Back in the days when the country was largely unpopulated, explorers used to travel across the land finding new areas where people could settle. One famous explorer is Meriwether Lewis (8/18/1774 - 10/11/1809). Born on August 18, 1774, near Charlottesville, Virginia, Lewis was known for teaming with William Clark (8/1/1770 - 9/1/1838) and blazing a trail across the country to the Pacific Ocean.

Lewis grew up in the woods near Monticello, Thomas Jefferson's home, and when Jefferson became president in 1801, Lewis became his private secretary. Two years later Jefferson asked Lewis to lead an exploration of the Louisiana Purchase--the large piece of land that the U.S. acquired from France in 1803.

Together, Lewis and Clark kept a detailed journal of their three-year expedition. They crossed the country traveling through North Dakota, Montana, and Washington before returning to St. Louis, Missouri, in 1806. Their journals, published in 1809, created much excitement about the unknown area and helped Easterners get over their fears of traveling west beyond the Mississippi. 

Lewis and Clark Meet the Shoshone  

In August 1805 Lewis and Clark were looking for the Shoshone Indians. The Corps (Lewis and Clark's expedition party) needed horses to cross the Rockies and the Shoshone had them. Sacagawea, a member of the Corps, was Shoshone, but she had been kidnapped by another tribe many years before.

The Corps were still recovering from their portage around the Great Falls of Missouri. Morale was low. Lewis and three men were scouting ahead when they finally met a band of Shoshone. They were the first white men the Shoshone had ever seen.

Lewis wanted the Shoshone to know that he and his men came in peace. He gave them gifts and used sign language, a few Shoshone words, and red paint (the Shoshone color for peace) to tell them. Luckily, the Shoshone band and their chief, Cameahwait, were convinced.

They celebrated the peaceful meeting with hugs, shouts, and smoking a peace pipe. When they all sat on the ground to share the peace pipe, the Shoshone removed their moccasins (shoes) to show their sincerity. Lewis wrote many pages about this day in his journal including this drawing of the peace pipe. Lewis explained that the Shoshone took off their shoes to say they would "always go barefoot if they are not sincere; a pretty heavy penalty if they are to march throught the plains of their country." Lewis understood what they meant since the Corps had all hurt their feet on sharp rocks and prickly pear cactuses.

Although the Shoshone welcomed Lewis, they were suspicious. They had recently been raided by another tribe. When Lewis asked them to travel to meet the rest of his expedition party, the Shoshone worried that Lewis might be leading them into a trap. Eventually Lewis convinced them. But when they got to the meeting place, Clark and the others had not yet arrived. So they waited.

The Shoshone were nervous. They didn't want to be ambushed. Lewis was nervous. He had to get horses or the Corps wouldn't be able to finish the expedition. If Clark and the others didn't show up soon, the Shoshone would leave and take their horses with them.

Finally, on August 17, 1805, the rest of the Corps arrived. Sacagawea and another member of the Corps were the first to see Lewis and the Shoshone. Sacagawea recognized the area as her home and now she recognized this band of Shoshone as her people. In fact, Chief Cameahwait was her brother! Everyone celebrated this lucky coincidence. They even named the meeting place Camp Fortunate. Now Lewis and Clark could continue their expedition with Shoshone horses.

Lewis and Clark and the Great Falls Portage 

Lewis was thrilled to see the enormous waterfall, the Great Falls of the Missouri. It was 900 feet wide and 80 feet high with a "beautiful rainbow" just above the spray. Lewis called it "the grandest sight" he "ever beheld." More importantly, it meant that he and Clark had chosen the right fork in the Missouri River. All winter long they had been talking with Native Americans about a water route across the west. The Native Americans had described the territory in detail, including important landmarks like the waterfall in front of Lewis.

Now it was time for the portage (the carrying of goods over an obstacle): Lewis and Clark's expedition party needed to carry their canoes and supplies around the waterfalls. Before they saw the Great Falls, Lewis and Clark thought the portage would be less than a mile. As Lewis scouted further, he found four more waterfalls and realized that the portage would be much longer.

The Corps would have to hike 18 miles to get around the five waterfalls. They left their heaviest boat and equipment hidden near the base of the falls. The other canoes and supplies were carried, dragged, and pushed. The Corps created makeshift wagons. When the wind was strong, they attached the boat sails to help move the equipment.

The ground was rocky, uneven, and hard. Prickly pear cactuses were everywhere. The Corps wore through their moccasins every two days. The intense heat of the summer sun was interrupted by violent storms, with thunder, rain, and hailstones the size of eggs. Swarms of gnats and mosquitoes pestered them. Rattlesnakes and grizzly bears were a constant threat.

Finally, after nearly a month of hard labor, the portage was complete. The Corps and their equipment were on the other side of the falls. They built new boats to replace the one left behind. They started back on their journey on the Missouri River on July 15, 1805. They were more than a month behind schedule, but happy to be past the Great Falls. Their next challenges were to find horses and make it over the Rocky Mountains! 

Bears on the Lewis and Clark Expedition 

It was the largest bear they'd ever seen, a great grizzly bear that weighed an estimated 600 pounds. A "most tremendous looking animal, and extreemly hard to kill," wrote Lewis in his journal on May 5, 1805. Clark described the grizzly as "verry large and a turrible looking animal." Clark and another member of the expedition fired 10 shots at it before it died.

Several tribes of Native Americans had told Lewis and Clark about grizzly bears. The tribes would only attack these great bears if there were 6-10 people in their hunting party, and even then the bears would sometimes kill one of them. The first grizzlies Lewis saw during the expedition were two smaller bears. He and another hunter had easily killed one of them. That day Lewis wrote in his journal that although the Native Americans with their bows and arrows might have problems, the grizzlies were no match for skilled rifleman. He soon changed his mind.

Lewis was out scouting alone on June 15, 1805. He decided to make camp and shot a buffalo. As he was watching the buffalo fall, a grizzly bear came rushing towards him. Lewis raised his gun to shoot and then realized he had not reloaded his riffle. The bear was getting closer. There were no trees or bushes nearby, but there was a river. Lewis quickly ran into the water. The bear followed. When the bear saw Lewis in the water, for no apparent reason he stopped and ran in the other direction. Lewis was lucky. After that he thought that the Corps (Lewis and Clark's expedition party) should not go out alone. Even at camp, he thought they should sleep with their guns beside them in case of bear attacks.

The bears chased members of the Corps through the woods, into bushes, into the water. On July 15, 1806, Hugh McNeal was out alone on horseback. All of a sudden he saw a grizzly bear in the bushes. His horse bucked and threw McNeal near the bear. The bear raised itself up to attack. What could McNeal do at such close range? He hit the bear with his gun. The bear was temporarily stunned and fell down. McNeal quickly climbed up a nearby tree. Because of their large size and straight claws, grizzly bears aren't good tree climbers, so the bear waited at the base of the tree. And waited. And waited. Finally just before dark, the bear gave up and left. McNeal climbed down and got back to camp safely.

By the end of the expedition Lewis believed that the Corps had been very lucky to not lose anyone to a grizzly bear. He wrote that "the hand of providence has been most wonderfully in our favor."