The Journals of Lewis & Clark: Lewis, July 8, 1806
Lewis, July 8, 1806
July 8th 1806. Set out at 6 A.M.
N 25 W. 31/2 m. to the top of a hill from whence we saw the Shishequaw mountain about 8 M. distant, immediately before us. passed Dearborne's river at 3 m. this stream comes form the S. W. out of the mountains which are about 5 Ms. to our left. the bed of the river is about 100 yds. wide tho the water occupys only about 30 yds. it appears to spread over it's bottoms at certain seasons of the year and runs a mear torrant tearing up the trees by the roots which stand in it's bottom the Shishiquaw mountain is a high insulated conic mountain standing several miles in advance of the Eastern range of the rocky mountains. Country broken and mountanous to our wright.
North- 141/2 ms. through an open plain to Shishequaw Creek 20 yds. wide bottoms and considerable gantity of timber it leaves the mountain to the S E and enters the mountains. we struck it about 10 miles below the mountain which boar S. 32 W. from us. the road continued along the foot of the mountain to the West of north which not being anything like our course and the country becoming tolerably level at the commencement of this course we steered through the plains leaving the road with a view to strike Medicine river and hunt down it to it's mouth in order to procure the necessary skins to make geer, and meat for the three men whom we mean to leave at the falls as none of them are hunters. we halted and dined on Shishequaw Creek R. Fields killed a fine buck and a goat; Josh. Fields saw two buffaloe below us some distance which are the first that have been seen. we saw a great number of deer goats and wolves as we passed through the plains this morning but no Elk or buffaloe. saw some barking squirrils much rejoiced at finding ourselves in the plains of the Missouri which abound with game.
N. 50 E 2 m. to the discharge of Shishequaw Creek into the Medicine Rivers through an extensive beautiful) and level bottom.
N. 85° E. 8 m. to our encampment of this evening on a large island the bottoms continue level low and extensive plains level and not very elivated partcularly on the N. E. side of the river. the land of neither the plains nor bottoms is fertile. it is of a light colour intermixed with a considerable proportion of gravel the grass generally about 9 inghes high. the hunters were unsuccessful this evening. I killed a very large and the whitest woolf I have seen-
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