On September 12, 1805, Lewis and Clark began crossing the Bitterroot Mountains using the Lolo Trail, but severe snowstorms slowed the expedition’s progress. Clark separated from Lewis on September 18, and finished crossing the Bitterroots two days later. Once over the mountains, Clark met the Nez Perce Tribe for the first time on the Weippe Prairie.  The expedition finally reunited after four days apart.

Finding that the Nez Perce were friendly, the expedition traveled down the Clearwater River to a larger Nez Perce camp. There, the group gave the Nez Perce gifts and ate enough salmon and camas root to give most of the expedition terrible cases of dysentery. The expedition stayed at the camp until early October. With the assistance from the Nez Perce, the Corps constructed canoes and continued traveling down the river. The expedition left their horses with the Nez Perce for safe keeping until their return journey—retrieving the horses the following year in May 1806. Again, heavy snow impeded their progress, and they decided to stay with the Nez Perce until June 10, 1806.

The Nez Perce National Historical Park stretches across Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington, and comprises thirty-eight sites. Several unique locations in Idaho relating to the Lewis and Clark expedition include the Weippe Prairie, Canoe Camp and Long Camp, the campsites used by the expedition in 1805 and 1806, and the Lolo Trail. Visitors can travel the Lolo Trail by foot or by vehicle, as well as walking other trails that trace Lewis and Clark’s original route.

Call (208) 843-7009 or visit http://www.nps.gov/nepe/index.htm for more information concerning operating hours, fees, directions, etc.

Credits and Sources:

Content for this Next Exit History site sponsored by the Lewis & Clark Trail Heritage Foundation. For more information visit http://lewisandclark.org/.

Lewis, Meriwether, William Clark, Bernard DeVoto, Stephen E. Ambrose, and Erwin Raisz. The Journals of Lewis and Clark. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1997.

National Park Service. “Nez Perce National Historic Park,” last updated June 25, 2014.  Accessed June 25, 2014. http://www.nps.gov/nepe/index.htm.