Map Interpretation and Classification of Buried Valleys

Buried valleys are classified into two main types — those valleys completely buried by glacial drift, without present streams along their courses (Type I), and those partly buried or partly exhumed, usually with present streams along their courses (Type II). If a stream is flowing mainly in a Type II valley, the bottom of which is deeply buried by drift, local areas where the stream is cutting bedrock are postglacial channels of derangement. Postglacial channels of derangement, which often can be recognized on a topographic map, reveal that a buried valley (often Type I) exists nearby.