Aerial view of Clay, Nolan and Brian's

On the Missouri River With Two Rapscallions

When I began to plan for my 2025 retracing of the Lewis and Clark expedition, hauling an Airstream from Jefferson’s Virginia across the country to Astoria, Oregon, I realized I was planning a paradox.
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Clay wrestling with his leaky RV shower. (Image courtesy of Clay and ChatGPT)

My Saga of the Leaky Shower in the Montana Back Country

Thanks to YouTube, persistence, and bloody knuckles, a hot shower gets pretty close to paradise.
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Clay at the Missouri River just east of Great Falls, MT. In the background is Belt Creek, where the Lewis and Clark Expedition began their 18.5-mile, one-month portage around the five falls of the Missouri River in June/July of 1805.

At Great Falls, Montana

I’m spending the 4th of July at the Great Falls of the Missouri River in north-central Montana, where Lewis and Clark visited on the same day in 1805.
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Ryan Dam, one of five hydroelectric dams on the Missouri River in Great Falls, Montana. (Photo Visit Great Falls)

Clay’s “Must See” Stops in Great Falls, Montana

Our Lewis and Clark explorer, Clay Jenkinson, says that Great Falls’ reputation for being one of the less attractive places to visit in Montana is highly unfair. He shares his “must see” stops.
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Undaunted Courage cover

Best Books On the Lewis and Clark Expedition

Clay’s recommendations on the best books on the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
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What Does It Mean to Listen to America?

The art of listening and genuine communication to a thriving democracy.
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Meriwether Lewis at work on his journals. The renowned explorer was frustratingly inconsistent in keeping an ongoing record of his historic journey across the continent. (Illustration created by Clay Jenkinson using the AI tool Chat GPT)

Exploring the Ohio River with Captain Lewis

Following the path of Meriwether Lewis, Clay notes that while the famous explorer could be an outstanding journal writer, he was frustratingly unreliable in keeping a daily account of his transcontinental travels. No known journals exist for about half of the 28-month expedition.
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Fear and Loathing at the DOT

Registering the new pickup truck. This, too, is America.
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Reading America’s Rivers

Tracing America’s great rivers this summer along the Lewis and Clark Trail, Clay rediscovers the power and beauty of William Least Heat-Moon’s forgotten classic, River-Horse: A Voyage Across America.
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At the RV Park. (Shutterstock)

A Few Reflections on RV Life

A short report on the RV Life.
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