Portage Route

William Clark drew this map of the portage around the Great Falls of the Missouri River.

University of Montana Library

Quick Facts

Location:

4201 Giant Springs Rd, Great Falls, MT 59405

Significance:

The Lewis and Clark Expedition portaged for eighteen miles around these waterfalls on the Upper Missouri River.

Designation:

Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, National Historic Landmark, U.S. Forest Service

MANAGED BY:

Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center

Amenities

14 listed

Elevator, Gifts/Souvenirs/Books, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Information, Information - Ranger/Staff Member Present, Parking - Auto, Parking - Bus/RV, Picnic Table, Restroom, Restroom - Accessible, Scenic View/Photo Spot, Trailhead, Trash/Litter Receptacles, Wheelchair Accessible

Mandan people had told Meriwether Lewis and William Clark about the Great Falls on the Missouri River. They explained that these falls were on the way to the Shoshone people.  

When the Lewis and Clark Expedition arrived here, they knew they were on the right path—a path laid out for them by the Indigenous people who had long known this spot.  

Blackfeet, Shoshone, and other Indigenous people often visited these falls, but no one was there when Lewis and Clark’s party needed to portage around these (in contrast to falls along the Columbia River, where Lewis and Clark paid locals to help them get their boats around).  

What is a portage? The term was common in 1805, but we do not use it very often today. A portage is when you take your boat out of the water and carry it overland for period, usually to get around dangerous waterfalls, shallow water, or pass between two separate bodies of water.  

This portage was exceptionally difficult because it involved an eighteen-mile overland trek that required going up and down “several deep ravines.”253 Men in the expedition double-soled their moccasins to protect their feet from prickly pear cactus needles and sharp points of earth caused by bison trampling on it after heavy rains.  

One day during the portage, a thunderstorm blew through with huge hail. Sacagawea lost her baby’s cradle, and she and her husband almost drowned. York was stranded on the plains during the torrent, and several other men, who wore no hats and few clothes, were left bruised and bloodied by the massive hailstones.  

The weather continued to be extreme, and unrelenting heat exhausted them. Everyone complained about the mosquitos. On easier days, they caught fish, hunted bison, and repaired their guns.  

They built wheeled carts to tow their canoes and luggage over those steep ravines and unforgiving ground. They left behind some boats, and Clark led some men to carve new dugout canoes above the falls. They dug another cache to lighten their load. At one point, the wind blew so hard at their back that they hoisted the sail of the canoe. “this is Saleing on dry land in everry Since of the word,” wrote John Ordway.

On July 15, over a month after they arrived at this stretch of river, they loaded up the canoes and set off again. This was the hardest portage that they experienced. And perhaps related, it was one of the only portages where they received no help from Indigenous people. 

About this article: This article is part of a series called “Pivotal Places: Stories from the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail.”

Lewis and Clark NHT Visitor Centers and Museums

Visitor Centers (shown in orange), High Potential Historic Sites (shown in black), and Pivotal Places (shown in green) along the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail