Wednesday, May 20, 2009

September 20th, 1805

September 20th, 1805

   Oh my word! I am so ill I can barley move. It must of been that Camas root we ate yesterday, it was so delicious and I was so hungry I couldn't stop eating it! the pain in my stomach is so bad I had to contemplate getting a glass of water for nearly 2o minutes. I decided not to the pain was to bad. thank god the captain let us stay in today I would not have been able to budge and I don't think my comrades would be able to either. Today was also a very hard day not because I was in so much pain but because I had nothing to  do, I was used to having something to do every minute of every day, I began to let my mind wander to all of the possible things that could go wrong with the mission. To take my mind off of my anxiety I decided t educate my self about Camas root. this is what I came up with:
The bulbs must have flowered before they are harvested
To harvest, a piece of turf must be lifted out systematically and then replaced after only the larger bulbs were removed
The bulbs were dug with a sharp pointed stick
Harvesting took anywhere from 2 weeks to 2 months for all of the bulbs to be harvested
After harvesting some of the bulbs were broken into pieces and replanted
Harvesting only happened every few years

Monday, May 18, 2009

September 14, 1805

September 14, 1805

We are in bad condition, I mean pretty bad.... We have killed two of our colts and old Toby ( our guide had gotten us perfectly LOST! This is in my opinion our lowest point along this mission, this is the most haggard I have ever seen my comrade. Days passed this way, until the captains decided it would be best is we split up, one party would go ahead with our best hunters and try for some game on the other side and then bring it back to the party who would be back behind. then captain Clark said something that shook me so much I began to breath heavily and my face was burning with fear. He said that they better get the meat back to us before we didn't need it anymore, and that's when I imagined coming back to bring my comrades and my captain meat to just see their motionless bodies laying in the snow. What then?
  

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

September 3rd, 1805

September 3rd, 1805

I am so tired, cold and hungry.  We are covered in snow and sleet and there is no sign  of a break. we have had barley any food along the way, last nights dinner was two small birds cooked with some corn. I saw our guide sharing some of his little teeny meal with the captains dog seaman. Perhaps he has lost his mind i have no idea how he will make it with our days travel on the small amount of food he is eating, acctually how can any of us? we are going to need to get some food and we are going to need to get it fast.

August 17th, 1805

August 17th, 1805

Surprise Surprise! Remember when when I told you about Sacajawea story of how she was kidnapped? well i forgot to include the fact that her brother had tried to come to her aid but he had been attacked by the Hidastas and she believed him dead. Turns out, that the Shoshone chief is her brother! what a nice reunion, I even had a few tears in my eyes. She was  also reunited with her long lost friend Jumping Fish. All of the  chiefs doubts about us were washed away and he said  that eh would take us to the trial that the Indians used to cross the mountains. 

P.s. pomp has grown considerably since I saw him last


Tuesday, May 12, 2009

August 15th, 1805

August 15th, 1805

After quite a trek, we have got to the Shoshones. At first they were afraid of us, but after we gave them some blue beads the became very friendly.  they have many horses more than enough to get us over the mountains, but when the captains discussed the journey over the mountains we didn't like what we heard. 1st of all there was defiantly no float able river over them, and the Shoshones had never actually been on the journey over the mountains due to the danger. Captain Lewis didn't believe them he thought that they just wanted us there to protect them with our rifles and such. I think that he is mistaken, I think that the Shoshones realize how important this mission is and they wouldn't do that. we were told that there was actually one man who had been over the mountains. Captain Lewis and Drouillard went to speak with him, he confirmed that there was northwest passage, he said things that scared me very much. He told us that horses fall from cliffs, there is no way to get food and that we all might very well get frozen to death by the snow, or at least be crippled by frost bite on our toes and fingers. After hearing this the captain thought that maybe having the old man along with us might be a good help. He did not consent but said he would think about it. I don't think that inviting him was a good idea, i think that he would slow us down and another mouth to feed, but I suppose that the captain knows best. At least the Shoshone chief agreed to lend us 30 horses! 

When we started out the men from the Shoshone village were afraid that we were leading them into a death trap but after some harsh words and a disgraceful speech from their chief nearly half the village joined us. We had more luck while hunting Drouillard shot three deer and we all ate till our stomachs were full, that was very nice. Finally we reached the fork in the Jefferson river, there was a big bush that could easily hide an ambush, the Indians were all very suspicious, so to calm them captain Lewis made us give them our rifles and told them if we deceived them they could shoot us. HAS HE LOST IS MIND?! But it seemed to work they went ahead with us and we decided to stay at the fork for the night until we had captain Clark return.  But the Indians were still suspicious and they slept in a big ring around us so we couldn't leave in the night. I see where we stand with these people.

