Lewis & Clark for the 21st Century: Trail Pictures

Beyond Lewis & Clark Exhibition

Military explorers were sent west as early as 1804 to observe and record everything they found. With each expedition, understanding about the American West became more complete. What they learned profoundly changed the nation. This exhibit addresses military explorers from Lewis and Clark (1804) to George Custer (1874). It is the result of a partnership between the Kansas State Historical Society, the Virginia and Washington State historical societies, the U. S. Army's Frontier Army Museum at Leavenworth, and the U. S. Army Center of Military History. - from the Exhibition website

Lemhi Pass

In August of 1805, the Lewis & Clark Expedition crossed the Lemhi Pass. When they did, they answered a question that had been lingering for over 300 years. Is there a water route across the continent? Is there a NorthWest passage? Is there a body of water that can shorten the length of time that commerical traffic can go from Europe to Asia? When Meriwether West reached this beautiful pass, he saw, not the Columbia River as expected, but ranges of ridges extending westward. In the face of disappointment, the character of the Corps of Discovery and their leaders did not quit, but proceeded on into the most difficult section of their journey, the crossing of the Bitteroot Mountains on the Lolo Trail

Indian Post Office

This is a spot along the Lolo Trail, a trail that the Nez Perce Indian traveled from eastern Washington and Idaho to the Buffalo hunting grounds in Montana. It is suspected that these rock cairns were trail markers of sorts. The Lewis & Clark Expedition traveled the Lolo Trail in 1805/06. The Lolo Motorway trail marker has this interpretation. "None of the Lewis and Clark Expedition accounts mentions the presence of rock cairns at this place leading us to believe the route they followed left something of interest. No one has verified what purpose the cairs may have once served. Other mounds of rock can be found elsewhere along the Lolo Trail. Some believe these cairns marked a dividing trail off the main ridge trail. Others say these cairns were a place for early travelers to leave messages for those who would follow. This ara was named Indian Post Office in the early 1900s."

Lolo Motorway Signs

Here are signs that mark the significant stopping points along the Lolo Motorway. From the Clearwater National Forest brochure, Lewis & Clark On the Lolo Trail http://www.fs.fed.us/r1/clearwater/LewisClark/Assets/lolo_trail_corridor.pdf Drive with Care! The Lolo Motorway is narrow, a one-lane road with nothing more than what nature supplies as a surface. Some stretches hold big rocks that can scrape the underside of a low-clearance vehicle. It’s best to drive a tough vehicle with high clearance and good tires. Towing trailers or driving RVs or motor homes on many stretches of the Motorway is not advised. The high elevation route is open and free of snow generally from July through September, sometimes longer. Lightning storms are common in July and August, and snow can come early.

March 12, 2005

Photo Album update

I've added a photo album on Square Butte and have added photos to Ft. Clatsop.

March 12, 2005 in Trail Pictures | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

March 05, 2005

More New Photo Albums

Here are some new photo albums from the trail.

Lemhi Pass, on the Montana/Idaho border where Meriwether Lewis discovered that there was no water routed across this great continent.

The Marias Confluence, at Loma, Montana where the Corps of Discover spent a week trying to determine which direction the Missouri River went.

Pompey's Pillar, east of Billings Montana, where William Clark carved his name in the soft sandstone of the hill.

White Cliffs section of the Missouri River in Central Montana.

Traveler's Rest, Lolo, Montana, at the northern end of the Bitteroot Valley, and the eastern end of the Lolo trail, and south of Missoula, Montana.

As I have time, more will be added.

Links to the photo albums can be found to your right and down the column.

March 05, 2005 in Trail Pictures | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

October 23, 2004

New Photo Albums

I've added three photo albums of pictures I took on a recent trip along the Lewis & Clark Trail.

They are pictures of the Lolo Trail, Fort Clatsop, and the exhibits in the visitors center at the Nez Perce National Historic Park in Spalding, Idaho, near Lewiston.

October 23, 2004 in American History, Trail Pictures, Travel | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)

August 29, 2004

If you have pictures from the Lewis & Clark Trail that you would like to share with others. You can post them here.
All submitted pictures will remain your property, and any use of them other than for viewing on this weblog will have to be approved by the owner of the pictures.

August 29, 2004 in Trail Pictures | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)