ntain in order to avoid
the circuit. The road had been very bad during the first part of the
day, but the passage of the mountain, which was eight miles across, was
very painful to the horses, as we were obliged to go over steep stony
sides of hills and along the hollows and ravines, rendered more
disagreeable* by the fallen timber, chiefly pine, spruce pine and fir.
We at length reached the creek, having made twenty-three miles of a
route so difficult that some of the party did not join us before ten
o'clock. We found the account of the scantiness of game but too true, as
we were not able to procure any thing during the whole of yesterday, and
to-day we killed only a single pheasant. Along the road we observed many
of the pine trees pealed off, which is done by the Indians to procure
the inner bark for food in the spring.

Friday 13. Two of the horses strayed away during the night, and one of
them being captain Lewis's, he remained with four men to search for them
while we proceeded up the creek: at the distance of two miles we came to
several springs issuing from large rocks of a coarse hard grit, and
nearly boiling hot. Those seem to be much frequented as there are
several paths made by elk, deer and other animals, and near one of the
springs a hole or Indian bath, and roads leading in different
directions. These embarrassed our guide, who mistaking the road took us
three miles out of the proper course over an exceedingly bad route. We
then fell into the right road, and proceeded on very well, when having
made five miles we stopped to refresh the horses. Captain Lewis here
joined us, but not having been able to find his horse two men were sent
back to continue the search. We then proceeded along the same kind of
country which we passed yesterday, and after crossing a mountain and
leaving the sources of the Travellers-rest creek on the left, reached
after five miles riding a small creek which also came in from the left
hand, passing through open glades, some of which were half a mile wide.
The road which had been as usual rugged and stony, became firm, plain
and level after quitting the head of Travellers-rest. We followed the
course of this new creek for two miles and encamped at a spot where the
mountains close on each side. Other mountains covered with snow are in
view to the southeast and southwest. We were somewhat more fortunate
to-day in killing a deer and several pheasants which were of the common
species, exc