A river runs beside it

Whether ‘V’ shaped or ‘U’ shaped,
they’re “build-highway-through” shaped.
Valleys are a road’s best friend.

Well, most readers will properly think I’m slow on the uptake when I admit that, until I arrived in Montana, I didn’t really make the connection between rivers and roads.

Oh, I’ve noticed rivers alongside roads. Remember, I’m from Merced, and driving to and from Yosemite along the Merced River is a treat. I imagine rafts, kayaks, canoes and other human-bearing flotsam are now adrift along Highway 140— a classic example of the river/road juxtaposition.

But the fact that pretty much every highway from one place to another in Montana seems to follow the path of at least one river finally turned on the Wandering Dave light bulb. Attention! Attention! Lots of roads follow rivers.

And it’s not just roads; a closer look reveals at least a half-dozen items nestled alongside rivers. It’s practically symbiotic! The valley and river combo is a no-brainer— even though ‘U’-shaped valleys were dug by glaciers, not rivers. Anyway, rivers often share their valleys with other artifacts, many of which are man-made.

One of these that predates humans is animal trails. Despite their strength and agility, wilderness creatures, like humans, tend to follow the path of least resistance. And, in many cases, the easiest route up and over a range of mountains begins through one of the valleys.

When humans discovered these animal trails, they wisely followed the same routes. And so, arrow heads, pottery shards and other evidence reveal paths worn by hunters, warriors, migrating tribes and explorers over centuries.

As new immigrants brought new technologies— notably horses, and wagons drawn by beasts of burden— narrow trails underwent mitosis and broadened into double-rutted wagon roads.

Logs were added, corduroy-style, to deal with muddy sections and hairpin-shaped switchbacks were cut into the sides of steep ascents to lower the grade a bit. Eventually, gravel, oil and then concrete were added as the top layer to base materials that controlled runoff and made high-speed travel possible.

Many modern highways are built over the top of the original trails. But occasionally motorists can see the “old” highway on the other side of the river.

Railroads followed the same model and share many valleys with the roads. Many of these heavy-duty conveyers of cargo and passengers have been supplemented by transmission wires that carry messages and energy along the same ancient routes.

America’s most famous explorers, Lewis and Clark, are big in Montana— as well as in Idaho and Washington. Their expedition was all about rivers. They hoped to find a network of rivers that would nearly connect the Atlantic and Pacific.

They dreamed of a short portage across the Continental Divide, that would be the single break in what otherwise would be a trail through hundreds of valleys, linking the two coasts with a cross-continental water route.

They did their best, but no such route exists. Nonetheless, it would be foolish to conclude that they failed. Much of the route followed by the explorers remain important connectors for modern Americans.

And, as is the case with so many highways, most of the passage runs through river valleys.