Lewis travels down the Medicine (Sun) River nearing the Great Falls of the Missouri. They feast on bison—their first since 16 July 1805.
At Fortunate Camp south of present Dillon, Montana, Clark’s group prepares the dugout canoes left there last fall. Ordway‘s detachment brings in the stray horses, and Sacagawea collects a lomatium root.[1]For more on the captains’ strategy and various groups after leaving Travelers’ Rest, see Dividing Forces at Travelers’ Rest.
Sun (Medicine) River near Simms, Montana
© 20 July 2011 by Kristopher K. Townsend. Permission to use granted under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
Lewis Moves Down the Medicine
The Medicine (Sun) River
N. 80° E. 4ms. through a handsome level wide bottom in which there is a considerable quanty of narrow leafed cottonwood timber. the river is generally about 80 yds. wide rapid yet I think it migt be navigated. it’s bed is loose gravel and pebbles. the banks low but seldom overflow. water clear.
—Meriwether Lewis
Feasting on Buffalo
Joseph feilds [Joseph Field] killed a very fat buffaloe bull and we halted to dine. we took the best of the meat as much as we could possibly carry on our horses. the day continuing rainy and cold I concluded to remain all day. we feasted on the buffaloe.
—Meriwether Lewis
Clark Prepares Canoes
Beached Dugout Canoe
© 2015 by Kristopher K. Townsend. Permission to use granted under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
Preparing the Canoes
I had the Canoes raised washed, brough down and drawn up on Shore to dry and repard . . . . the wind dried our Canoes very much they will be Sufficiently dry by tomorrow morning to Set out in them down the river.
—William Clark
Dividing Forces Yet Again
I had the Canoes repared men & lodes appotioned ready to embark tomorrow morning. I also formd. the party to accomp me to the river Rejhone from applicants and apportioned what little baggage I intended to carry as also the Spear horses.
—William Clark
A Lost Cache
Set Several men to work digging for the Tobacco Capt. Lewis informed me he had buried in the place the lodge Stood when we lay here last Summer, they Serched diligently without finding anything.
—William Clark
A New Lomatium Root
The Squar [Sacagawea] brought me a Plant the root of which the nativs eat. this root most resembles a Carrot in form and Size and Something of its colour, being of a pailer yellow than that of our Carrot, the Stem and leaf is much like the Common Carrot, and the taste not unlike. it is a native of moist land.—
—William Clark
Ordway Catches Up
about 4 miles overtook the hunters who had killd. a deer. we halted and roasted a quarter of it and the Intrals which we eat and proceeded on down the river about noon we arived at the canoe deposite
—John Ordway
Weather Diaries
State of the weather at rise
Wind at State of the weather at 4 P. M. Wind at 4 P. M. cloudy after rain N. E. rain N. E. rained slightly last night. air cold. rained constantly all day air extreemly cold it began to rain about 8 A. M. and continued with but little intermission all day in the evening late it abated and we obtained a view of the mountains we had just pased they were covered with snow apparrently several feet deep which had fallen during this day.—
—Meriwether Lewis
State of the weather at Sun rise Wind at Sun rise State of the weather at 4 P. M Wind at 4 P M. cloudy S W. fair S W Hard frost. Some ice this morning. last night was very Cold and wind hard from the N E. all night. The river is 12 inches higher than it was last Summer when we made the deposit here and portage from this place. more Snow on the adjacent mountains than was at that time.
—William Clark[2]To assist the reader of this web page, the date column is omitted and some abbreviations have been spelled out.
Notes
| ↑1 | For more on the captains’ strategy and various groups after leaving Travelers’ Rest, see Dividing Forces at Travelers’ Rest. |
|---|---|
| ↑2 | To assist the reader of this web page, the date column is omitted and some abbreviations have been spelled out. |
Experience the Lewis and Clark Trail
The Lewis and Clark Trail Experience—our sister site at lewisandclark.travel—connects the world to people and places on the Lewis and Clark Trail.
Discover More
- The Lewis and Clark Expedition: Day by Day by Gary E. Moulton (University of Nebraska Press, 2018). The story in prose, 14 May 1804–23 September 1806.
- The Lewis and Clark Journals: An American Epic of Discovery (abridged) by Gary E. Moulton (University of Nebraska Press, 2003). Selected journal excerpts, 14 May 1804–23 September 1806.
- The Lewis and Clark Journals. by Gary E. Moulton (University of Nebraska Press, 1983–2001). The complete story in 13 volumes.
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Unless otherwise noted, journal excerpts are from The Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, edited by Gary E. Moulton, 13 vols. (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1983-2001).