"the most distant fountain of the mighty Missouri in search of which we have spent many toilsome days and restless nights, Thus far I had accomplished one of those great objects on which my mind has been unalterably fixed for many years."
That same day Lewis pushed on and crossed the continental divide at what we now know as Lehmi Pass.
Lewis was amazed and disillusioned by what he beheld.
"after refreshing ourselves we proceeded on the top of the dividing ridge from which I discovered immense ranges of high mountains still to the West of us with their tops partially covered by snow."
This is the vista that so troubled Lewis
On August 13, they did meet with a number of Indians an Lewis unfurled an American flag, the first to be raised west of the divide.
Monument to the first flag raising.
Lewis eventually persueded the Indians to accompany him back to Camp Fortunate to meet with Captain Clark and the others. It was then that Sacajawea recognized the Chief as her brother, Cameahwait, and joyously greeted him. The deal was soon struck, and Lewis was able to buy enough horses to enable the Corps to continue their voyage.
The Corps cached their canoes and supplies for the return trip here at the this most momentous camp, Camp Fortunate, and proceeded on, on horseback.
The books we have relied on for a lot of advice on this trip suggested we call the Forest Service office in Dillon for advice before crossing the pass. We called them on the day before, and got no answer, called again the morning we headed for the pass and left a message to have them call us about the advisability of attempting Lehmi Pass in a Prius.
We reached the summit (7367 feet) and visited a monument to Sacajawea where there is a rivulet flowing from a spring that Lewis identified as the source of the Missouri, and we were supposed to get a picture of us standing astride it. We forgot to visit the spring! Oh well, next time.🙂
Our descent on a road less traveled.
We saw a sage grouse.
And some wild flowers
And a cow,
And some more wildflowers,
And a whole field of wild flowers,
And we proceeded on...that away
When we got down from the pass there was a message from the Forest Service saying that there was no problem taking a Prius up the pass from the Montana side, but that they would strongly advise we not attempt to make the descent on the Idaho side in a Prius. They tried to convince us that crossing Lehmi Pass in a Prius was no bed of roses. They were right, it was a bed of wildflowers.
When we got down, that Prius was covered in dust, so we made our way to the town of Salmon, Utah, found and reserved a room at the Sacajawea Inn. We noticed a manual car wash going through town, so we gave it a try. The sprayer was broken off, but were able to dribble some water on the car, and wash it off with the brush, and rinse with the dribble. The owner showed up and apologized and offered to refund the cost, ($1.50 twice, or $3.00) We said no it was all right. When we got to the Motel and checked in we noticed three full service car washes across the street.
Oh well.
Down the Salmon River through the Bitterroot valley tomorrow.
2 comments:
After Lemhi Pass, what route did you follow? Did you come out at Tendoy on the Old Hwy 28 and go north to Sacajawea Inn?
Patience when off roading and deciding to clean the vehicle! We've sometimes used the bucket and rag method instead of waiting for a more convenient solution....only to have a similar experience. But then, where would the memory be?
Looks like you're enjoying the "mountain spring," since so many wild flowers are blooming. That's a great reward for the traveler.
Bob,
As you probably know, there are two routes descending from Lehmi Pass; The Agency Creek Road and the Warm Springs Wood Road. The first takes 13 miles to descend, the second, 26 miles. Obviously, since they both lose the same amount of altitude, the second is much gentler, which was our choice. It does come out in the vicinity of Tendoy, and yes we took 28 to the town of Salmon for the night.
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