Chapter 21 Looking for the Shoshones July 15 - August 12, 1805 Summary and Analysis

With overloaded canoes, the voyage proceeds up the Missouri River through difficult terrain. The Rocky Mountains enclose the river so closely that Lewis names the initial entrance 'Gates of the Rocky Mountains'. The voyagers proceed upriver searching for Shoshone Indians from whom they hope to procure horses. They pass what will eventually become the famous Last Chance Gulch, a location rich in gold. Lewis and Clark are not interested in mineral wealth, however—it is not easily portable and at such a distance from civilization would prove essentially worthless.

First Clark and then Lewis take turns scouting ahead or ranging afar in an attempt to find the Shoshone. Clark's feet become damaged and infected by Prickly Pears, but he still presses on. By the end of...