July 30th, 1805

July 30th, 1805

today we heard Sacajawea story. So sad, I can barley imagine having that happen to me at such a young age. She told us that she and her friend, Jumping Fish were running away from the invading Hidastas. as she ran she tripped over a root and twisted her ankle so she couldn't walk, the very root she was standing next to. she was pulled by her hair onto a horse, from that point she saw old men and women slaughtered. Young boys and men cut down right before her eyes. Just imagine.
  

Monday, May 4, 2009

July 8th, 1805

July 8th, 1805

  The iron boat captain Lewis has been working on for so long has failed, he was the only person who was surprised by this. He had been so sure it would work and we had stayed behind for two weeks so he could work on this boat. Thankfully captain Clark was ready for this and had marked several trees for dugouts when captain Lewis would come to his senses. After the sinking of the boat captain Lewis went on a walk alone with his dog Seaman, after a little bit captain Clark sent Drouillard after Captain Lewis to look after him. Hours later when captain Lewis returned he asked about Drouillard, captain Clark told him that he had gone to sleep out with the men tonight. A lie, the first lie I had heard from captain Clark to captain Lewis ever. Next time, said captain Lewis, William if you catch me doing something as prideful as this boat for gods sake stop me. Ill try replied captain Clark, I hope he does! 

June 16th, 1805

June 16th, 1805

  I am very worried about Sacagawea, she has fallen very ill, no one seems to know what it is but she has a burning fever stomach cramps and no appetite at all. I am afraid that if her fever does not break we will lose her, oh no no no what will little Pomp do?! how will we feed him. I struggled to keep calm I have really become fond of Sacagawea.  Captain Clark finally got her to swallow a bit of our medicine but I don't think it did much good at all. Then Charbonneau tried to tell us that he was going to take her home to the Hidasta village. NO! absolutely NOT! everyone was infuriated at him. we spent the rest of the evening tending to Sacagawea. we discussed how to make the 16 mile trip around the falls and back onto the river. I was barely listening though, i was too worried abut Sacagawea to hear anything no mater how hard I tried. I kept putting my hand to her head to see if her fever had cooled at all, I think it was cooling but maybe that was my imagination running wild, only time would tell.

June 13th, 1805

June 13th, 1805

Yes!!!! The great falls! We had chosen right after all and I have never been so glad. I couldn't stop from smiling a huge smile and laughing and I couldn't help my self from yelling and dancing about, everyone looked at me like I was insane but who cares? We found the falls after all!! 


Thursday, April 30, 2009

J une 9th, 1805

June 9th, 1805

We have had a very serious decision set before the corps these last few days, there was a fork in the river that was not on the map that the Mandan's had made for us and we did not have the slightest idea which way to go. We sent out two parties one each way to scout for any sign of the great falls I was in a group with captain Lewis and from our expedition I can tell you with  around 80% sureness that the great falls are not up that way. but the men from the other party said the same thing though captain Clark seems to be sure that the river he followed was the Missouri. from what I have seen, I would like to go down the rive captain Clark and his party ascended but it is ultimately up to the captains though i do feel like I have a small say in the decision, I do like our captains way of handling decisions. The final decision was to go down the river captain Clark had explored, I am in full support of this decision I just pray that it is the right one.

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

April 29th, 1805

April 29th, 1805

We have seen the frizzly bears! It was very exciting, but scary I was walking with captain Lewis and private George Drouillard and the captains dog Seaman. We had been on a walk when Seaman started making a racket about something, we couldn't figure out what it was until we came to the nearby clearing, grizzles! Two of them! They tried to charge us but  I shot it square in the chest expecting it to fall on its face and die but it looked like it didn't even feel it. RUN! Seaman ran like I had never seen him, he ran all the way out of the clearing. I was running to when I heard Droullard yell and when I looked back I saw the bear dead in the clearing. When we examined it we concluded it did not live up to its horror stories. I hope this is as big as they
come.

.
The grizzly we saw                                            My sketch

April 20th, 1805


April 20th, 1805

We have seen THE BIGGEST BEAR TRACK EVER! It must be those grizzly bears that the Indians back at fort Mandan had warned us about. I can defiantly see why they were afraid to face these beasts. I did a  two sketches to what I think they will look like, I am terrified but I know if and when we meet one I wont be able to freak out, my life could depend on it. 


