Tetoharsky, along with Twisted Hair, accompanied the expedition down the Clearwater and lower Snake Rivers, acting as river guides and interpreters. They continued down the Columbia to The Dalles, the line between Sahaptian and Chinookan speaking peoples. At that point they asked to leave. On 25 October, Clark mentions their departure:
a parting Smoke with our two faithful friends the Chiefs who accompanied us from the head of the river, (who had purchased a horse each with 2 robes and intended to return on horse back)
On the return journey, Tetoharsky met the travelers on the Travois Trail and later showed them where to cross the Snake River.
Relevant Pages
October 5, 1805
Two Nez Perce guides
At Clearwater Canoe Camp, two new dugouts are put in the water. The horses are rounded up, branded, and given to Nez Perce caretakers, and two guides volunteer to take them down the river.
October 7, 1805
Down the Clearwater
After a busy day, thirty-three expedition members, Lewis’s dog, Seaman, and the two Lemhi Shoshone guides start down the Clearwater in their five new dugout canoes. Challenging rapids test their skills.
October 8, 1805
A canoe accident
On the Clearwater River, the paddlers navigate numerous rapids and pick up guides Twisted Hair and Tetoharsky. After a canoe accident at Colter’s Creek—present Potlatch River—travel abruptly stops.
October 14, 1805
'Ship Rock'
After passing a ‘ship rock’—Monumental Rock on the Snake River in Washington—Sgt. Ordway‘s canoe gets stuck on a rock and fills with water. They stop for the day and begin drying wet items.
October 15, 1805
Snake River rapids
The first half of the day is spent drying items while the hunters and Lewis explore the high plains above the Snake River. They continue through several difficult rapids and camp above yet another rapid.
October 18, 1805
Down the Columbia
At the mouth of the Snake, the captains council with the Wanapums and Yakamas. Late in the day, the expedition heads down the Columbia and camps below the Twin Sisters in Wallula Gap.
October 24, 1805
Running the Short Narrows
The dugout canoes are safely run down the Short Narrows of the Columbia astonishing the local onlookers. Below the narrows, the expedition encounters their first Chinookan-speaking People.
October 25, 1805
A "bad whorl & Suck"
The expedition’s most valuable cargo is carried around the Long Narrows of the Columbia, and then the best paddlers run the canoes. At present The Dalles, Oregon, Fort Rock Camp is established.
May 4, 1806
Crossing the Snake River
With help from their 1805 Nez Perce guide, the Corps crosses the Snake River and continues upriver to present Clarkston, Washington. Curious villagers crowd camp, and Lewis sees menstrual lodges.
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.
This site is provided as a public service by the
Lewis and Clark Trail Alliance
with cooperation and funding from the following organizations:
- Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail
- Montana Committee for the Humanities
- Idaho Governor's Lewis and Clark Trail Committee
- The Capital Gallery (Lewis and Clark Fort Mandan Foundation)
- Yellowstone Public Radio
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).