COLUMN: We all need a goal, don’t we?

Mark another thing off my bucket list.

Last week the family vacation was in northwest Oregon. My brother-in-law moved to Portland last year. We thought enough time had passed for him to get established and to know enough places to show us around for a week. He thought the same thing.

Admittedly, the only thing I really wanted to see was Fort Clatsop near Astoria. (I already knew it was there.)

That is the name of the building of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark built at their last stop on their historic expedition that started near St. Louis, Missouri, in May 1804. Those two men and what they did with their assembled team is probably my favorite part of American history. After President Thomas Jefferson bought 530 million acres of land from the French, known as the Louisiana Purchase, he hired the two to research what the area was made up of. Jefferson wanted to know what was west of the Mississippi River which was already known as main transportation for other explorers. Historians say Jefferson never went west farther than 50 miles from his Virginia home.

But what Lewis and Clark did was different than the others when they went up the Missouri River near St. Louis. They recorded nearly everything like they were working on a doctorate in camping. They recorded the topography, rivers, plants, animals, weather and the list goes on. The goal was to confirm if there was a “passage” connecting the Missouri River to the Pacific Ocean. The Rocky Mountains in present day Montana ended that idea, but did not end the trip. The winter of 1804 was brutal. If it was not for Native American tribes’ assistance, it may have been the end of it all.

I already had a copy of their journals and have read some of it. Their entries are repetitive since they both experienced the same thing, but still a fascinating read. Entries can easily be read during commercial breaks with the TV on.

Fort Clatsop was the last stop near where the Columbia River empties into the Pacific Ocean. One can hike today 6.5 miles from the fort to the ocean. They made it through the mountains and discovered the Columbia River on the west side. They started building the fort in early December and moved in Christmas Day 1805. The group was preparing for the return in spring to St. Louis. That winter was bad, but in a stereotypical northwest America way; it seemed like it rained all day everyday. Notes of the journey were reviewed and copied. Food for the winter was prepared, mainly elk. Sea water was boiled to extract the salt to preserve food for the journey back. Native American tribes showed the group how to turn elk hide into clothing. The two traded their wool, colonial-like uniforms to the tribes for other clothes.

There is no evidence today of the original fort Lewis and Clark gave to the Clatsop tribe as a thank you for their hospitality when they left in March 1806. Few artifacts have been found, but it can’t be determined if it was from the group. Weather probably destroyed the fort. A landowner in the 1850s took notes of the remaining debris. A 1955 replica of the fort burned in 2005 and another one was ready a year later. Historians are confident the site of the fort is maybe 40 yards from the original one, all based on the notes in Lewis’ and Clark’s detailed writings. Surrounded by northwest evergreen trees, it’s a beautiful location. I sat on a park bench and absorbed. The area has a vibe of accomplishment for obvious reasons.

The only unfortunate part of their journey west was in Iowa. One of the men in their group, named Floyd, died apparently of an appendicitis. He is buried with a memorial south of Sioux City. Considering the complexity of the trip traveling about 3,700 miles one way over largely unknown lands facing Native Americans, weather, at times only crumbs for food and Grizzly bears, what they accomplished with only one death is beyond remarkable.

I kept thinking the fort can be a great analogy of our own lives. What is our goal? Lewis and Clark wanted to survive, find out if there was a passage and return to St. Louis. They survived and returned in September 1806, but didn’t find the passage because it didn’t exist. Where do we want to get to and what will it take to get there? And how can we adjust our lives (keep going) when we don’t find our proverbial passage? Who do we have in our journey that provided and deserves genuine appreciation?

OK, enough questions. Let’s go find our answers and goals.