Lewis: May 2, 1806

Friday May 2cd 1806. This morning we dispatched two hunters a head. we had
much difficulty in collecting our horses. at 8 A.M. we obtained them all
except the horse we obtained from the Chopunnish man whom we seperated
from yesterday. we apprehended that this horse would make some attempts to
rejoin the horses of this man and accordingly had him as we thought
securely bubbled both before and at the side, but he broke the strings in
the course of the night and absconded. we sent several men in different
directions in surch of him. I engaged one of the young indians who
overtook us last evening to return in surch of him. at half after 1 P.M.
The indian and Joseph Feilds returned with the horse, they had found him
on his way back about 17 Ms. I paid the indian the price stipulated for
his services and we immediately loaded up and set forward. steered East 3
M. over a hilly road along the N. side of the Creek, wide bottom on S.
side. a branch falls in on S. side which runs south towards the S. W.
mountains which appear to be about 25 Ms. distant low yet covered with
snow N. 75 E. 7 through an extensive level bottom. more timber than usual
on the creek, some pine of the long leafed kind appears on the sides of
the creek hills, also about 50 acres of well timbered pine land where we
passed the creek at 4 m. on this course N. 45 E. 9 ms. repassed the creek
at 4 M. and continued up a N. E. branch of the same which falls in about a
mile below where we passed the main creek. the bottoms though which we
passed were wide. the main creek boar to the S. and heads in the
Mountains; it’s bottoms are much narrower above where we passed it and the
hills appear high. we passed the small creek at 83/4 from the commencement
of this course and encamped on the N. side in a little bottom, having
traveled 19 miles today. at this place the road leaves the creek and takes
the open high plain. this creek is about 4 yds. wide and bears East as far
as I could observe it. I observed considerable quantities of the qua-mash
in the bottoms through which we passed this evening now in blume. there is
much appearance of beaver and otter along these creeks. saw two deer at a
distance; also observed many sandhill crains Curloos and other fowls
common to the plains. the soil appears to improve as we advance on this
road. our hunters killed a duck only. the three young men of the
Wollahwollah nation continued with us. in the course of the day I observed
them eat the inner part of the young and succulent stem of a large coarse
plant with a ternate leaf, the leafets of which are three loabed and
covered with a woolly pubersence. the flower and fructification resembles
that of the parsnip this plant is very common in the rich lands on the
Ohio and it’s branches the Mississippi &c. I tasted of this plant
found it agreeable and eat heartily of it without feeling any
inconvenience.