ST. LOUIS -- Lewis and Clark re-enactors are enjoying naps, cold beer at home and a little time with their families now that they've paused their expedition for the winter.

For nearly half a year, a group of re-enactors called the Discovery Expedition of St. Charles -- based in a city about 25 miles northwest of St. Louis -- helped the nation commemorate the bicentennial of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark by traveling part of the explorers' route.

A core group of about a dozen re-enactors traveled the bulk of this year's journey, and 200 of the group's 315 members nationwide took turns joining in for part of the travels.

The expedition's 39-year-old captain, Scott Mandrell of Alton, Ill., said he returned home for one day to take his daughter to begin kindergarten. Other than that, he came home Sunday for the first time in almost six months.

''I slept," he said Tuesday. ''I had a frosty, cold Budweiser. I haven't unpacked yet or anything."

Two hundred years ago, Lewis and Clark and their crew explored the Louisiana Territory and sought a Northwest Passage to the Pacific Ocean.

The explorers logged about 8,000 miles; they navigated the Missouri River, crossed the Rocky Mountains, reached the Pacific and returned again with knowledge of the land and its native people.

While the re-enactors had some modern conveniences -- engines on their wooden boats and cell phones -- they also had a tight schedule, timed for dozens of educational appearances while they traveled 1,370 miles.

The new discovery expedition traced the eastern part of Lewis and Clark's route last year and traveled from Missouri to North Dakota over the past six months. They'll resume their voyage next April, returning to North Dakota to continue to the Pacific. In 2006, they'll go to Oregon to trace a path back to St. Louis by September.

Mandrell and other re-enactors described the beauty of their time on the Missouri River, the way the history excited and unified people, and the assistance they were given during their travels.

Larry McClain, the expedition's executive director, said, ''It never ceases to amaze me, the kindness and generosity of the American people."

He said the re-enactors were met in communities with pancake breakfasts, barbecues -- even offers of help with laundry.

He recalled gassing up the replica boats only to find a farmer in overalls already had picked up their fuel tab.

The travels on this leg of the bicentennial weren't all smooth sailing, however.

A South Dakota-based group called ''Stop Lewis and Clark" asked the re-enactors to turn back, and plans to continue peaceful protest next year asking the re-enactors to give up their planned route.

One of the organizers -- Vic Camp, a Lakota Indian who lives on the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota -- said he believes the true history of American Indians still remains unknown to many.

''To me, it was the beginning of the end for our way of life," he said of the original Lewis and Clark travels. ''It represented the dawn of genocide for our people."

The re-enactors said they'd talked to many American Indians throughout their planning and hoped the attention on their travels would provide a platform for diverse voices, including American Indians, to be heard.