Lost and starving in Bitterroot Mountains — John Ordway: September 19, 1805

last morcil of our provision except a little portable Soup, and pro-
ceeded on to the top of Sd mountain and as we were descending the
Same we discovred a very large plain a long distance a head,
which we expect is on the Columbia River, which puts us in good
Spirits again.2 the Moun4 bad this day. we descended a
Moun* about 4lniles down where it was verry Steep came down
on a creek3 running ab* East, we followed up the creek Some dis-
tance the way very rockey and bad then went along the side
of a Mountain a little to the write of the creek, high steep timbred
mounte on each side of sd creek, one of our horses fell backwards out
of the trail and rolled down over the steep rocks ab* 200 feet with
2 boxes of Ammunition and plunged in to the creek with Some
difficulty we got the horse up again and load it hurt the horse
but did not kill him. we Came 17 miles this day anal Camped at
a Small run in a thicket of pine and balsom timber &C.