Lewis: July 16, 1804
The expedition departed early on a cloudy Monday morning, making it difficult to find a good spot for celestial observation. Just before noon, the party stopped on the larboard shore opposite the center of Good Island, where Lewis used an octant to take a meridian altitude reading, calculating their latitude at 40° 20' 12" North. He set the chronometer based on this observation. The group then continued on through the afternoon, eventually camping for the night on the starboard shore opposite the lower point of the Island of the Bald Prairie.
Monday 16th we set out at an early hour; the morning was cloudy; could
find no convenient situation for observation; proceeded untill a little
before noon when we came too On the Lard. Shore opposite to the center of
good Island where I observed the meridian altitude of O’s L. L. with
Octant by the back observation, wich gave me the Latitude40° 20′
12″ N.
I now set the Chronometer as near noon as this observation would enable
me, and proceeded untill evening, when we came too on the Stard. shore
opposite the lower point of the Island of the Bald prarie where we
encamped.
Read this entry in modern English AI-translated
Monday 16th. We set out at an early hour; the morning was cloudy. We could find no convenient location for observation, so we proceeded until a little before noon, when we came to on the Larboard shore opposite the center of Good Island. There I observed the meridian altitude of the sun's lower limb with the octant by back observation, which gave me the latitude of 40° 20' 12" N.
I then set the chronometer as near to noon as this observation would allow, and we proceeded until evening, when we came to on the Starboard shore opposite the lower point of the Island of the Bald Prairie, where we camped.
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