May 13, 1834
Early [in the morning it was] cool. During the night a dog had stolen some of our meat supply from a cabin where three people were sleeping. At seven thirty, 49°F [9.4°C], wind southeast hora 8. Soon after, we saw a wolf close to us. At eight o’clock [we made] a short stop at a lovely prairie on the right bank with pretty clumps of bushes and many scattered, tall trees. Several birds appeared, among them Icteria viridis and the beautiful black and white hawfinch with a red breast (Loxia ludoviciana), of which we shot several specimens. Farther down [the river], we observed a magnificent wild turkey on a sandbar—the hunters were landed immediately, but they returned [with] nothing.
At twelve o’clock noon we reached Bellevue, Major Dougherty’s agency, in a beautiful location on the right bank near a lush, heavily wooded hill chain. Pilcher’s post is laid out on that [side of the river] as well. We landed but, unfortunately, did not find Dougherty there, because he was not expected until July.
When cholera paid a visit last summer, seven of ten people living here and the son died within 24 hours, and one person had to bury them all while feeling sick himself. Now there were no ill people in this area. We found the vicinity of Bellevue very pleasant and particularly interesting to naturalists. The beautiful forest hills had shady gorges and small valleys where many large-leafed linden trees grew, [as well as] oaks [with] delicate and tattered [leaves?], ash, elm, Celtis, hornbeam, maple, hazel, witch hazel bushes, Cornus, Prunus, Crataegus or Pyrus, Staphylea trifolia, creeping Vitis, Humulus, Smilax, [and] Hedera, all with lush foliage. On the ground, as [we saw] yesterday, a mass of sky-blue phlox bloomed magnificently; [so did] numerous strawberries. We did not see many flowers yet—only the bright vermilion Aquilegia canadensis. Many species of birds enlivened the bushes—the cuckoo, the turtledove, the red-breasted hawfinch, the green Icteria, Sylvia aestiva, Fringilla erythrophthalma, a large finch new to us (Fringilla [——]), [and] many other small birds, [as well as] beautiful butterflies: the large blue and black [——], the Plexippus, and others less outstanding. [At the agency] we received a few provisions and milk, which is supposed to be a mainstay against scurvy. Near Mr. Fontenelle’s house I saw [and] bought a small pig that we took aboard after [our] long stop at Bellevue. Mr. Fontenelle has not yet returned from his excursion last year to the Rocky Mountains. After two o’clock we departed.
Not long after, Papillion Creek [was] on our right. It is supposed to be 24 miles from Pilcher’s house to Bellevue. From Bellevue to the mouth of the La Platte [Platte River], it is six miles; we reached it before noon [sic]. Beyond the mouth of this river, the beautiful hills [off] the right bank were completely green but only [a] little wooded. They remained picturesque all afternoon on our right as we navigated by the hill [called] Iron Eye (Ischtá-Masö́). On the left bank we saw game three times in the tall cottonwood forest in the lowlands. To the right on the hills [there was] a wild turkey. The lowlands were overgrown with cottonwood, but all [the] hills [had] hardwood. Dreidoppel was landed on the right bank to go on a hunting excursion. The sun [was ready] to set. We passed Five Barrel Creek and camped opposite the islands of the same name on the right bank of the Missouri. As soon as we arrived, I went ashore with [a] gun. I had to push through a fairly airy willow thicket, then [followed] a very long and narrow reedy marsh overgrown with Typha; the ground was fairly dry but still a little soft. Raccoons had carved [out] very flat, passable trails there. Beyond the marsh the green hill chains stretched, overgrown with trees and clumps of bushes where the Baltimore was seen and Icteria viridis was extremely common. Its song, similar in some strophes to that of the nightingale, resounded everywhere; these birds are very mobile and restless, especially toward evening. In the tall willow thicket at the bank, the whippoorwills were very numerous at dusk, and their loud calls resounded everywhere. To the left, in the direction of our departure [down?]river, was a small lake.