Great Falls (Potomac River)

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The Great Falls of the Potomac River are located at the fall line of the Potomac River, 14 miles (23 km) upstream from Washington, D.C. Great Falls Park, operated by the National Park Service, is located on the southern banks in Virginia, while Chesapeake and Ohio Canal parkland is located along the northern banks of the river in Maryland.

The Billy Goat Trail on Bear Island, accessible from Maryland, offers scenic views of the Great Falls, as do vantage points on Olmsted Island (also accessible from Maryland) and overlook points on the Virginia side. The Great Falls area is popular for outdoor activities such as kayaking, whitewater rafting, rock climbing, and hiking.

Contents 1 History 2 See also 3 Notes 4 References 5 External links

[edit] History

Roughly 35,000 years ago, the Potomac River began carving out the Great Falls of the Potomac. The waters of the river gather speed as they are forced through the narrow Mather Gorge and cascade over a series of several 20-foot (6-meter) falls. The water falls a total of 76 feet (23 meters) in elevation over a distance of less than 1 mile (1.6 km), making the Great Falls the steepest and most spectacular fall line rapids of any river in the eastern United States.^[1]

[edit] See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Great Falls of the Potomac River

• Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• "Great Falls of the Potomac". NASA Earth Observatory. http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=16620. Retrieved on 2006-05-24. 

[edit] External links

• Great Falls Visitor Center official site
• Great Falls Park official site
• Satellite imagery of Great Falls on Google Maps

Potomac River system Cities and towns | Bridges | Islands | Tributaries | Variant names District of Columbia | Maryland | Pennsylvania | Virginia | West Virginia Streams shown as: Major tributaries • subtributaries • (subsubtributaries) • (subsubsubtributaries)

Tidal Potomac River Gulf Branch | Donaldson Run | Windy Run | Spout Run | Rock Creek | Tiber Creek | Rocky Run | Washington Channel | Anacostia River • Watts Branch • Hickey Run • Northwest Branch Anacostia River • (Sligo Creek) • Northeast Branch Anacostia River • (Paint Branch) | Four Mile Run | Oxon Creek | Hunting Creek | (Cameron Run) | Broad Creek | Henson Creek | Swan Creek | Piscataway Creek | Little Hunting Creek | Dogue Creek | Accotink Creek • Daniels Run | Pohick Creek | Pomonkey Creek | Occoquan River • Bull Run • Broad Run • Cedar Run | Neabsco Creek | Powells Creek | Mattawoman Creek | Chicamuxen Creek | Quantico Creek | Little Creek | Chopawamsic Creek | Tank Creek | Aquia Creek | Potomac Creek • Accokeek Creek | Nanjemoy Creek | Port Tobacco River | Pope's Creek (Maryland) | Gambo Creek | Piccowaxen Creek | Upper Machodoc Creek | Cuckold Creek | Wicomico River | Monroe Creek | Mattox Creek | Pope's Creek (Virginia) | St. Marys River | Yeocomico River | Coan River | Hull Creek Upper Potomac River North Branch Potomac River | South Branch Potomac River | Town Creek | Little Cacapon River • North Fork Little Cacapon River • South Fork Little Cacapon River | Fifteenmile Creek | Sideling Hill Creek | Cacapon River • Lost River • Trout Run • Capon Springs Run • Dillons Run • Edwards Run • Mill Branch • North River • (Grassy Lick Run) • (Tearcoat Creek) • (Bearwallow Creek) | Sir Johns Run | Warm Spring Run | Tonoloway Creek • Little Tonoloway Creek | Sleepy Creek • Meadow Branch | Licking Creek | Cherry Run | Back Creek • Hogue Creek • Isaacs Creek • Tilhance Creek | Little Conococheague Creek | Conococheague Creek • Back Creek | Opequon Creek • Abrams Creek • Mill Creek • Middle Creek • Tuscarora Creek (West Virginia) | Antietam Creek | Shenandoah River | Little Catoctin Creek | Catoctin Creek (Virginia) | Catoctin Creek (Maryland) | Tuscarora Creek (Maryland) | Monocacy River • Rock Creek • Marsh Creek • Toms Creek • (Middle Creek) • Double Pipe Creek • (Big Pipe Creek) • (Little Pipe Creek) • Tuscarora Creek • Carroll Creek • Linganore Creek • Bush Creek • Ballenger Creek • Bennett Creek | Little Monocacy River | Goose Creek • Little River | Broad Run (Virginia) | Sugarland Run | Broad Run (Maryland) | Seneca Creek • Dry Seneca Creek • Little Seneca Creek • Great Seneca Creek | Difficult Run | Cabin John Creek | Dead Run | Little Falls Branch | Pimmit Run | Rock Run | Watts Branch | Muddy Branch Shenandoah River North Fork Shenandoah River • Cedar Creek • Smith Creek | South Fork Shenandoah River • North River • (Middle River) • South River North Branch Potomac River Stony River | Abram Creek | Savage River | Georges Creek | New Creek | Limestone Run | Warrior Run | Wills Creek • Brush Creek • Little Wills Creek | Evitts Creek | Patterson Creek • Mill Creek | Dans Run | Green Spring Run South Branch Potomac River North Fork South Branch Potomac River • Mill Creek • Seneca Creek | South Fork South Branch Potomac River • Kettle Creek | Lunice Creek | Mill Run | Mill Creek | Big Run | Buffalo Creek Lakes and reservoirs Lake Accotink | Lake Anne | Lake Artemesia | Lake Bernard Frank | Lake Braddock | Breckenridge Reservoir | Brushy Fork Lake | Burke Lake | Dalecarlia Reservoir | Georgetown Reservoir | Jennings Randolph Lake | Kingman Lake | Little Seneca Lake | McMillan Reservoir | Mount Storm Lake | Lake Needwood | Sleepy Creek Lake | Stony River Reservoir | Tidal Basin | Trout Pond | Warden Lake

Coordinates: 38°59′51″N 77°15′09″W / 38.9975°N 77.2525°W / 38.9975; -77.2525