RIVERSIDE CAMPGROUND to LOG GULCH
June 6th (Day 4)
On the water from Riverside Campground at 9:30 am Took out at Big Sandy State Park at (12:20 pm; 12.4 mi./ 20 km) Drove to Gates of the Mountain. Put in at 3:10 Took out at Log Gulch Campground (7:25 pm; 15.9 mi./ 25.6 km) Distance canoed: 28.3 mi./45.6 km
On the morning of July 19, 1805, Lewis and Clark reached the north (downstream) end of the valley. Lewis commented on the "vast collumns of rocks mountains high" that were "the most remarkable clifts that we have yet seen". He called the valley the "gates to the rocky mountains". At this point the Corp of Discovery split into two groups. Clark took three men and went by land in search of Shoshone Indians in the hopes of buying horses from them. Lewis took the remaining group by water up stream through the valley. The walls were so steep that they could not get out of the canoes to line them and the water was too deep to pole. Thus their only option was to paddle up stream againt the strong current. Wildlife was abundant. Lewis commented that they saw "some Bighorns and a few Antelopes also beavers and Otter". He also commented the "Musqutors verry troublesom". Both Lewis and Clark commented on the prickly pear cactus. Clark stated "my feet is verry much brused and cut walking over the flint& constantly Stuck full Prickley pear thornes, I puled out 17 by the light of the fire to night". (Information from historical markers along the river and Lewis and Clark Journels)
If yesterday was one of the least anticipated days of the trip, today was one of the most anticipated days...canoeing through the "gates of the rocky mountains". We put in at our campsite and canoed to Black Sandy State Park (12.4 mi.) where we took out, loaded the canoes on the trailer and drove about 20 miles to Gates of the Mountains. Here, we ate lunch and toured the shop and museum before resuming canoeing. It was very hot and there were some fun exchanges with one of the tour boat operators who said he would spray us with water from the firehose when they passed us. To maximize the number of people who could canoe through the gates, we unloaded the canoes and gear and then moved the canoe truck/trailer and one other car to Log Gulch campground where we camped that night. By doing this and having seven paddlers in one boat, all except Kris, who had previously been throught the gates by boat, were able to canoe this stretch. Thank you, Kris!
The Gates to the Rocky Mountains did not disappoint. The scenery was outstanding as described and we saw both antelope and bighorn sheep. There was definitely current, but it was not especially fast.
We did indeed meet the tour boat as it made its way back to Gates of the Mountains. However, we had stopped at Coulter Campground for a break. Lead by Keith, the boat got some good-natured "bring it on" taunts. The boat made two passes after they got their hoses out, but the stream of water fell short. There were lots of cheers both from the passangers on the boat and those of us on shore. When we got through the Gates, we were expecting a short paddle to camp. After paddling for some time, we started checking the GPS. It showed only a few miles to go, but on a closer inspection, we noticed the huge hairpin U turn in the river. We gave serious consideration to portaging across the narrow stretch of land at the bottom of the hairpin. Discussions were animate, but fortunately saner heads prevailed and we did not attempt it. As we approached camp, we got a peek at the northern end of what would have been a bushwhacking portage...nasty. Mutiny avoided, we arrived and setup campt about seven thirty. All in all, it was a great day.	Log Gulch Campground
Day's Coordinates Putin Riverside Campground N 45 39.400 W 111 44.033 First half takeout Black Sandy State Park N 46 44.742 W 111 53.174 Second half putin Gates of the Mountains Resort N 46 49.890 W 111 57.113 Takeout/Campsite Log Gulch Campground N 46 57.583 W 111 56.648
Introduction, The Crew, June 2, June 3, June 4, June 5, June 6, June 7, June 8, June 9, June 10, June 11, June 12, June 13 Return to Website home page.