March 23, 1806
Homeward bound
The dugouts are loaded, and they leave Fort Clatsop to begin their homeward-bound journey. Fighting high waves, they round Tongue Point and camp near the John Day River.
Delashelwilt and Wife
March 21, 1806
Weather delay
At Fort Clatsop near the Pacific Ocean, bad weather prevents the expedition from leaving for home. Provisions are low, so hunters are dispatched and eulachon purchased from some visiting Clatsops.
March 18, 1806
Stealing a canoe
Near the Pacific Ocean, four men steal and hide a Clatsop canoe. The captains write a short description of the expedition which they distribute among the local residents.
March 17, 1806
A new canoe
Drouillard returns to Fort Clatsop with a canoe purchased with Lewis’s uniform coat and suggests they take another in lieu of the six ‘stolen elk ‘. Lewis describes seaweed and lists ship captain names.
March 15, 1806
Harvesting the hunt
At Fort Clatsop near the Pacific Ocean, the captains continue to barter for canoes. Several enlisted men are busy hunting and gathering meat, and the “old baud” sets up her business outside the fort.
November 21, 1805
Clatsop and Chehalis visitors
At Station Camp near the mouth of the Columbia, some Clatsops and Lower Chehalis visit. Additionally, the wife of Chinook chief Delashelwilt brings six young females to camp. Clark describes Chinookan head flattening and woven mats and hats.
In Washington City, Secretary of War Henry Dearborn orders Louisiana Territory Governor and Commander of the U.S. Army, James Wilkinson, to cancel his plans to build a fort on the Platte River.
November 17, 1805
A disappointing cape
At Station Camp, Clark trades with some Chinooks and gathers volunteers to visit the Pacific Ocean tomorrow. Lewis returns from Cape Disappointment without finding any ships.
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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