This investigation is designed to help students learn landmarks and possible dangers for settlers who traveled down the Ohio River in 1789. The document describes a simulation in which the students attempt to survive a flatboat trip from Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) to Losantiville (Cincinnati, Ohio). Along the trail are points of historical interest. At each site the students can find out more about the river and the lives of the people who used it as a route into the interior of the continent. The activities in the student booklet are designed to enable students to: (1) list the natural and human factors that determined whether a flatboat family could survive a river trek in 1789; (2) use compass directions and distances to plot a map of a portion of the Ohio River; (3) describe some events and people important to Ohio's history in the late 1700s; (4) identify the modern names of towns and tributaries along the Ohio River; and (5) follow directions carefully to complete a computer program. The teacher guide includes the same activities as the student booklet, but is supplemented with some additional background information, a list of references, and the answers to the review questions for students. (TW)