Return to Traveler's Rest

Journal 2006 06 30
Return to Traveler’s Rest

The Corps arrives at the place still named Traveler’s Rest because of their need of rest and the ability of this place to provide it. They plan on spending at least two days resting.

Sergeant Gass’ Journal
       “Monday 30th.    We continued our march early and had a fine morning. When we were ready to set out, we saw a deer coming to a lick at the hot spring, and one of our hunters shot it. Two hunters went on ahead. At noon another went out a short time, and killed a fine deer. We halted for dinner at the same place, where we dined on the 12 of Sept. 1805, as we passed over to the Western ocean. After dinner we proceeded on, and on our way found three deer that one of the hunters had killed and left for us. In the evening we arrived at Travellers'-rest creek,  where the party rested two days last fall, and where it empties into Flathead (called Clarke's) river, a beautiful river about one hundred yards wide at this place; but there is no fish of any consequence in it; and according to the Indian account, there are falls on it, between this place and its mouth, where it empties into the Columbia, six or seven hundred feet high;  and which probably prevent the fish from coming up. Here we encamped and meet with the hunters.”

Have you ever noticed the return trip is different than the initial exploration?  You already know the way, so curiosity is no longer an attraction. You’ve seen the landmarks, so the drive to explore is relegated to adding details to your foundation of knowledge. And in this situation, these men are anxious to get home and tell the world that they made it and are all alive, so any desire to spend days on frivolous curiosity is lessened.

Human nature is a funny thing, isn’t it? Plentiful fine deer, no dog meat or salmon, and expectation of fine elk. No worry of starvation and hardship. No great fear of warring Indian tribes. Yet once again, the word “march” is used to describe today’s work. Journey, expedition, exploration and proceeding on are replaced by “march.”

And when they arrive it is noted in the journals that the horses have come through the initial 156 miles of mountain travel in fine shape. But because they know the place so well and it was such a place of refreshment for them last September the “new revised” schedule calls for a couple of days of rest. Pursuit of the prize called for “proceeding on.”

Captain Lewis describes an incident of the day as follows, “…in descending the creek this morning on the steep side of a high hill my horse sliped and both his hinder feet out of the road and fell, I also fell off backwards and slid near 40 feet down the hill before I could stop myself such was the steepness of the declivity; the horse was near falling on me in the first instance but fortunately recovers and we both escaped unhirt.”

Today we recount this as great adventure. It illustrates the traverse was rough, yet the Corps was not challenged because the way was familiar to them.

We tend to live in familiar places where our excitement is determined by near mishaps and a dangerous or difficult process rather than pursuing a calling shouting so loud to us that the process is merely a requirement of the prize. It should be no wonder why our countrymen attempt to find value and meaning in pursuits that amount to daredevil stunts rather than the advancement of the human condition. Our lives are not consumed by our passions to find, explore and conquer. Somewhere in our hearts we hear a distant echo of the call to adventure.

I certainly find myself living in the familiar vestiges of the “return march” rather than the tractor beam like pull of the adventure into the unknown. I profess today to not look to those friendly familiar places for the destination God has ordained. I don’t know what those places look like. But I know the echo reverberating in my heart tells me they are still to be found. Jehovah God, the Creator of Heaven and Earth knows. And it is His good pleasure to reveal the hidden things to us. It is our good pleasure to pursue Him to secret places where only brave men can go. My prayer for us today is that He answers that echoing call and begins to direct and call us as He reveals those hidden treasures to those of us in need of His leading.

Proceed On.