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Updated: May 22, 2025
The Wallahwollah river discharges itself into the Columbia on it's S. side 15 miles below the entrance of Lewis's river or the S. E. branch. a high range of hills pass the Columbia just below the entrance of this river. this is a handsome stream about 41/2 feet deep and 50 yds. wide; it's bed is composed of gravel principally with some sand and mud; the banks are abrupt but not high, tho it dose not appear to overflow; the water is clear. the indians inform us that it has it's surces in the range of mountains in view of us to the E and S. E. these mountains commence a little to the south of Mt.
I see very little difference between the apparent face of the country here and that of the plains of the Missouri only that these are not enlivened by the vast herds of buffaloe Elk &c which ornament the other. the courses and distances of this day are N. 45 E. 9 M. and N. 75 E. 17 M. along the Northern side of this creek to our encampment. some time after we had encamped three young men arrived from the Wallahwollah village bringing with them a steel trap belonging to one of our party which had been neglegently left behind; this is an act of integrity rarely witnessed among indians. during our stay with them they several times found the knives of the men which had been carelessly lossed by them and returned them.
C's horse we now determined to leave one man to bring on my horse when Yellept returned and to proceed on with the party accordingly we took leave of these friendly honest people the Wollahwollahs and departed at 11 A.M. accompanyed by our guide and the Chopunnish man and family. we continued our rout N. 30 E. 14 ms. through an open level sandy plain to a bold Creek 10 yds. wide. this stream is a branch of the Wallahwollah river into which it discharges itself about six miles above the junction of that river with the Columbia. it takes it's rise in the same range of mountains to the East of the sources of the main branch of the same. it appears to be navigable for canoes; it is deep and has a bold current. there are many large banks of pure sand which appear to have been drifted up by the wind to the hight of 15 or 20 feet, lying in many parts of the plain through which we passed today. this plain as usual is covered with arromatic shrubs hurbatious plants and a short grass. many of those plants produce those esculent roots which form a principal part of the subsistence of the natives. among others there is one which produces a root somewhat like the sweet pittaitoe. we encamped at the place we intersepted the creek where we had the pleasure once more to find an abundance of good wood for the purpose of making ourselves comfortable fires, which has not been the case since we left rock fort camp.
This morning Yellept furnished us with two canoes and we began to transport our baggage over the river; we also sent a party of the men over to collect the horses. we purchased some dogs and shappellell this morning. we had now a store of 12 dogs for our voyage through the plains. by 11 A.M. we had passed the river with our party and baggage but were detained several hours in consequence of not being able to collect our horses. our guide now informed us that it was too late in the evening to reach an eligible place to encamp; that we could not reach any water before night. we therefore thought it best to remain on the Wallahwollah river about a mile from the Columbia untill the morning, and accordingly encamped on that river near a fish wear. this wear consists of two curtains of small willow switches matted together with four lines of withs of the same materials extening quite across the river, parrallel with eah other and about 6 feet assunder. those are supported by several parsels of poles placed in the manner before discribed of the fishing wears. these curtains of willow are either roled at one end for a few feet to permit the fish to pass or are let down at pleasure. they take their fish which at present are a mullet only of from one to five lbs., with small seines of 15 or 18 feet long drawn by two persons; these they drag down to the wear and raise the bottom of the seine against the willow curtain. they have also a small seine maniaged by one person it bags in the manner of the scooping net; the one side of the net is confined to a simicircular bow of half the size of a man's arm and about 5 feet long; the other side is confined to a strong string which being attatched to the extremities of the bow forms the cord line to the simicircle.
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