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River in the Eastern United States

The New River is a river which flows through the U. S. states of North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia before joining with the Gauley River to form the Kanawha River at the town of Gauley Bridge, West Virginia. Part of the Ohio River watershed, it is about 360 mile (579 km) long. It was once called Wood's River for Colonel Abraham Wood, an English explorer from Virginia, who explored the river in the mid 17th century. Despite its name, the New River is one of the five oldest rivers in the world geologically. However, a claim that the river is the second oldest in the world is disputed by the West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey and the National Park Service. This low level crossing of the Appalachians, many millions of years old, has long been a biogeographical corridor allowing numerous species of plants and animals to spread between the lowlands of the American East Coast and those of the Midwest. Unusual kinds of plants occur on the gorge's cliffs or rim top ledges. Portions of this corridor are now also used by various railroads and highways, and some segments of the river have been dammed for hydroelectric power production. The New River Gorge is not only quite scenic, but also offers numerous opportunities for white water recreation such as rafting and kayaking. Many open ledges along the rim of the gorge offer popular views, with favorites including Hawks Nest State Park and various overlooks on lands of the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. The New River Gorge and the U. S. 19 bridge crossing it are shown on the West Virginia State Quarter, minted in 2005.

This ancient river begins in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, and its North Fork and South Fork meet near the City of Boone, North Carolina. It flows generally northeastward through the New River Valley portion of the Great Appalachian Valley in western North Carolina and Virginia. It then crosses through the Ridge and Valley Province, cutting between Walker Mountain and Sinking Creek Mountain, and then between East River Mountain and Peters Mountain. It then turns and following a more northwestward course into West Virginia, where it then cuts through the Appalachian Plateau in the New River Gorge. It meets the Gauley River to become the Kanawha River in south central West Virginia. bridge, and the fourth highest in the Americas. At the time it was built, New River Gorge Bridge was the world's highest bridge carrying a regular roadway, a title it held until the 2001 opening of the Liuguanghe Bridge in China.

Ironically, the New River is considered by some geologists to be one of the oldest rivers in the world, and certainly one of the oldest rivers in North America. The New River flows in a generally south to north course, at times cutting through the southwest to northeast trending ridges and geological texture of the Appalachian Mountains, and flows directly through the Appalachian Plateau, contrasting with the west to east flow of most other major rivers to the east and northeast in Virginia and North Carolina, and on the west side of the Appalachians on the Plateau. It may have been in its present course for at least 65 million years. In the geologic past, the New River was a much longer stream. Geologists have named it the Teays. The last advance of Pleistocene continental glacial ice buried most of this river. At that time, the waters of the New were diverted into rivers (the present day Ohio & Kanawha Rivers) created by the glaciers.

On its journey through the New River Gorge, the New River passes through an extensive geological formation. Emergent rocks and rock outcrops are found to provide diverse habitat producing rich and abundant flora and fauna species. In the gorge, there is typically a 1000 feet difference in elevation between the river bottom and the adjacent plateau. The New River dissects all physiographic provinces of the Appalachian Mountains, and therefore is believed to be a corridor facilitating the movement of southern plant and animal species into West Virginia. In addition to serving as a refuge for some species, New River Gorge provides a geographical barrier that limits the east west distribution of other species.

New River Gorge lies at the core of the largest remaining block of relatively unfragmented, mid latitude forest in the world. The gorge section of New River supports the most diverse plant assemblage of any river gorge in the central and southern Appalachians. This is due, in part, to the moisture gradient extremes that exist between the rim and river. This portion of southern West Virginia falls within the Mixed Mesophytic Forest Region. Recognized forest types include oak hickory, mixed oak, oak maple, oak yellow pine, hemlock hardwoods, northern hardwoods, cove hardwoods, and bottomland and floodplain hardwoods. Variant names of the New River include "Wood River" and "Wood's River", after Abraham Wood. Mary Draper Ingles traversed the gorge during her 1755 escape from captivity among the Shawnees. Hiking or driving through New River Gorge today will provide glimpses of old stone walls, foundations of homes and buildings, coal mine entrances, and coke ovens decaying alongside the railroad tracks. The New River and its Gorge and Valley have been turned into protected parks and recreation areas along much of the river. Congress has designated the New River Gorge the "New River Gorge National River". The choice of national river designation came about through a long series of discussions among interested parties. A grassroots coalition formed and pleaded the case for protection of the area in Congress. The initial goal, however, was not protective designation of the gorge in West Virginia, but stopping an engineering project on the Virginia North Carolina border. Plans had been proposed in the early 1960s to dam the New River in Virginia, backing up water into North Carolina for pumped storage, the production of hydroelectric power, and the regular flushing of pollution downstream. Proponents called it the Blue Ridge Pumped Storage Project. Many citizens in West Virginia felt that such a dam would negatively affect the gorge. Water flow and quality were major concerns. These West Virginia opponents to the dam joined those in Virginia and North Carolina and helped block the dam before shifting attention toward protection of the New River in West Virginia. The coalition ultimately chose a designation for the New River Gorge that would have a chance of success in Congress. That designation passed Congress in 1978.

The New River exhibits class II to IV rapids in the summer, making it a popular whitewater rafting and kayaking destination. The spring runoff brings class IV and V rapids. Several commercial outfitters offer guided river trips. New River Gorge National Park and Preserve contains numerous trails for hiking and mountain biking, as well as over 1400 established rock climbs. The New River is spanned near Fayetteville, West Virginia, by the New River Gorge Bridge (US 19). "Bridge Walk" tours are offered on the 2 feet (1 m) wide steel catwalk running under the bridge deck. The bridge is also open for BASE jumping once annually on Bridge Day.

Much of the river's course through West Virginia is designated as the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, and the New River is one of the nation's American Heritage Rivers. In 1975, North Carolina designated a segment of the river as "New River State Scenic River", by including it in the state's Natural and Scenic Rivers System.