It’s not hard to revisit the Lewis and Clark. It’s a classic tale of exploration, discovery, and then exploitation. It’s compelling, captivating, and it’s got something for everyone. Since I wrote the original Passage book back in 2003, I’ve made it a point to continue to encourage teachers and students to explore the topic. Not only did I redo the book with new illustrations and tine-tuned text, but I have rewritten a Lewis and Clark simulation that I am currently working with a local school to enact. It’s quite fun to see the kids (fourth graders, in this case) learn about this historic journey and, best of all, come up with questions that they then seek answers to.
With the republication of my Passage book, I was invited to attend the annual dinner of the Oregon chapter of the Lewis and Clark Heritage Foundation this past weekend. It was held at Fort Clatsop in Astoria, the site of the Corps’ camp during the winter of 1805-1806. The dinner was awesome, and I got to sign books and meet folks who are passionate and knowledgeable on all things Lewis and Clark.
The following day, we stopped by the Salt Works in Seaside, where members of the Corps of Discovery boiled sea water to obtain salt, a very important supply for the party. Seaside is a ways from the fort and I always wondered why they went farther than they had to in order to get water from the ocean. The answer eluded me for the longest time, but I finally found out. Hope you can find out too!
Hmmm. Why is the Salt Works so far from Fort Clatsop? They could have made it a lot closer. Why didn't they?
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