Lewis and Clark

Who would think these historic figures would haunt our trip? Friend Pat had recommended Undaunted Courage by Stephen Ambrose, a favorite of ours, so I bought it, but not soon enough.

Upon leaving West Yellowstone we saw numerous “History Here” type signs telling of Lewis and Clark’s trip through the area. If the sign titles had been in smaller print, we never would have known as we flew on by. The pair and their company made a full quarter of their stops in Montana! On a previous trip, we had seen Captain Clark’s carved signature in Pompey’s Pillar. We climbed the height with the help of a stairway unavailable to the earlier explorer. We played tag with the route all through Montana, Idaho and Washington. Astoria, OR was the site of the group’s winter home on the Pacific. I was anxious to see the Columbia River described in the book, but the river of history no longer exists. Modern dams have drastically altered the landscape to improve navigation, create electric power, and moderate seasonal highs and lows – all worthy accomplishments. Given the trouble the L&C troop had with the river, they may heartily approve. Interestingly, passageways have been left to allow for salmon to swim upstream as always.

The Columbia is still a magnificent river with many waterfalls along the way. We traveled the back roads along the Columbia on both the Oregon and Washington side for some distances, enjoying bluffs, views and waterfalls. We went to Beacon Rock and climbed, again with the help of stairs, to stand where the first explorers and pioneers had surveyed the river. We also made a stop at the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center in City of the Dalles to see artifacts of the trip, though few remain, it was a very nice exhibit. It helps to see depictions of the canoe the men were maneuvering through rivers and across portages and of the goods they carried. Parts of the book jumped out of the pages at this exhibit.

Unplanned and often unaware, we rolled down some of same paths that Lewis and Clark and their men struggled to cross. They created the maps and charted then unknown rivers. We hitched up the trailer and hit the road. The differences are staggering, but we were seeing these areas for the first time, taking in their beauty, and meeting the locals, just as the first expedition. So symmetry was there as well.

NEXT TIME: Plan. Stop.