Perce Staple

The camas was a vital part of the Nez Perce diet, along with that of many plateau tribes.  The bulb provided a rich source of fiber, calcium, phosphorus and iron.  Gathered by Nez Perce women from mid-July through September, the bulbs were uprooted with a sharpened stick called a “tukus.”  Bushels of bulbs were placed in an earthen pit lined with firewood, rocks, and grasses.  The pit was then covered and a fire maintained on top for several hours.  The roots were then cooled and fashioned into various foods. Camas bread lasted well and made good traveling food.

Weippe Prairie, A Wild Food Factory

The prairie where Lewis and Clark met the Nez Perce people was an abundant source of the camas root.  Native peoples from all over the northwest came to this prairie to harvest the camas bulb.  While here, they enjoyed many social activities such as visiting, horse racing, gambling, and trading.                                                                                                                              

   Nimiipuu

The Nez Perce People

Among the many tribes that Lewis and Clark encountered in their 8,000-mile journey, the Nez Perce or Nimiipuu (Nee Mee Poo) became one of the most important to the successful completion of the expedition’s mission.  The Nez Perce helped the strangers recover from their arduous mountain crossing by providing food and hospitality. They also helped them build canoes for the trip to the Ocean and wintered their horses during their absence. On the return trip, the Nez Perce provided guides from Celilo Falls , near modern day Dalles, OR, back to the Clearwater River region and later across the mountains heading east. 

 The Nimiipuu

Nez Perce (NEZZ-PURSE) is a French term for “pierced noses.” Lewis and Clark described people among the tribe with nose ornaments, though existence of this practice is still debated.  Nez Perce call themselves Nimiipuu, or “the People.”  At the time of the expedition, the tribe numbered around 6000, with various bands inhabiting portions of Idaho , southeast Washington , and northeast Oregon .  The Nez Perce were well known for their horsemanship and horse breeding, with their herds stretching across much of the Columbia Plateau.

Home s

Nez Perce families lived in tule-mat or brush-covered long houses, some over 150 feet in length. Semi-subterranean dwellings were sometimes used in addition to the long houses, especially as homes for single men and women.  Each long house, containing several rows of hearths down the center, accommodated several extended families.  The permanent villages also had semi-subterranean sweathouses.  In the summer, when the families traveled to the mountains, they used the more portable tipi.  The Nez Perce tipi was a conical structure made with twelve poles joined at the top. Tipis were covered with either tule-mats or hides.

Dress

Clothing was made from natural materials and was frequently decorated with feathers, animal teeth, bone, and shells. Some items were colored with dyes made from plants and minerals.  Men wore thigh length fringed buckskin shirts, leggings or breechcloths, belts, and moccasins.  Gloves were also occasionally worn by men. Bison robes kept out winter cold.  Women wore buckskin dresses, cornhusk hats and moccasins to the knee.  Face painting for special occasions was common for both men and women.

 Food

The Nez Perce derived their food from the land in which they lived. Salmon and other fish provided a major source of protein, supplemented with deer, elk, bear, moose, and smaller mammals and birds. The people dried and stored roots such as camas and cous, wild onion and carrot. Many kinds of berries, pine nuts, sunflower seeds and black moss were also gathered, each in its own season.

Weetxuusiss

The Hunters

 Captain Clark and six of the best hunters were first to reach the Weippe Prairie on the westward journey of 1805. This advance group was desperately in search of food to send back to the main party still crossing the mountains. On September 21, 18 05 Clark wrote, a fine morning Sent out all the hunters early in different directions to Kill something…

 On the return trip in 1806, hunting proved to be very good on the Weippe Prairie. Clark entered in his journal on June 22, 18 06 , This morning by light all hands who Could hunt were Sent out, the result of the days performance was greater than we had even hopes for. we killed eight Deer and three Bear.