May 16, 1805

 Lewis recalls the accident from May 14 (two days earlier) : " our medicine sustained the greatest injury, several articles of which were intirely spoiled, and many others considerably injured; the balance of our losses consisted of some gardin seeds, a small quantity of gunpowder, and a few culinary articles fell overboard and sunk, the Indian woman to whom I ascribe equal fortitude and resolution, with any person onboard at the time of the accedent, caught and preserved most of the light articles which were washed overboard…"

May 17, 1805

Traveling 20 ½ miles the explorers encamped along a "woodland". Retiring for the evening the campers were abruptly awakened in the middle of the night : " we were roused late at night by the Sergt. Of the guard, and warned of the danger we were in from a large tree that had taken fire and which leant immediately over our lodge. We had the loge removed, and a few minutes after a large proportion of the top of the tree fell on the place the lodge had stood; had we been a few minutes later we should have been crushed to attoms." Lewis

May 18, 1805

 Clark reports the first rain since setting out from Fort Mandan: " A windey monring wind from the West. The after part of the day was cloudy & at about 12 oClock it began to rain and continued moderately for about 1 ½ hours, not sufficient to wet a man thro’ his clothes; this is the first rain Since we Set out this Spring…"

May 19, 1805

The mercury dipped into the 30’s : " a verry cold night, the murckery stood at 38 at 8 oClock this morning. The fog ( which was the first) was So thick this morning that we could not Set out untill the Sun was about 2 hours up,…" Clark

"one of the party wounded a beaver, and my dog as usual swam in to catch it; the beaver bit him through the hind leg and cut the artery; it was with great difficulty that I could stop the blood; I fear it will yet prove fatal to him."  Lewis

May 20, 1805

Lewis and Clark name a river in honor of Sacagawea : " about five mils above the mouth of shell river a handsome river of about fifty yards in width discharged itself into the shell river, this stream we called Sah-ca-gar meah or bird woman’s River, after our interpreter the Snake woman." Lewis