houses. Fort George is about one mile below, has perhaps two or three more houses than Astoria, but possesses no more natural advantages, nor artificial, unless it is in having the soldiers stationed there, and having the custom house there. The Clatsop plains below this, lying below Lewis & Clarks Bay, and above Point Adams, which runs out into the sea. These plains are very level, and very productive, in every thing but wheat. Potatoes appears to be the great crop with the people along the coast. One man told me at Fort George, that he raised fifteen hundred bushels last year, and he crossed the plains in /50,) which he sold at $2.50 pr bushel, and he put up 90 lbs of Salmon.
On the opposite side of the river from Fort George, is Chenook, a sand beach formed on a point of high land. Inside of this point and Cape Disappointment is Baker Bay. This bay is very roughf most of the time, owing to the heavy swells that roll across the bar, and the large sand bars in it. We landed on this beach, halled our boat upon some logs, rolled up our things, and left a few of them at the post Office, took the rest on our backs, and packed them about five miles down a very pretty sand beach, to Chenook River then got an Indian to take us up the river in a canoe, one mile, then loaded up again and packed over the portage which is 2 & a half miles, here we come upon Bear River, a place where a Mr Wilson[1] has made a claim this spring. This is four miles from the bay. We arived here the 15th and the next day went down to the head of the bay, gathered a few Oisters, and looked at the country a little, and returned. We staid here about a week, worked about three days on a scow that they were building, then got a large canoe, one that would carry about 3 or 4 tons, and in company with two other men (making five in all) started down the bay.
Judging from the appearance of the country, Bear River must rise on the southwest side of a range of mountains, (runing southeast & northwest,) and runs nearly paralell with the mountains, and unites with the bay at its southeast corner. This
- ↑ Probably James Wilson. Swan, in Three Years on the Northwest Coast, 64, says he had settled at the portage, and afforded assistance to travelers, going or coming to the bay.
