On the trail of Lewis and Clark

Monday, August 19, 2002
Re-enactors unload from their first day of travel along the Columbia River in Washington.

A love of history and the outdoors took two Indianola men on a trip to Lewiston, Wash., in July to be a part of a re-enactment of one leg of the Lewis & Clark Expedition.

Jim Gaster and his son Jeremy made the trip to Washington as part of a two week trip to follow the same course as the famous Lewis & Clark Expedition -- The Voyage of Discovery. The 140-mile trip from Beacon Rock, Wash., to the Pacific Ocean was made by 28 re-enactors in five canoes handmade by a Lewiston group called Hog Heaven Muzzleloaders.

Each canoe weighed approximately 2,300 pounds. Two of the five canoes could carry up to six men while the other three carried three men. Each canoe took about 300 hours to complete.

Jim and Jeremy Gaster of Indianola stand outside the gates of Fort Clatsop, Wash.

Jim first found out about the Lewis and Clark Expedition re-enactment when he was showing his own talent of making wooden buckets at a show in Missouri.

"It's a great way to spend a vacation. Where else can you spend $35 and get the trip of a lifetime?" said Jim, referring to the $35 membership fee to the Lewis & Clark Discovery Expedition of St. Charles.

Jim said the expedition was not a grueling journey. "We had guys out there who were 72 years old," he said. "It wasn't too bad. You don't have to be a 21-year-old linebacker for the Huskers," Jim said, laughing.

He also pointed out the diverse backgrounds the re-enactment team came from. "We had a lawyer, a dentist, a teacher, a farmer, a doctor, a minister, a firefighter and a factory worker just to name a few," he said.

Several Lewis and Clark re-enactments are being planned along the famous river trail mapped by the explorers prior to the launch of one of the largest undertakings in re-enactment history to begin in August 2003 and run through 2006.

The re-enactment, like the original made by the famous duo in 1803, will begin Aug.23, 2003, at Elizabeth, Penn., and is expected to reach Fort Mandan, N.D., in October 2004 before begining the final leg of the journey in spring 2005. The trip is expected to end at Fort Clatsop, Wash., in 2006.

Organizers plan to make the trip from Elizabeth to Camp Dubois, Mo., between August and December, 2003. Following a winter camp, the expedition will again get underway on May 14, 2004. It is expected to reach Nebraska with its first stop in Nebraska on July 17. The expedition will also make stops in Nebraska City, Plattsmouth, Bellvue, Omaha, Fort Atkinson, Blair, Decatur and Dakota City between July 17 and Aug. 19.

Jim says the expedition will need 44 men on the river at any given time during the re-enactment.

Jim explained that while the group hopes to have 44 men on the river, it understands that not many people will be able to make the three year trip all the way through and will need approximately 300 volunteers by the time the trip is over.

Women and other volunteers are also welcome. In addition to participating as townspeople, there will also be a need for land crew to transport volunteers back and forth to the expedition.

More training excursions are being planned by Discovery Expedition of St. Charles later this year.

The group will be at Elk Point, Spirit Mound and Yankton, S.D. from Aug. 17-25, in the St. Louis, Mo., area Sept. 20-22 and at Fort Massac, Mo., Oct. 18-20.

Both Jim and Peter Gerey, president of Discovery Expedition encourage anyone who would like to participate in the expedition to take a few days to go on a training excurstion and find out if they want to participate in a longer portion of the three year trip.

"We'd much rather have them go to a training camp and see how they are going to like it before they try making the trip and discover its not for them," said Gerey.

"Everyone needs to get involved who's interested," said Jim. "They won't be doing this for another 100 years."

For more information of activities being planned call Peter Gerey at (636) 916-5344

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