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Mountains are an important part of the world, and one of the ways that they help to shape the environment are by keeping water flowing into rivers.
Due to being at higher altitudes, mountains can ‘hold’ water for long periods of time and release it down into the rivers below at a slow and steady rate. In the warm months, this means that anytime it rains, the water flows down to fill the rivers.
In the winter, the water is held up on the upper areas of the mountain until spring, when it will slowly melt off and flow down.
In the vast majority of situations, the water from a mountain will eventually flow down into different rivers at the bottom before all flowing into oceans or large lakes.
At Triple Divide Peak in the Rocky Mountains, however, the water has a few different options. It is a high-altitude point known as a hydrological apex that not only has three different paths to various rivers, but those rivers lead to three separate oceans.
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If the water is on the eastern side, it will go down into the Missouri-Mississippi river system, which eventually dumps into the Atlantic Ocean.
If it lands on the western side, it will go into the Columbia River, which ends at the Pacific Ocean.
Finally, if it lands on the north side, it can go down into the Saskatchewan-Nelson river system, which goes into the Hudson Bay. The Hudson Bay is technically part of the Arctic Ocean.
Some sources claim that the Hudson Bay is actually part of the Atlantic Ocean, but the International Hydrographic Ocean says it is part of the Arctic, so we’ll go with that.
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No matter which path the water ends up taking, it always helps to support the health of the various river systems below, which are essential for the ecosystems across thousands of miles. Plants and animals along all these rivers, including humans, rely on this water for survival.
This makes the Triple Divide Peak one of the most important locations for rain and snow to fall in the world.
If you enjoyed this story, check out this post about how quickly the Antarctic ice is actually melting.