Jefferson River ascending toward divide — Joseph Whitehouse: August 5, 1805
The party set out at sunrise on a clear, cool morning with two hunters sent ahead, one returning with a deer before breakfast. They struggled through worsening rapids along rocky shores, with cold southern winds and afternoon clouds. Reaching a fork, they took the right-hand branch, fighting through extremely fast water, beaver-felled trees, and willow-choked channels. They passed several high beaver dams and camped on the south side in a recently flooded bottom after traveling 8 miles. A hunter killed a deer. The exhausted crew hoped to abandon the canoes and continue overland.
a clear cool morning. we Set out at Sunrise 2 hunters
Sent on a head to kill Some meat. one of them joined us
with a deer he had killed before breakfast time. the wind cold
from the South. the Shores and hills rockey, & bottom of
the River cov! with Small Stones. our other hunter joined us
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LEWIS AND CLARK JOURNALS ss [Aug. 6
at noon, had killed nothing. the rapids gits worse that ever.
it is with difficulty we git over them, & verry fatigueing. at
1 oC. P. M. clouded up. wind high. proceeded on about
a mile further up came to a fork we took the right hand fork
which was amazeing rapid. Some of the rapids falls 3 or 4
feet or their abouts in the length of our canoes. we passed
through a channel where the water was rapid and ran through
the willows & young cotton wood the beaver had fell[ed]
Some of them across the channel and [as] it [was] crooked it
was with much difficulty we got thro. obledged to forse our
way through the bushes and hall by them. Some places out
in the water could Scarsely keep our feet for the rapidity of
the current. Saw Several beaver dams verry high. night
came on. Camped on S. Side at a low bottom, which has
lately been overflowed. we expect this little Stream is high
from the Snow melting on the mountains. it appears it has
lately been higher, but is now falling a little. was it low their
would not be water enofe in it for us to proceed any further
by water. our hunter killed a deer. Came 8 miles this day.
the party much fatigued and wish to leave the canoes & go
by land.
Read this entry in modern English AI-translated
A clear, cool morning. We set out at sunrise. Two hunters were sent ahead to kill some meat. One of them joined us with a deer he had killed before breakfast time. The wind was cold from the south. The shores and hills were rocky, and the bottom of the river was covered with small stones. Our other hunter joined us at noon, having killed nothing. The rapids got worse than ever. It was with difficulty that we got over them, and it was very fatiguing.
At 1 o'clock P.M. it clouded up. The wind was high. We proceeded on about a mile further up and came to a fork. We took the right-hand fork, which was amazingly rapid. Some of the rapids fell 3 or 4 feet or thereabouts in the length of our canoes. We passed through a channel where the water was rapid and ran through the willows and young cottonwood. The beaver had felled some of them across the channel, and as it was crooked, it was with much difficulty that we got through. We were obliged to force our way through the bushes and haul by them. In some places out in the water we could scarcely keep our feet because of the rapidity of the current. We saw several very high beaver dams.
Night came on. We camped on the south side at a low bottom which has lately been overflowed. We expect this little stream is high from the snow melting on the mountains. It appears it has lately been higher, but is now falling a little. Were it low, there would not be water enough in it for us to proceed any further by water. Our hunter killed a deer. We came 8 miles this day. The party was much fatigued and wished to leave the canoes and go by land.
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