Up the Missouri

On 14 May 1804—after more than a year of preparation and travel—the boats leave Camp River Dubois and head up the Missouri River. At St. Charles, the two captains, Clark’s slave York, interpreter George Drouillard, eight or nine French engagés, 34 enlisted men, and Lewis’s dog Seaman depart in three boats: the barge and two large pirogues.

Everyone quickly learns of the struggles and hazards of moving up the Missouri with its many sawyers and sandbars. Despite the overloaded boats and several close calls, they safely pass many landmarks made familiar by earlier traders from St. Louis.

Crossing the present state of Missouri and then heading north along the Kansas-Missouri border, they pass the homelands of the Omaha, Kansa, Otoe, and Pawnee. On 21 July, they reach the mouth of the Platte where only a handful of traders had ever continued north towards the Knife River Villages.

Bonus Tracks

1. Preparations for the JourneyLeni HollimanDuration: 3:16
2. Air Rifles and Iron CanoesLeni HollimanDuration: 3:19
3. Claims, Commerce and The ConstitutionLeni HollimanDuration: 3:01
4. How Far? How Long? How Much?Leni HollimanDuration: 3:29

May 1804

1. May 14, 1804 – Departing from St. Louis!Leni HollimanDuration: 3:29
2. May 15, 1804 – Boats too Heavy in the SternLeni HollimanDuration: 2:54
3. May 16, 1804 – Arrival at St. CharlesLeni HollimanDuration: 2:21
4. May 17, 1804 – A Little Military DisciplineLeni HollimanDuration: 2:41
5. May 18, 1804 – Stocking Up on SuppliesLeni HollimanDuration: 2:37
6. May 19, 1804 – A Little Cash & A Lost LetterLeni HollimanDuration: 2:25
7. May 20, 1804 – Cpt. Lewis Joins the PartyLeni HollimanDuration: 2:32
8. May 21, 1804 – Leaving St. CharlesLeni HollimanDuration: 2:15
9. May 24, 1804 – The Keelboat is Nearly LostLeni HollimanDuration: 2:55
10. May 25, 1804 – The Village of La CharretteLeni HollimanDuration: 2:40
11. May 26, 1804 – A Genealogist's GemLeni HollimanDuration: 2:24
12. May 27, 1804 – Omaha Nation TradersLeni HollimanDuration: 1:57
13. May 28, 1804 – Waiting for the HuntersLeni HollimanDuration: 2:35
14. May 31, 1804 – Bearskins and PeltsLeni HollimanDuration: 2:42

June 1804

1. June 1, 1804 – Arrival at the Osage RiverLeni HollimanDuration: 2:42
2. June 2, 1804 – A Seven Day HuntLeni HollimanDuration: 2:37
3. June 3, 1804 – Mosquitos, Ticks and a ColdLeni HollimanDuration: 2:46
4. June 4, 1804 – A Broken MastLeni HollimanDuration: 2:34
5. June 7, 1804 – First Mention of BuffaloLeni HollimanDuration: 2:34
6. June 8, 1804 – An Island Called The MillsLeni HollimanDuration: 2:43
7. June 9, 1804 – Arrow RockLeni HollimanDuration: 3:21
8. June 10, 1804 – Cottonwood Trees & Osage GrapesLeni HollimanDuration: 2:37
9. June 11, 1804 – Wind So Hard They Cannot ProceedLeni HollimanDuration: 2:27
10. June 14, 1804 – Snakes that Gobble like TurkeysLeni HollimanDuration: 3:05
11. June 15, 1804 – The Boat Hits a SawyerLeni HollimanDuration: 2:41
12. June 16, 1804 – In Need of New OarsLeni HollimanDuration: 2:47
13. June 17, 1804 – Making Oars and RopeLeni HollimanDuration: 3:14
14. June 18, 1804 – Drying Meat and Greasing UpLeni HollimanDuration: 2:48
15. June 21, 1804 – Gooseberries in AbundanceLeni HollimanDuration: 2:54
16. June 22, 1804 – A Storm ThreatensLeni HollimanDuration: 2:44
17. June 23, 1804 – Wind Stops the PartyLeni HollimanDuration: 2:36
18. June 24, 1804 – An Entry Written by Both CaptainsLeni HollimanDuration: 2:34
19. June 25, 1804 – Stone Coal and Lots of DeerLeni HollimanDuration: 3:02
20. June 28, 1804 – History of the Kansas NationLeni HollimanDuration: 2:45
21. June 29, 1804 – Another Court MartialLeni HollimanDuration: 2:44
22. June 30, 1804 – A Very Large WolfLeni HollimanDuration: 2:24

July 1804

1. July 1, 1804 – Drewyer Finds Pecan TreesLeni HollimanDuration: 3:22
2. July 2, 1804 – Joe Field's Snake PrairieLeni HollimanDuration: 2:25
3. July 5, 1804 – Seaman Chases some BeaverLeni HollimanDuration: 3:34
4. July 6, 1804 – The Men Sweat in StreamsLeni HollimanDuration: 2:52
5. July 7, 1804 – One Man Very SickLeni HollimanDuration: 2:26
6. July 8, 1804 – Nodaway River and IslandLeni HollimanDuration: 3:18
7. July 9, 1804 – Signs of a Sioux War PartyLeni HollimanDuration: 3:09
8. July 12, 1804 – Willard Sleeping at his PostLeni HollimanDuration: 3:21
9. July 13, 1804 – An Uneventful DayLeni HollimanDuration: 2:25
10. July 14, 1804 – Leaping Out to Save the BoatLeni HollimanDuration: 2:56
11. July 15, 1804 – The Chronometer StopsLeni HollimanDuration: 3:17
12. July 16, 1804 – BaldPated PrairiesLeni HollimanDuration: 2:38
13. July 19, 1804 – Approaching the River PlatteLeni HollimanDuration: 3:02
14. July 20, 1804 – A Large Yellow WolfLeni HollimanDuration: 2:51

Originally aired by Yellowstone Public Radio during the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial observance in 2004–2006, these 627 radio episodes parallel the expedition dates starting 14 May 1804 and ending 25 September 1806. They aired only on weekdays with four introductory vignettes and four episodes about events after the expedition. They are narrated by Hal Hansen, scripted by Whit Hansen and Ed Jacobson, and produced by Leni Holliman.