Lewis and Clark... WOW.

OK so Last week I started watching the Ken Burns thing on Lewis and Clark, not realizing, as I should have that it was not a mere two hours long and that there was a PART TWO. I finally found the part two and taped that too and got to watch the exciting conclusion. Turns out, they make it to the coast AND all the way back.. Sorry if I ruined the ending for you. BUT the journey - WOW. They went through a LOT of crazy stuff. They ran out of food and had to eat a couple of horses even. They almost froze to death, and Lewis I guess was like depressed like every single day. They once got lost and a trip that should have taken 4 days ended up taking 53 days. They were really incredible brave. I was disappointed in finding out that Clark was pretty racist, but then that was common in 1806. Also disturbed to learn that all this time I have been pronouncing the name of their female Native American companion wrong:

Its not

SACK UH JA WEE AH

it is

SUH COGG A WAY UH

WHO KNEW?

Anyway Poor Lewis ended up killing himself, and Clark, who was then put in charge of like Indian Affairs for the New West was always frustrated that he could not do more to help them.. THis is the abridged version...

ANYWAY. They both felt like failures in the end, and I mean if you have ever been to Oregon you know that if a guy in a Saab with a GPS can get lost and never come back how easy could it have been for a bunch of guys with horses and Elk pelts and no socks??

The Ken Burns thing on the Corps of Discovery is great and so is this one book I read about it once called UNDAUNTED COURAGE I think was written by Stephen Ambrose who was in the documentary. I read it so long ago, I had forgotten so much. and then I went to look for my copy but remembered that it was one of the many books I had that flew out the roof when the house exploded.

SO anyway. The point is, I love PBS.
Here are sites with more INFO

http://www.pbs.org/lewisandclark/

http://www.lewis-clark.org/

AND THIS PLACE IS ten miles from CANBY!!!

http://www.endoftheoregontrail.org/joomlaeotic/

and now that I live here in OR I am gonna head over to Oregon City which is like ten miles away and take a look at that L & C museum thing they have there.

Anyway.