05/14/2026
in 1804
The young soldiers were anxious; spring had arrived at Camp River Dubois, where the small Wood River entered the great Mississippi. It was April and there was talk about shoving off by April 18, 1804. Meriwether Lewis thought otherwise – more supplies were needed from St. Louis, and he was still collecting information from traders and trappers who had already traveled large sections of the Upper Missouri.
William Clark, who was with the Corps at the camp, struggled holding the men back and keeping them focused. So, on May 7, he had them load the keeled boat and the next day a group of 20 soldiers took it for a test run on the Mississippi to make sure it was well-balanced and stable.
On May 11, George Drouillard brought seven French voyageurs whom he recruited in St. Louis to the camp and on Sunday, May 13, Clark sent a brief letter down to St. Louis advising Lewis that everything was loaded and the Corps was ready for departure.
At last, in the morning of Monday, May 14, Clark wrote, “a Cloudy morning fixing for a Start.” The designated departure time of four o’clock finally arrived, and one keeled boat with 26 soldiers aboard, a pirogue with seven men, and another canoe paddled by eight voyageurs crossed over the Mississippi and entered the mouth of the Missouri. A group of locals stood along the Mississippi's banks and wished their winter visitors a fond farewell.
Clark intended to travel just six miles upstream before sunset, but a suitable island at four miles became the first campsite on the Missouri. This short journey was a test known as a “Hudson's Bay Start.” Often used by trappers and traders, a HBS was a short, lower risk launch to make sure everything was in order, and if not, the origination point wouldn't be far away.
The years of planning, training, packing, and dreaming were over. The adventure of the Expedition was underway!
Image: “The Departure,” a painting by Robert “Buffalo Bob” Rickards. Used with permission.
Image Description: A color painting places the viewer sitting in the bow of the pirogue looking back toward the bow where one man is standing and several men are seated as they row. The keeled boat is not far behind on the river. A shoreline can be seen in the distance.