Sunday, April 26, 2009

February 11th, 1805

February 11th, 1805
  
 Sacagawea went into labor! This was a very exciting for we have all grown very fond of Sacagawea and had begun to look forward to having her little one on the trip. Her labor was long and hard and we were all getting worried that something might be wrong with her. I was by her side for most of the time just talking to her and holding her hand when she had a painful contraction. The captains were fretting and pacing about as if they were waiting for their child to be born. One of the french traders living in the Mandan village suggested that we feed Sacagawea a little bit of rattlesnake rattle. Captain Lewis slipped a little bit into a cup of water and gave it to Sacagawea and just minutes after, Sacagawea gave birth. Its a boy!!!  he was named Jean Baptiste Charbonneau. Captain Clark called him Pomp, it stuck. 
Sacagawea and Pomp

November 3rd, 1804

November 3rd, 1804

Today we had an interesting visitor, his name was Toussaint Charbonneau a french man from the Hidasta village. He had simply walked in on captain Lewis while he was working on his collection, a mistake on Toussaint's part. He told captain Lewis that he wanted to be the translator for the expedition. Captain Lewis already having his feathers ruffled by this man told him as calmly as he could that they already had a translator and they didn't need another. Yet he persisted, he said that the current translator,  George Droullard, did not speak fluent Shoshone and that it would be crucial that you have someone who did if they were going to trade with the Shoshone up river for horses and to make peace. Though Toussaint did not speak fluent Shoshone he did have two wives that had been kidnapped and then won by him who did.  Toussaint was also a skilled boatman. The captains held a meeting in their hut while we waited out side, when we were let back in they said that they would have Toussaint along and one of his wives. The following week he brought his two wives, they were very young girls 15 or 16 years of age. He told us that he had decided to bring along the girl named Sacagawea, she was a small girl with little bones and features and her long black hair was braided down her back. Seaman, took a great liking to her. I hope this young girl Sacagawea is strong enough to endure this journey. 

sacagawea

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

September 6th, 1804

September 6th, 1804

We have found a curious new animal. It has small hoofs  with stiff buff colored hair, large eyes and small pronged horns. And it fast to! Private Colter  swore that it could outrun a musket ball, this was proved wrong but it sure seemed like it could. We have also discovered a new animal, it looked like a little rat, but one of the french sailors who was with us said that it was called a prairie dog. Captain Clark insisted that president Jefferson get a specimen. Here's the catch, he wanted it alive. We were all  jumping and making fools out of ourselves trying to catch this little animal, we tried to dig it out of its burrow but gave up after digging six feet and not seeing hid nor hair of the little fellow. Then it was suggested that we water them out. So we heaved up two tubs of water to the prairie dog town and dumped it down the hole. In just a few minutes the soaked little fellow came up out of its hole. Someone snatched him up and captain Clark put him into a box where he would be safe until next spring when ( god willing) we would return home and president Jefferson could get a look at him.
prairie dog

August 19th, 1804

August 19th. 1804

We have lost Sergent Floyd. we do not know the exact cause of his death but he had severe stomach pains much beyond any ailments we have had on this trip so far. In his last hours captain Clark was by his side. I think the captain knew his end was drawing near because he ordered us to steer the keel boat to shore so he could heat water  for a bath. But before the water was even warm sergeant Floyd told captain Clark that he was leaving and he wanted him to write a letter. There was no time, captain Clark didn't even have time to get his writing things before poor Floyd passed. We buried him on a high bluff above the river. We gave him a proper burial with readings from the bible, then marked his grave with a piece of wood. Colter carved the words "Charles Floyd died here, 20 August 1804".  Not far from here there was a small river which the captain named after the Sergent. We all voted for a new Sergent and private Patrick Gass was elected, I am very happy about this because I voted for private Gass. Though we all feel sad about what happen To Sergent Floyd no one in the crew blames them self about the death more than captain Lewis. We all reassured him he did everything he could but i could tell he didn't believe it. 

August 15th, 1804

August 15Th, 1804

These last few days i have had some discouragement because the river you see seems to loop back on its self! On the 12Th we had a good days travel a whole 18 1\2 miles by boat. but when we got to camp that  night captain Lewis sent me back on foot to our last camp and it was meerly 974 yards away by land. Oh! and my suspicion of private Moses Reed was correct, he hadn't lost his knife at all, turns out he had stolen a gun, musket balls and gun powder and deserted the mission. When he didn't return captain Clark sent out a search party to bring private Reed back in. When they returned he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to run the gauntlet. Awful awful treatment, even though i do not like private Reed much it was still hard. But on the brighter side our genius captain Clark constructed a net made out of willow bark and dragged it behind the boat, it caught a total of 800 delicious fish!

