Having prepared ourselves and everything about us as well as circumstances permitted and having only half a horse for our support, we readied ourselves for the voyage to the Pacific Ocean. The river before us was wholly unknown with exception of the day's journey with its rapids coming immediately upon us. By observation I found the latitude of the Ilthkoyape Falls to be 48° 38' N. 117° 48" W Longitude and the variation 20° E. The names of my men are Michel Bordeaux, Pierre Pareille, Joseph Cote, Michel Boulard and Francois Gregoire. Charles and Ignace are our two good Iroquois Indians, and we have two Sanpoil natives for interpreters. We placed the horses in care of the chief of the village.
After praying to the Almighty to protect and prosper us on our voyage to the ocean, we embarked and descended the river for near seventy miles. We encountered several strong rapids which required all our skill and activity. One of them caused us to carry everything for nearly three fourths of a mile. The river is high, the current very strong with many small whirlpools and eddies but not overly dangerous. After fifty-six miles we passed the junction of the Spokane River, which comes from the southeast by way of a long series of non-navigable falls. The whole day offered country of pleasing appearance, in places thinly wooded, but mostly meadows of short grass plenty good for sheep. Above and below the Spokane River the banks were often of perpendicular rock of basalt, black and gray in color and reddish in places. These banks had a curious appearance and were about three hundred and fifty feet high. They retired from the river by a perpendicular step of twenty to thirty feet followed by another table of ten to twenty feet then to the top of the bank.
