2026 Lewis & Clark trip – part 43: off to the “Gates of the Rocky Mountains”

Now that we’ve seen the falls that the Corps of Discovery had to portage around, the expedition had a few days to relax and get ready for the next phase of the trip. This phase took us on a beautiful drive through some mountains where we could see the Missouri River winding around at the bottom of the deep drops. We ended up in the city of Helena, the capital of Montana, in a lovely valley where we could get back on the Missouri River ourselves and see the amazing sights that the expedition saw.

The expedition passed through this canyon of “nearly perpendicular rocks” during its journey up in the Missouri River in July 1805. Although the men grumbled about mosquitoes and prickly pear cactus since some of them were walking along the river, the Corps of Discovery was clearly impressed by the Adel Mountain Volcanics, the eroded remains of a pile of volcanic rocks that flank the river for 40 miles.

gates of the mountains

July 15-19, 1805. “The portage accomplished, four days of uneventful travel brought the expedition to what Lewis called the Gates of the Rocky Mountains, a section in which the river is flanked by high rock walls, rising ‘from the water’s edge on either side perpendicularly to the height of 1200 feet.’ Lewis commented that the river ‘seems to have forced its way through this immense body of solid rock for the distance of five-and-three-quarters miles.'”

“The Corps left the open plains and approached the timbered, rugged western mountains. While Lewis entered the gates of the mountains with the boats, Clark explored the hillsides and bypassed this scenic wonder.”

AI gave us this information about their division of labor:

Clark’s Role: William Clark walked around the Gates of the Mountains to scout the terrain. This was crucial for understanding the landscape and identifying potential challenges ahead. Clark’s scouting provided valuable insights into the land.

Lewis’s Role: Meriwether Lewis rode in a boat to navigate the river more efficiently. This allowed him to assess the waterway and manage the expedition’s progress along the Missouri River. Lewis’s navigation ensured the team made steady progress through the water.

On foot, Clark covered more country, but he paid dearly. Footsore and weary, one evening Clark extracted 17 prickly pear spines from his moccasins. I find it interesting that Lewis rode on the boat since he usually walked along the land. But I guess Clark wanted to scout out the best way to go.

Clark wrote on July 16, 1805, from looking down at the river, “The river is not so wide as below . . . crowded with islands and crooked.”

Lewis wrote on July 19, 1805, while on a boat, “This evening we entered the most remarkable cliffs that we have yet seen. The towering and projecting rocks in many places seem ready to tumble on us. Nor is there . . . a spot except one of a few yards in extent on which a man could rest the sole of his foot.”

bighorned animals

Lewis wrote on July 18, 1805, “. . . previous to our departure saw a large herd of the Bighorned animals on the immencely high and nearly perpendicular clift opposite to us; on the face of this clift they walked about and bounded from rock to rock with apparent unconcern where it appeared to me that no quadriped could have stood.”

Bighorn sheep are still in the area, and we looked for one on the cliffs.

Bighorn sheep were new to Lewis and Clark. The captains took time to record these “new” animals in their journals.

Boat tours started here in 1886 on the river much like what Lewis had to navigate. The area also has its share of tragic events including being the site of the Mann Gulch fire of 1949. This wildfire began on August 5, 1949, in the Gates of the Mountains Wilderness in Montana’s Helena National Forest. It killed 13 firefighters and led the U.S. Forest Service to adopt new training and safety measures for wildfire suppression.

As Sacagawea said, their next stop, and ours, is three forks. Before we show you these 3 rivers that merge to make the Missouri River, we want to show you an example of a buffalo jump that was in the area.