MISSOURI
LEWIS & CLARK TRAIL

The iconic 630-foot arch stands where Lewis and Clark spent months in St. Louis preparing for the expedition. The underground Museum of Westward Expansion tells the full story of the Corps of Discovery with artifacts, maps, and journals. Lewis and Clark returned here in triumph on September 23, 1806, greeted by a city that had given them up for dead. One of the great starting and ending points on the entire trail.

St. Charles was the last American settlement the Corps passed through before heading into unknown territory. The expedition camped here for five days while final preparations were made. Today the Boathouse and Nature Center houses full-scale replicas of the keelboat and two pirogues used on the journey, along with exhibits on river navigation and the natural history of the Missouri.

St. Charles's beautifully preserved Main Street looks much as it did when Lewis and Clark camped nearby in May 1804. The restored 1820s buildings, cobblestone streets, and working artisan shops create one of the most atmospheric historic districts on the Missouri stretch of the trail. Walk the same riverfront the Corps departed from on May 21, 1804 — their last contact with American civilization for over two years.

The Missouri History Museum holds one of the most significant Lewis and Clark collections in the country — original journals, scientific specimens, trade goods, and Jefferson's letter of instructions to Lewis. The permanent collection places the expedition in the context of St. Louis as the gateway to the American West. Essential viewing before or after visiting the Arch.

Across the river from St. Louis at the mouth of the Wood River (Rivière à Dubois), this is where the Corps of Discovery spent the winter of 1803–04 preparing for the journey. A full-scale replica of Camp Dubois and the keelboat anchor a superb interpretive center. On May 14, 1804, Clark led the boats into the Missouri current here — the expedition had begun. Technically in Illinois, but the essential starting point of the Missouri leg.

The 240-mile Katy Trail follows the Missouri River corridor across much of the state — tracing almost exactly the route the Corps of Discovery paddled upstream in 1804. The trail passes through the same river bluffs, bottomland forests, and small towns the expedition noted in their journals. The most immersive way to experience Missouri's Lewis and Clark landscape is to ride or walk sections of the Katy Trail.

On May 25, 1804, the expedition camped near the small village of La Charrette — whose residents included members of the Boone family, who had moved here just a few years earlier. Daniel Boone himself was living nearby at Femme Osage Creek. The Daniel Boone Home, completed in 1810, still stands and offers guided tours. One of the most evocative sites connecting two great American exploration stories.

Clark named this landmark on June 9, 1804, noting the outcrop of flint stone used by Native peoples to make arrowheads — hence 'Arrow Rock.' The site later became a major Missouri River crossing on the Santa Fe Trail. The remarkably preserved 19th-century village of Arrow Rock offers walking tours of its historic buildings, boardwalks, and river overlooks with views virtually unchanged since the expedition passed.

On June 26, 1804, Lewis and Clark noted that this commanding bluff above the Missouri River would be an ideal fort site. Four years later, William Clark returned to establish Fort Osage here — one of the first American military posts in the Louisiana Purchase territory and a center of the US government's Indian factory system. The reconstruction includes the fort, factory, and soldiers' quarters. Extraordinary river views from the original bluff.

A beautiful state park on the banks of Sugar Lake — an oxbow formed by a meander cut-off of the Missouri River — near where the Corps paddled in July 1804. The park features a full-scale replica of the keelboat at the visitor center, interpretive trails along the river corridor, and fishing access. One of the most scenic Lewis and Clark parks on the lower Missouri.

Standing on the bluff in Case Park above the Missouri River, you can see the confluence of the Kansas and Missouri Rivers — the landmark the expedition reached on June 26, 1804, marking 366 miles from Camp Dubois. Clark climbed this same bluff and recorded the view in his journal. Today the overlook is part of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, with interpretive markers telling the story of the Corps' arrival.

The exact point where the Kansas (Kaw) River meets the Missouri River — one of the most significant geographic landmarks on the entire expedition. Lewis and Clark camped here for several days, exploring the confluence and recording detailed observations of the rivers, wildlife, and land. A bronze memorial and interpretive trail mark the spot today. The confluence itself, visible from the park, looks much as the Corps would have seen it.

The Missouri River bluffs at Weston Bend offer some of the most spectacular views of the lower Missouri River corridor on the entire trail. The expedition paddled this sweeping bend in July 1804, with the captains noting the dramatic bluffs and rich bottomland timber in their journals. The overlook trail follows the ridge above the river through old-growth forest with views that stretch for miles.

William Clark is buried in this beautiful Victorian cemetery north of downtown St. Louis. His grave — marked by a tall obelisk — is one of the most visited sites in the cemetery and a moving pilgrimage point for Lewis and Clark enthusiasts. Clark spent his post-expedition years as Superintendent of Indian Affairs in St. Louis, shaping American-Native relations for decades.