Lewis First Sees the Rocky Mountains

Lewis caught his first glimpse of the Rocky Mountains — the great barrier that separated the expedition from the Pacific Ocean. His mixed emotions captured the fundamental challenge ahead.

“I beheld the Rocky Mountains for the first time. While I viewed these mountains I felt a secret pleasure in finding myself so near the head of the heretofore conceived boundless Missouri; but when I reflected on the difficulties which this snowy barrier would most probably throw in my way to the Pacific, it in some measure counterballanced the joy.”

Jefferson and the scientific community had hoped for a short, easy portage across the Continental Divide. The sight of snow-capped peaks stretching across the horizon suggested otherwise. The mountains would prove to be far more formidable than anyone in the East had imagined.