Conclusion of our Simulation

Now that you and your corp have finished the Lewis and Clark simulation, please answers these questions in your last journal response:

From what you experienced in this simulation what can you learn or infer about the real Lewis and Clark expedition?

What was something you learned that really surprised you and why?

What was our favorite job in the corp and why?

As private, what did you learn from the tasks you completed?

What are your overall feelings about this simulation?

Daily Dilemma #8

Autumn, 1805–Winter, 1806

You and your Corps begin the journey over the Bitterroot Mountains with Old Toby, a trusted
Shoshone, as your guide. You pass the largely barren territory and the north fork of the Salmon River.
Soon you meet the Salish (Flathead) tribe. Allies of the Shoshone, the Salish trade you for more horses,
and share their berries and roots with you. However, you must continue on over the now-snow covered
Bitterroots.
Rain, snow, and hail all make your passage through these mountains the worst traveling your expedition
has experienced to date. Trails are narrow and rocky, food is scarce, and your Corps is starving!
Luckily you meet up with the Nez Perce before anyone succumbs to the starvation. You all are too
hungry to eat sensibly, and you gorge yourselves on roots and dried salmon, becoming very sick.
After a week of recovery, you are ready to continue your journey. You begin making canoes the Indian
way—by burning out the center. On October 6, 1805, you resume your water-bound journey towards
the Pacific, starting on the Clearwater River with the current at your back for the first time since St.
Louis! You make great time down the Clearwater, then to the Snake River, dropping in to the
Columbia, averaging more than 30 miles a day! It is not long before you see the Mount Hood, proof
that the ocean is near!
November 7, Clark thought he saw the end of land, but alas, it was only a bay; the ocean was still 20
miles away. The final 20 miles, the Corps was plagued by fierce storms and high winds. Finally, on
November 24, the crew had to make an important decision on where along the vast Pacific coast they
would spend the winter.
In a historically significant move, each Corps member casts a vote, and the Corps of Discovery sets up
winter quarters near modern-day Astoria, Oregon; Fort Clatsop, they call it, named for the neighboring
tribe of Native Americans.
The Clatsop Indians have not been as honest and trustworthy as the other Native American tribes you
have encountered on your journey. Several times through the winter, you catch them stealing from you.
As spring approaches, you begin thinking about the return journey. Your entire Corps is filled with
anticipation! However, you know you will need another canoe and you try to bargain with the Clatsop.
They have plenty to spare, but they will not sell you a canoe at a price you want to pay.
What should you do? Steal the canoe or pay the Clatsops the high price they are demanding?

Daily Dilemma #7

Late Summer, 1805

You have met the Shoshone at last! Your initial meeting went better than expected. President Jefferson
sent a message through you to these Native people, telling them that he is their Great White Father. In a
letter to Lewis, Jefferson wrote:
“In all your intercourse with the natives…treat them in the most friendly
and conciliatory manner which their own conduct will admit. Satisfy
them of your journey’s innocence, but simultaneously tell them of the size
and strength of the United States….Americans only wish to trade with
them…Also, invite a few chiefs to come to the United States and be
brought up with us, and taught such arts as may be useful to them.”
(Ambrose)
You also communicate to the Shoshone your need for horses to travel over the mountains to the
Columbia River.
The next day, you return to Three Forks to the rest of the Corps with Chief Cameahwait. The Chief
brings a few other tribes people with the group.
When you arrive at Three Forks where Clark is waiting, a woman from the Shoshone tribe recognizes
Sacagawea and they embrace, renewing their friendship. You ask Sacagawea to join you in a meeting
with the Chief. As soon as she sees the Chief, she jumps up, embraces him, and weeps profusely. Chief
Cameahwait is her brother!
You spend six days in this new place you call Camp Fortunate with your friends the Shoshone. Time is
spent making saddles, taking celestial observations, documenting the ethnography of the Shoshone,
and supervising the establishment of a cache.
Two problems still remain. You do not have enough horses to make it over the mountains; and you
need a guide.
You ask Cameahwait if you can buy 20 additional horses from his tribe, but he is reluctant. They have
recently lost quite a few horses to the Blackfeet tribe.
The Shoshone know you are desperate for horses, and their price has gone up significantly. They want
pistols, knives, and ammunition. Your policy has been not to reduce your arsenal of weapons, but
perhaps you should make an exception in this case.
Will you trade pistols, knives, and ammunition for horses?