August 2nd, 1804

August 2ND, 1804

Today we had our first meeting a very large group of Indians. There were about 100 Oto and Missouri Indians, including 6 chiefs. I was very excited but not entirely sure how the meeting would go, we made sure all of our guns were loaded and we were poised just in case. I put on my best clothes and so did the rest of the corps. We had a box filled with gifts for the Indians from president Jefferson filled with  leggings, coats and beads. I didn't think that they would be very pleased with these but we had nothing else. When the Indians arrived we gave them quite a show by firing our arms into the air. It was quite startling and astonishing  to them.  Captain Clark presented his speech about how we wanted to be in peace and to tell their people not to attack us or we would stop traders from coming up the river to trade with them. They had prepared a similar speech saying they wanted peace all the same. I was relived when they departed because even though the meeting had gone well i was still unsure about the Indians. Captain Clark was pleased though which is a good thing. Later that day private Moses Reed had to go back to council bluff for he had left his knife there.  The moment i heard this i knew that he was up to no good.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

July 4, 1804


July 4, 1804

   Last night two men form the corps, private Halls and private Hollins,  snuck some more whisky. But not just one cup, they had three or four, three or four each! that was an 6 day ration! They were so drunk that they began to sing and yell until they woke the captain and he shut them up. The next day they had an awful punishment. private Hollins got 100 lashes and Halls got 50. We tied them to a tree and each man counted along, private Hollins lost consciousness at 52 lashes. Then they were taken to the river to have their wounds cleaned and dressed.  And just because they had been brutally beaten they were still expected to do all of their normal work.

May 23, 1804

May 23, 1804
  Today we had a bit of a fright. captain Lewis had gone on a little walk with to write in his journal with his dog seaman. Apparently they were sitting on a lovely little bluff, when captain Lewis had finished writing he was walking along the edge of a cliff and then suddenly the ground gave way and he was sent tumbling down the side of the cliff. Luckily he was able to get out his knife and stick it into the face of the cliff and climb back up. Now i understand why we have two captains

Thursday, April 9, 2009

Seaman

Seaman is the captains dog. he is a playful dog that captain Lewis bought for 20 dollars. he always looks at us funny. like, his behavior...... maybe something to look into. maybe it has something to do with his previous owners, from what Ive heard he was first owned by a man name O'mally, who sold him to Brady then a little under a year later her was sold to captain Clark.

Were Off!

 Spring, 1804
An exciting day it is! it is the day we set sail with captain Meriwether Lewis and captain William Clark. I have packed my bag to the brim. On this long and dangerous voyage, it could be fatal to forget something. I have been instructed to keep a journal and record everything i hear, feel, eat and learn. captain Lewis and Clark are two men very alike but so different at the same time. for instance Lewis has brown hair but Clark has red,  Lewis is a quiet thoughtful man while Clark talks freely with the men. they are pretty similar in physical appearances, both fit and around 6 feet tall. captain Clark is a talented map maker and is always mapping the landscape around them for Jefferson. captain Lewis is the botanist, collecting samples, leaves, bark and other wilderness items whenever he gets a chance.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Crew

Dear Captain John,
i am super excited! i just got to know my crew people and i am want to tell you all about them.

Alex: crazy alex! she is good with kids and loves to cook and be silly with her friends.

Clay: he can use a compass and read a map AND! he can tell funny stories so we will never get bored.

Amanda!:can cook all kinds of pies,homemade macaroni, play piano
 and do art! maybe decorate the ship?

Austin: an all around explorer, sailor and can identify edible roots and plants. 

Brian: can blaze a trail, eat a berry, play guitar and sing.

quinn: can tell us lots of old stories at campfires and is a very talented navigator.

jake: has got his sense of direction which will prove very useful if we get lost along the way

ryan: has a perspective all his own

morgan: is a very good cook and is good with little ones ( i.e kids)

andrew: the expert negotiator

gabe: poet!

evy: the actress who plays the violin





Tuesday, March 10, 2009

dear captain john

dear captain john,
i think that i would be a good addition to the rediscovery crew for my talents of talking alot, i used it when my dad was falling asleep in the car but he was driving and we had to be on time to get home so i just talked and talked so he stayed awake =). my other talent is medical care. when my fathers friend had pain in his arm and numbness and trouble seeing i told him he was goingt o have a stroke so he went to the hospital. I hope to discover people who talk as much as i do and have quality things to talk about. and different typs of medicine and diseases. not like poeple getting them but learning about them and learning how to treat them.
-sammie