Two Ocean Pass Creek Is the Only Body of Water That Flows Into Both the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans

The ever-forthright Sam Denby of Half As Interesting explains how Two Ocean Pass, a creek in Wyoming‘s Teton Wilderness, is the only body of water that flows to both the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. The creek is located at the appropriately named “Parting of the Waters”, a unique hydrologic site.

North Two Oceans runs through Bridger-Teton National Forest specifically and reaches an alpine meadow called Two Ocean Pass, which is presumably named after the fact that a creek there flows to two oceans here at the so-called Parting of the Waters

The creek has two distributaries, one that flows westward towards the Snake River on the border of Oregon and Washington. While the other flows south, exiting the Mississippi River into the Gulf of Mexico.

The creek meets a rocky point in the land that sends a bunch of the water onward to Pacific creek and a bunch on to Atlantic Creek. …water in Pacific Creek will eventually meet the Snake River snake past Idaho Falls then meet the Columbia River and walk the line between Oregon and Washington until it hits the Pacific Ocean …water in Atlantic Creek will go to the Yellowstone River then take a tour down the Missouri that passes Bismarck Omaha and St Louis then pour into the Mississippi and hit up Memphis and New Orleans before finally reaching the Gulf of Mexico then the Atlantic .

Two Ocean Pass
Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.