Arising in two separate streams high in the Rockies and flowing east across the plains to meet the Missouri near Omaha, Nebraska, the Platte River is a microcosm of the geologic, plant, animal, and human worlds. Way station for the sandhill cranes, home of the Plains Indians, and artery for the great westward migrations of the nineteenth century, the Platte Valley offers a rich diversity of life and history. Focusing on the central role the Platte...