Note II-5 — Chapter II · ITINERARY, CONTINUED: FROM THE PAWNEE VILLAGE THROUGH KANSAS AND COLORADO TO PIKE'S PEAK, OCT. 1ST-NOV. 30TH, 1806.

"Distance 18 miles" would never bring Pike to any branch of the Solomon. His error here is a puzzling one until it is detected by reference to the map. That sets his camp-mark high up on the same creek, several branches of which he had on his left when he went up E. of it, Sept. 24th. It is Buffalo cr., which Pike erroneously runs into Solomon r., and so seems never to have passed before. See back, note68. I suppose he struck Buffalo cr. below Mankato, somewhere in the vicinity of Jewell and very likely between these places. He seems to be holding about S. S. W., and to-morrow strikes Solomon r. But, as already explained, note70, p. 410, precision in this matter is impossible, without knowing exactly where the Pawnee village stood, so as to have a fixed initial point of the journey. I understand that there was a certain "Pawnee trail" once well known from this village to Great Bend on the Arkansaw. If this be now determinable, it will represent Pike's route with a closer approximation to accuracy than I have been able to follow it out.