Interpretive sign at the crossing with Dry Point, on the Idaho side of the Snake, in the background (bobcat)

• Hikes to this destination:
  • Nee-Me-Poo Trail Hike   (TH | <—   —> | LOG)

• Weather forecast: NWS/NOAA
• Maps: Oregon Hikers Maps Google Maps
• Latitude, Longitude: 45.8023, -116.6865
• Elevation: 1000 feet

Description

This is where Chief Joseph and his band crossed the swollen Snake River on May 31st, 1877. They were on their way to the Lapwai Reservation in Idaho after being moved off their land in the Wallowa Valley. Along with the men, women, and children of the band, there were thousands of cattle and horses to be swum across. Many of these were lost, but all the people survived.

Later, after an incident in which a white settler was killed, Joseph decided to take his group of 750 Wallowa Nez Perce and Palouse to Canada to meet with Chief Sitting Bull of the Hunkpapa Lakota. A running battle of over 1,000 miles through the Bitterroot Range and Montana Territory ensued, culminating with the defeat of Joseph’s band at the Battle of Bear Paw on October 5th, 1877, just 40 miles south of the Canadian border.

More Links

• Nez Perce War (Wikipedia)
• The Flight of 1877 (National Park Service)

Contributors

• bobcat (creator)