Nantahala River
Nantahala River Tributary to Little Tennessee River | |
---|---|
Location | |
Country | United States |
State | North Carolina |
County | Clay Macon Swain |
Physical characteristics | |
Source | confluence of Kilby Creek, Gulf Fork, and Big Laurel Branch |
• location | just west of Scream Ridge |
• coordinates | 35°01′04″N 083°30′24″W / 35.01778°N 83.50667°W[1] |
• elevation | 3,800 ft (1,200 m)[2] |
Mouth | Little Tennessee River |
• location | Fontana Lake |
• coordinates | 35°23′00″N 083°30′24″W / 35.38333°N 83.50667°W[1] |
• elevation | 1,708 ft (521 m)[2] |
Length | 47.85 mi (77.01 km)[3] |
Basin size | 175.33 square miles (454.1 km2)[4] |
Discharge | |
• location | Little Tennessee River (Fontana Lake) |
• average | 612.33 cu ft/s (17.339 m3/s) at mouth with Little Tennessee River[4] |
Basin features | |
Progression | generally north |
River system | Little Tennessee River |
Tributaries | |
• left | Indian Creek, Nichols Branch, Little Indian Creek, Kimsey Creek, Park Creek, Black Creek, Nova Scotia Branch, Buck Creek, Tate Branch, Tipton Branch, Clear Creek, Johnson Branch, Choga Creek, Lambert Cove, Dicks Creek, Appletree Branch, Walnut Cove, Poplar Cove, Pierce Creek, Rowlin Creek, Ledbetter Creek, Mudcut Branch, Mountain Branch, Morris Branch, Tomahawk Branch, Watia Creek, Jake Branch, Pump Branch, Turkey Branch |
• right | Mooney Creek, Bearpen Creek, Thomas Branch, Hurricane Creek, Curtis Creek, Long Branch, Laurel Branch, Little Rock Branch, Trough Branch, Morris Branch, Bryson Branch, Factory Branch, Roaring Fork, Tyler Branch, Jarrett Creek, Rocky Branch, Wine Spring Creek, Rowland Branch, Beech Cove Branch, White Oak Creek, Camp Branch, Queens Creek, Silvermine Creek, Wesser Creek, Bird Falls Branch, Buckner Branch, Euchiella Branch, Siles Branch |
Waterbodies | Nantahala Lake, Fontana Lake |
Bridges | Standing Indian Loop, US 64, Thunderstruck Lane, Swinging Bridge Lane, Nantahala Dam Road, Junaluska Road, Wayah Road (x8), US 74, Pardon Bridge Road, Old Storehouse Road, NC 28 |
The Nantahala River (
The river rises near the border of Georgia and North Carolina, close to the Southern Nantahala Wilderness and the Appalachian Trail. It flows into the Little Tennessee River at Fontana Lake, a reservoir formed behind Fontana Dam.
The word Nantahala is Cherokee and means "Land of the Noonday Sun".[6] The river runs through a narrow and steep gorge where in some areas the sun reaches the ground only when it is directly overhead during the middle of the day. During the colonial era, Cherokee towns along the Nantahala, upper Hiwassee River, and Valley River in what is now North Carolina were known as the Valley Towns.
Paddling
This river is popular with
Fishing
The Nantahala is also a popular destination for
Lower Run
The part that can be rafted is 8 miles (13 km) long and has
The flow rate of this section of the Nantahala is dependent on releases from Nantahala Lake, which is controlled by Duke Energy. The Nantahala dam is a diversion dam; the water that normally flows through the river is diverted through a 5.5-mile (8.9 km) penstock before flowing through the Nantahala Powerhouse and back into the original river channel far downstream. The river is "on" when Duke Energy is generating electricity and releasing water. From late spring to early fall Duke Energy follows a regular release schedule[8] to help support commercial rafting.
The opening of the main penstock is near the bottom of the Nantahala dam, and is underground for most of its length. Because of this the discharged water is always at or near the average groundwater temperature, which in this region is in the mid 50s (F).
This section of river is popular as a
Upper Run
The upper section of the river extends from the Nantahala Dam to the Nantahala Powerhouse. The uppermost section just below Whiteoak Falls is known as the Nantahala Cascades and is an extremely steep and challenging whitewater route. Upon reaching the bridge, the river becomes the Upper Nantahala and flattens out to become a solid Class III-IV run. The regular Nantahala River flow is diverted through a
In the Winter months, the Upper Nantahala is maintained as a delayed-harvest trout fishery from the mouth of Whiteoak Creek downstream to the Nantahala Powerhouse. The state of North Carolina stocks approximately 10,000 Brown, Rainbow, and Brook Trout annually in the upper river on top of an already existing population of stream-born Rainbow and Brown Trout.
References
- ^ a b "GNIS Detail - Nantahala River". geonames.usgs.gov. US Geological Survey. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
- ^ a b "Nantahala River Topo Map, Swain County NC (Noland Creek Area)". TopoZone. Locality, LLC. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
- ^ "ArcGIS Web Application". epa.maps.arcgis.com. US EPA. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
- ^ a b "Nantahala River Watershed Report". Waters Geoviewer. US EPA. Retrieved 17 October 2019.
- ^ Talk Like A Tarheel Archived 2013-06-22 at the Wayback Machine, from the North Carolina Collection's website at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 2013-02-05.
- ISBN 978-0-520-93055-1.
- ISBN 978-0-7627-8031-0.
- ^ "Scheduled Flow Releases". Duke Energy. 2012-07-09. Retrieved 2012-07-13.
- ^ Colburn, Kevin (2009-10-28). "Nantahala Dam to Spill This Fall". American Whitewater. Retrieved 2012-07-13.