The Lewis and Clark Expedition is a significant piece of U.S. history. The voyage covered nearly 8,000 miles of distance on the ground and lasted over 2 years. If one cares to read the original journals, it's a bit difficult to read (spelling was atypical of conventional English, with the linguistic not native to Mother England...🙂...). [Note: There are no shortage of annotated and edited versions for easier reading, of which I've read one.] Nonetheless, the original content, written, in a (pragmatic) workman type language and rich with expressions, provides the very first details and fascinating features about a massive (and ambitious) endeavor seeking the westward passage towards the Pacific Ocean. 

I've travelled bits and pieces of their Historic Trail on the road in the comfort of the car, in the flatlands of the Midwest...🙂...i.e., the easiest segments of their journey... (their starting point was in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where their 55 feet boat was launched into the downtown river). Anyway, the most challenging portions of the journey (filled with unforgiving terrain and treacherous waters) were in the stretch across the northwestern states and the Northern Rockies. It's regarded that their passage through the Bitterroot Mountain ranges of ID/MT (see pictures below), was the most arduous of the entire Expedition (150 miles of steep and rugged mountain passage, with feet of snow on the ground, sub-freezing temperatures...compounded by fatigue and low food supplies...).

One important aspect of the Lewis and Clark Expedition was the use of Rivers (and River Confluences), from start to finish, (think of Interstate exchanges on the highways or interconnected airways, of modern times...). The 3 most important river transitions, they performed (you can see 2 of those in below images) were the confluences of (1) Missouri and Mississippi rivers (2) Clearwater and Snake rivers (shots 8/9) (3) Snake and Columbia rivers (shots 11/12). Here, I've directly flown overhead of the latter two confluences (see MFD close-up MAP and the external pictures, of each confluence).

So, here we go, as I travel (I mean fly...) in the comfort of my Grand Caravan in the colors of Kenmore Air (one of my favorite small airlines), departing from Idaho Falls Airport (KIDA), headlong into (and over) the treacherous Bitterroots, and then, westward, to the Pacific of southwestern Washington. BTW, my chosen livery is not completely out-of-place for my story, see the last 3 images of the (Pacific) coastlines, where Lewis and Clark, had finally (and for the first time) caught sight of the vast blue waters of the Pacific Ocean, near McKenzie Head, Washington, just about 180 miles SW of the city of Kenmore.

Hope you enjoy these pictures symbolic of this classic voyage across the America. Cheers and Good day...!

Nice shots! 😉 

Ambitious trip (for them and for you). Love that golden sunlight at the end.

Another fine set Sir !

cheers 😉

Interesting story and great pics to go along with it, P_7878!

Will, John, pmplayer, bernd:

Many thanks for the +ve comments...🙂...Cheers...!