On June 30^th, 1806, Lewis and Clark stopped at Traveler’s Rest while on their eastward journey home. The leaders had agreed to split the expedition at this point in order to maximize the range of their return explorations.

Captain Lewis traveled with a small group to the Great Falls of the Missouri then turned north towards the Marias River to ascertain the length of that waterway. Conversely, Captain Clark and a larger group moved down the Jefferson and Yellowstone Rivers, exploring those regions on their way to meeting back up with Lewis along the Missouri River.

On July 7^th, Lewis entered what is now known as Lewis and Clark Pass, a path well-known to Natives crossing the continental divide. The group’s time in the pass was short as the weather turned cold and wet, but Lewis did take time to note the geographical landmark, Square Butte or Fort Mountain, from a vantage point on the pass.

In 1853, Frederick W. Lander, a civil engineer employed by the U.S. government, explored the pass in conjunction with Washington Territorial Governor Isaac Steven’s transcontinental railroad survey. His observations were positive and consistent with Captain Lewis’, but the pass was never developed for railroad or highway travel.

Ultimately, the railroad chose Marias Pass to the north and the highway commission selected Roger’s Pass to the south for their respective routes. Because of this, Lewis and Clark Pass is the only pass used by the Corps of Discovery that is not traversed today by a railroad or road, making it one of the most unique and authentic sites along the Lewis and Clark Trail. The pass is now located within the Helena National Forest and is accessible to hikers.

Credits and Sources:

United States. War Dept., Reports of Explorations and Surveys, to Ascertain the Most Practicable and Economical Route for a Railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean (Washington: A. O. P. Nicholson, printer [etc.], 1855-60). Accessed December 2014 http://name.umdl.umich.edu/afk4383.0012.001