The Long Journey
The journey of Lewis and Clark and the Corps of Discovery stands as one of the United States' great adventure tales, its fascinating history gripping our imagination as both children and adults. Many of us fantasize about what it must have been like to travel into uncharted territory, surviving on our wits, teamwork, and the help of people met along the way. The journey took Lewis and Clark through the present-day states of Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, and Idaho, culminating with a passage along the Columbia River in the Pacific Northwest.
The Corps of Discovery left their winter camp near St. Louis in May of 1804 with the goal of finding a viable route through the Louisiana territory to "Oregon Country" and the Pacific Ocean. They entered what is now the state of Washington in October of 1805, reaching the Pacific on November 6. After spending a few days exploring the area around the mouth of the Columbia River, they began construction of their winter quarters in December, naming it Fort Clatsop after the local Clatsop tribe. The winter that the Corps spent at Fort Clatsop was a miserable one, wet, dreary, and short on food.
