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Milk River
First came the torrents from melting mountain
glaciers, gouging a wide, jagged canyon through
the sandstone of the North American plains.
The raging waters carved their way east and
south, racing toward the Gulf of Mexico. But
as northern ice gave way, sending water off
in new directions, the mighty Milk contracted,
exposing its canyon walls to the punishing
force of wind and rain. Today, easy-does-it
Milk River kayakers and canoeists who float
through a magical, mystical landscape of towering
hoodoos and sculptured rock lands are likely
to sense the sacred spirit of place that inspired
the aboriginal artists of Writing-On-Stone.
The Milk River is an uncommon Canadian river,
set apart by its landscape, its pale and sediment-laden
hue, its rugged ranching history, and most
of all, its southern-seeking drainage. The
meandering Milk claims dual citizenship, originating
in the mountains of northern Montana, flowing
north and east for 385 kilometres though the
plains of southern Alberta, and turning south
again to end its 1,005 kilometre run at its
confluence with the Missouri River. With its
cottonwoods and its coulees, its cottontails
and its coyotes, the Milk is a grassland oasis,
a sheltered, serene refuge in a dry and windswept
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