Cacapon River

Cacapon River
The Cacapon River looking south from the Cacapon River Rt 127 Bridge Public Access Site
Cacapon River is located in West Virginia
Cacapon River
Location of the mouth of the Cacapon River in West Virginia
Cacapon River is located in the United States
Cacapon River
Cacapon River (the United States)
Location
CountryUnited States
StateWest Virginia
CountiesHampshire, Hardy, Morgan
Physical characteristics
SourceLost River
 • locationWardensville, Hardy County
 • coordinates39°04′52″N 78°38′10″W / 39.08111°N 78.63611°W / 39.08111; -78.63611[1]
MouthPotomac River
 • location
Great Cacapon, Morgan County
 • coordinates
39°37′13″N 78°16′58″W / 39.62028°N 78.28278°W / 39.62028; -78.28278[1]
Length81.0 mi (130.4 km)[2]
Basin size680 sq mi (1,800 km2)
Discharge 
 • locationGreat Cacapon[3]
 • average592 cu ft/s (16.8 m3/s)[3]
 • minimum26 cu ft/s (0.74 m3/s)
(September 12, 1966)[3]
 • maximum87,600 cu ft/s (2,480 m3/s)
(March 18, 1936)[3]

The Cacapon River (locally /kəˈkpən/ kə-KAY-pən; meaning Medicine Waters), located in the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia's eastern panhandle region, is an 81.0-mile-long (130.4 km)[2] shallow river known for its fishing, boating, wildlife, hunting, and wilderness scenery. As part of the Potomac River watershed, it is an American Heritage River.

The Cacapon River Watershed is made up of three major river segments and many smaller stream watersheds. The headwaters of the Cacapon River, known as the Lost River, is 31.1 miles (50.1 km) long[2] and receives water from a watershed covering 178 square miles (460 km2). The largest tributary of the Cacapon is the North River, which drains 206 square miles (530 km2), an area comparable to that of the Lost River. Overall, the Cacapon River watershed includes the Lost and North River watersheds, and those of many smaller streams for a total of 680 square miles (1,800 km2). The Cacapon watershed is itself part of the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

In recent years, the Cacapon River and its watershed have become threatened by development, and industrial and agricultural growth. Concern about these issues led to the establishment of the Cacapon Institute in 1985 (originally known as the Pine Cabin Run Ecological Laboratory).[citation needed]

  1. ^ a b "Cacapon River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved December 10, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map Archived 2012-03-29 at the Wayback Machine, accessed August 15, 2011
  3. ^ a b c d "01611500 Cacapon River near Great Cacapon, WV, Water Data Report 2013" (PDF). National Water Information System. United States Geological Survey. 2013. Retrieved December 10, 2016.