The expedition leaves Weippe Prairie with three Nez Perce guides who intone fair weather by burning some trees. Sgt. Gass has moved forward to the evening’s camp on Eldorado Creek to invite the two Nez Perce men on met 21 Jun 1806 to wait and join them. In St. Louis, General James Wilkinson writes his instructions for Zebulon Pike‘s Southwest exploration.
Eldorado Creek
© 22 June 2008 by Kristopher K. Townsend. Permission to use granted under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
An Early Start
We collected our horses early this morning and set out accompanyed by our three guides. Colter joined us this morning having killed a bear, which from his discription of it’s poverty and distance we did not think proper to send after.
—Meriwether Lewis
Gass’s Diplomacy
We gave each of the [Nez Perce] Indians a pair of mockasons, and they agreed to stay to day and wait for the party.—
—Patrick Gass
Hunting Ahead
R. & J. Feilds had only killed one small deer only while they lay at Collins‘s Creek and of this they had been liberal to the indians insomuch that they had no provision; they had gone on to the branch of hungary [Hungery] Creek at which we shall noon it tomorrow in order to hunt.
—Meriwether Lewis
Eldorado Creek
after dinner we Continued our rout to fish Creek a branch of Collin’s Creek where we had lain the 15th 18th 19th & 20th inst.
—Meriwether Lewis
Black Flies
There is also a small black fly in this country, that so torments our horses, that they can get no rest, but when we make small fires to keep them off.
—Patrick Gass
Burning Trees
the indians entertained us with seting the fir trees on fire. they have a great number of dry lims near their bodies which when set on fire creates a very suddon and immence blaze from bottom to top of those tall trees. they are a beatifull object in this situation at night. this exhibition reminded me of a display of fireworks. the natives told us that their object in seting those trees on fire was to bring fair weather for our journey.—
—Meriwether Lewis (recorded on 25 June 1806)
Weather Diary
State of the weather at rise
Wind at State of the weather at 4 P.M. Wind at 4 P.M. fair N W fair after cloudy N W Set out a 2d time from quawmash flats [Weippe Prairie]
—Meriwether Lewis and William Clark[1]To assist the reader of this web page, the date column is not presented and some abbreviations have been spelled out.
James Wilkinson’s Instructions
St. Louis 24 June 1806.
Sir,
. . . you are to embark the late Osage Captives, and the Deputation, recently returned from Washington, with their presents & Baggage; and are to transport the whole up the Missouri, & Osage Rivers to the Town of the Grand Osage.
. . . . .
. . . you are to turn your attention to the accomplishment of a permanent peace between the Canzes [Kansas] & Osage Nations . . . .
. . . . .
A third objective of considerable magnitude will then claim your consideration; It is to effect an Interview, & establish a good understanding with the . . . Comanches. . . . [Y]]ou will endeavour to make peace between that distant powerfull nation and the nations which inhabit the Country between us and them, particularly the Osage . . . .
. . . . .
. . . you may find yourself approximate to the settlements of New Mexico, and therefore it will be necessary you should move with great circumspection, to keep clear of any Hunting or reconnoitring parties from that province . . . .
. . . . .
Ja: Wilkinson[2]James Wilkinson to Zebulon M. Pike, Donald Jackson, The Journals of Zebulon Montgomery Pike (Norman, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press, 1966), 287.
Weippe Prairie is a High Potential Historic Site along the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail managed by the U.S. National Park Service. A 274-acre tract in the prairie is managed by the Nez Perce National Historic Park.
