Lewis and Clark
Lewis and Clark Bicentennial
Captain Lewis and three other members of the Corps of Discovery reached
Lemhi Pass on August 12th 1805. The Salmon-Challis and Beaverhead-Deerlodge
Forests hosted a ceremony commemorating the 200th anniversary of that
day. Click here to view a photo
scrapbook of the day.
August 12, 2005 -- There were ~ 210 people (including agency
folks) who attended. The agenda included the Director of BLM, Director
of External Affairs for the Secretary of Interior, our own Regional
Forester, the Supervisor of the Salmon-Challis NF, Bud Clark, the
great, great, great grandson of Captain Clark, and members of the
Lemhi Shoshone band of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribe.
The people in attendance were from all over...most of whom said
they traveled there just to be there for this ceremony. I talked
with people from Colorado, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, South
Dakota, Texas, Oklahoma, New York, California, and of course Montana
and Idaho.
The event was well orchestrated with folks from both forests and
the BLM who helped with logistics and site management. The ceremony
was followed by a BBQ lunch and interpretive walks.
Congratulations goes out to Katie Bump and Steve Matz and the other
forest and BLM folks who made this a ceremony one that will be added
to the history books for Lemhi Pass!
To start the tour, first click on either of the interactive maps,
1
or 2,
then click on the locations you are interested in. Or, you can click
on the Map
Locations List link to navigate to the location you are interested
in.
*anything misspelled is done to preserve
the words of Lewis and Clarks' own remarks.
August 12 to September 3, 1805
Appointed by President Thomas Jefferson, Captains Meriwether Lewis
and William Clark were charged with finding a navigable water route
to the Pacific Coast. Departing Wood River, Illinois, in May 1804,
the expedition traveled for fifteen months to reach the headwaters
of the Missouri River, then crossed the Continental Divide and entered
the Lemhi Valley on August 12, 1805.
The Corps of Discovery faced many perils in this region. Stricken
by limited provisions with winter fast approaching, the party transported
mountains of canvas, wood and iron gear. After paddling the length
of the Missouri River, the treacherous current of the Salmon River
and the steep, crumbly surrounding mountains proved to be formidable
obstacles.
Lewis with three men led an Advance Party over Lemhi Pass and encountered
the Lemhi Shoshoni Nation. Convincing the Shoshoni that the small
party posed no threat to their well-being, they agreed to accompany
Lewis' party back over the pass and to assist the main party.
Clark led the Reconnaissance Party into the valley to explore the
feasibility of navigating the Salmon River. Faced with the strong
possibility of drowning should their flimsy canoes be swept into
the rocks by the swift current, the party made a critical decision
changing the course of the expedition and opted for a somewhat less
hazardous, but equally difficult dry-land route.
Encamped back in Montana, Lewis sorted supplies necessary for the
Portage Party over Lemhi Pass. Winter now only weeks away, the Entire
Expedition grew anxious to get to the Pacific Coast.
Imagine the hardships faced by these explorers as they trekked
through the Lemhi and Salmon River Valleys, and uncover places where
you can retrace Lewis and Clark's steps in areas where little has
changed since they were here.
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