July 19, 2016, Ft Atkinson - Ft Calhoun NE, Lewis & Clark State Park, MO, St. Floyd Memorial, Iowa

July 19, 2016, today was a rainy day for the morning and early afternoon, which was nice because it was a little cooler than the mid 90s it as been.

We tried to get to the Western Historical Trails Center but it was closed, oh well.

Our first stop out of Council Bluffs and across the river from Omaha NE was to Fort Atkinson State Historical Park in Fort Calhoun NE.This was a really cool place. This is a reconstructed 1820's log fort. And is one of the premier historical sites in Nebraska and sits on 157 acres atop "Council Bluff." The site is the first meeting between the 1804 Lewis and Clark Expedition and the Oto-Missouria. Clark recommended that this was a great place to build a fort. We were the only ones there and while there we had a huge lighting and thunder rain storm. It poured buckets but we were fine under the roof of the fort. It is a big place, very well constructed and quite interesting. And kind of cool because there was no one else around.

Louise at Fort Atkinson waiting for the rain to stop

Fort Atkinson in Fort Calhoun, NE, a cool spot

Bruce standing in front of the powder magazine

We then crossed the Missouri River and headed to the Lewis & Clark State Park in Onawa, Iowa. This is a cool place, again almost no one was there but it is an excellent Lewis & Clark interpretive center with two reconstructed 55 foot keel boats. One in the center and one in the water. We got to walk onto the boat in the water. How they ever got this up the river in 1804 is amazing.

On the way to the next stop we saw this chicken
by the side of the road

Reconstruction of the 55' keel boat designed by M. Lewis,
and some other boats

A working life size model of the keel boat, we got to walk around on it

On our way to Sioux Falls for the night we stopped at the Sargent Floyd Memorial off of Route 29 on the Missouri River at Floyd's Bluff in Sioux City, Iowa. This memorial honors the only member of the Lewis & Clark expedition that died. Which in its self amazing that only one person died. The monument is a 100 foot tall obelisk built in 1901

Bruce standing below the Sargent Floyd Memorial.