Answer: Triple Divide is commonly hailed as unique and significant because water from its peak flows into three oceans. That depends on whether you think Hudson Bay connects to the Atlantic or Arctic Ocean, and there is certainly some dispute surrounding that. There’s another triple divide peak in Canada that flows directly into the Arctic and Pacific Oceans, as well as into Hudson Bay. So, depending on what you think about Hudson Bay, either Canada or Montana has a triple ocean divide. The International Hydrographic Organization considers it to be in the Arctic division of oceans and seas, so that might be a win for Montana. The significance of these triple divides as possibly flowing into three oceans also depends on your definitions of oceans, which isn’t always straightforward. Regardless, though, they all flow into three distinct and major drainages. (As a side note, the naming schema for water around triple divides tend to follow a similar structure; surrounding rivers, streams, and glaciers are often named for the drainage they join. Triple Divide Peak in Montana has the Pacific, Atlantic, and Hudson Bay Creeks. Snow Dome has the Columbia and Athabasca Glaciers, as well as the Dome and Stuttfield Glaciers.)
As an exhibits specialist in Glacier, my job was to design interpretive wayside panels with our seasonal media team. One of our selected topics was Triple Divide Peak. (If you’ve ever been to a national park, or really any public land or well traversed road, you may have seen a wayside on the side of the road. They’re meant to be quick interpretations of what you’re seeing, an opportunity for visitors to connect to the place they’re in without necessarily interacting with a ranger.) I always thought I had a pretty good grasp of what a watershed was and how drainages worked from my time studying and living by the Mississippi, but I learned so much throughout the course of making this wayside
