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Could be the terrain and geology. About 15,000 years ago, after the last glacial maximum subsided, the largest flood in history carved out that part of Oregon.
by Hilift 2y ago
Could be the terrain and geology. About 15,000 years ago, after the last glacial maximum subsided, the largest flood in history carved out that part of Oregon. Maybe there is a similar timetable where the Columbia is silted up.
From Wikipedia: "The wagons were stopped at The Dalles, Oregon, by the lack of a road around Mount Hood. The wagons had to be disassembled and floated down the treacherous Columbia River and the animals herded over the rough Lolo trail to get by Mt. Hood."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon_Trail#Great_Migration_of_1843 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oregon_Trail#Great_Migration_o...
- metadat 2y agoHow did the wagons avoid sinking / not take on water through the wood plank edges? Constant bailing while on the water?
- oxidant 2y agoI think you take the wagons apart and put them on a ~boat~ edit: was it a raft? In this context, "Float them down" doesn't refer to the wagons floating by their own bouancy, but rather their position atop the water.
- metadat 2y agoI think you're right, in Oregon Trail they float on a raft.
- thoroughburro 2y agoIncorrect. It refers to the wagons, which were temporarily converted.
- Dalewyn 2y agoThey caulked the wagon[1] turning it into an impromptu boat, which consisted of removing the wheels and axles and then filling in the seams and cracks between the wooden boards of the wagon with soft materials and an oil like tar. [1]: https://old.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/6ouy10/june_17_1848_on_the_oregon_trail_i_have_reached/dkkijuj/ https://old.reddit.com/r/AskHistorians/comments/6ouy10/june_... >"Oit came all the old clothes we could spare," he wrote later. "Out came the tar buckets, old chisels and broken knives. They stuffed scrap cloth into creaks and crannies in the wagon and tarred over them.