Triple Divide (where the Laurentian & Great Divide meet)

Growing up in northern Ontario, it was an event, when we were on summer vacation, to stop at the sign for the height of land on Highway 101.  This was where the highway crossed the Laurentian Divide (this was the height of land that started in Labrador and meandered across the continent to Montana, just below Alberta).  Up to this point in our drive, all waters and rivers we had encountered flowed north to the Arctic Ocean.  Once we started driving again, all waters flowed south and eventually flowed into the Atlantic Ocean.  It meant we were leaving the north behind for awhile.  We almost always stopped and took photos of the sign.

Watershed sign on Hwy 101

Since then, I have always taken note of watersheds.



This year, I was able to drive down a portion the Great Divide (which runs north and south down the western side of the continent) between Alberta and Wyoming.  The rivers for the most part flow east or west depending upon the side of the mountain.  However, at one particular point, in Glacier National Park, the two Divides meet.  At this place, rainfall might flow in any direction. "A hand width can determine whether a raindrop becomes part of the Columbia, Mississippi or Saskatchewan river systems".  That raindrop might end up in the Pacific Ocean, the gulf of Mexico or Hudson's Bay.  I believe it is the only place in the world where rainwater falling in virtually the same spot can end up in either the Pacific, Atlantic or Arctic Oceans.

Triple Divide Peak
(where Laurentian & Great Divide meet)