6 June 2017
As the Lewis and Clark expedition traveling on the
Missouri River was closing in on the area now known as Great Falls, MT, they
received a big surprise. The advice and
guidance of Mandan people had been invaluable to the expedition to this
point. They arrived at a point where a
second river went in a different direction.
The Mandan had not mentioned any such river. There was some discussion and disagreement on
which was the true Missouri. A wrong
decision here would mean they that might be trapped on the plains for a harsh
winter without proper preparations and could well mean a tragic end to the
journey.
They decided to explore both branches. They spent over ten days exploring far and
wide. Their journals mention the lush
vegetation and abundant wildlife. In the end their decision to follow the
clearer river proved correct. A few days after following their chosen river,
they discovered the Great Falls.
5 comments:
So the Missouri River was the correct call. I still am so baffled at how they did all this discovering. They just kept moving forward no matter what. Boy do I admire them both. What amazing men.
Those guys were smart cookies!
Love that area of Montana.
I've always felt badly about what happened to the Native Americans as an ultimate result of helping Lewis & Clark.
Nice views! I sometimes wonder how a place — be it here in the US or elsewhere — would have been different if explorers had made different decisions along the way.
What absolutely beautiful countryside!! I can't imagine how difficult their journey must have been but at the same time how rewarding!! Amazing, strong and brave men!!!
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