Craighead's memory fades in and out these days, but if you ask him which river inspired him most, his answer is quick and clear: the Middle Fork of the Salmon.

In the meantime, I stand on the bridge at night and watch the Clark Fork glimmer, reflecting Missoula's lights as the river hurries past.

Then comes the spring, with the explosiveness of longer days and songbirds returning to the willows along the Clark Fork River, which flows through the center of town, east to west.