July 15.  A thick fog prevented our leaving the encampment before seven.  At about four miles, we reached the extremity of the large island, and crossing to the south, at the distance of seven miles, arrived at the Little Nemaha, a small river from the south, forty yards wide a little above its mouth, but contracting, as do almost all the waters emptying into the Missouri, at its confluence.  At nine and three quarter miles, we encamped on a woody point, on the south.  Along the southern bank, is a rich lowland covered with peavine, and rich weeds, and watered by small streams rising in the adjoining prairies.  They too, are rich, and though with abundance of grass, have no timber except what grows near the water; interspersed through both are grapevines, plums of two kinds, two species of wild-cherries, hazlenuts, and gooseberries.  On the south there is one unbroken plain; on the north the river is skirted with some timber, behind which the plain extends four or five miles to the hills, which seem to have little wood.

July 16.  We continued our route between a large island opposite to our last night’s encampment, and an extensive prairie on the south.  About six miles, we came to another large island, called Fairsun island, on the same side; above which is a spot, where about twenty acres of the hill have fallen into the river.  Near this, is a cliff of sandstone for two miles, which is much frequented by birds.  At this place the river is about one mile wide, but not deep; as the timber, or sawyers, may be seen, scattered across the whole of its bottom.  At twenty miles distance, we saw on the south, an island called by the French, l’Isle Chance, or Bald island, opposite to a large prairie, which we called Baldpated prairie, from a ridge of naked hills which bound it, running parallel with the river as far as we could see, and from three to six miles distance.  To the south the hills touch the river.  We encamped a quarter of a mile beyond this, in a point of woods on the north side.  The river continues to fall.

Tuesday, July 17.  We remained here this day, in order to make observations and correct the chronometer, which ran down on Sunday.  The latitude we found to be 40 degrees 27’ 5"4/10.  The observation of the time proved our chronometer too slow, by 6’ 51"6/10.  The highlands bear from our camp, north 25 degrees west, up the river.  Captain Lewis rode up the country, and saw the Nishnahbatona, about ten or twelve miles from its mouth, at a place not more than three hundred yards from the Missouri, and a little above our camp.  It then passes near the foot of the Baldhills, and is at least six feet below the level of the Missouri.  On its banks are the oak, walnut, and mulberry.  The common current of the Missouri, taken with the log, is 50 fathoms in 40”, at some places, and even 20”.