The Journals of Lewis & Clark: Lewis, April 5, 1806

Updated May 14, 2020 | Infoplease Staff

Lewis, April 5, 1806

Saturday April 5th 1806. This morning was so cloudy that I could not obtain any lunar observations with a Aquila as I wished. Joseph Fields and Drewyer departed this morning agreeably to their orders of last evening. at 9 A.M. we Sent Sergt. Ordway and a party to assist Sergt. Pryor in bringing in the meat of four Elk which he had dryed. at 1 P. M the party returned with the meat. it had been so illy dryed that we feared it would not keep. we therefore directed it to be cut thinner and redryed over a fire this evening, as we purpose setting out early in the morning. the deerskins which we have had cased for the purpose of containing our dryed meat are not themselves sufficiently dryed for that purpose, we directed them to be dryed by the fire also. the weather has been so damp that there was no possibility of pounding the meat as I wished.- we were visited today by several parties of the natives as usual; they behaved themselves in a very orderly manner. Observed Magnetic Azimuth and altitude of the sun with Circumferenter and Sextant.

Saw the Log cock, the hummingbird, gees ducks &c today. the tick has made it's appearance it is the same with those of the Atlantic States. the Musquetoes have also appeared but are not yet troublesome.- this morning at 10 OClock Sergt. Gass returned with Collins and Windsor they had not succeeded in killing the female bear tho they brought the three cubs with them. the Indians who visited us today fancyed these petts and gave us wappetoe in exchange for them. Drewyer informed me that he never knew a female bear return to her young when they had been allarmed by a person and once compelled to leave them. The dogwood grows abundantly on the uplands in this neighbourhood. it differs from that of the United States in the appearance of it's bark which is much smoother, it also arrives here to much greater size than I ever observed it elsewhere sometimes the stem is nearly 2 feet in diameter. we measured a fallen tree of fir No 1 which was 318 feet including the stump which was about 6 feet high. this tree was only about 31/2 feet in diameter. we saw the martin, small gees, the small speckled woodpecker with a white back, the Blue crested Corvus, ravens, crows, eagles Vultures and hawks. the mellow bug and long leged spider have appeared, as have also the butterfly blowing fly and many other insects. I observe not any among them which appear to differ from those of our country or which deserve particular notice.