The Waters Run Deep

On the trail, water is a commodity that we must continually refurnish, so it is with great joy when we find a water source.

Two rivers that we come across on our way west have totally opposite offerings to us.

The Big Blue River, a tributary of the Kansas River is a romantic, peaceful place with a "large spring of water, as cold and pure as if melted from ice". It gushes from a ledge of rocks on the bank falling some 10 feet into a clear basin. It's name is said to be engraved on the rocks around the river as "Alcove Springs".

On the other hand, the Platte River, recorded as a mile wide and an inch deep is described as "bad to ford, destitute of fish, too dirty to bathe in, and too thick to drink". The Platte Rivers runs from the Rocky Mountains to Missouri.

Next time we meet danger on the trail...