Cahaba River
| Cahaba River | |
| River | |
 |
|
| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| State | Alabama |
| Tributaries | |
| - left | (numerous) |
| - right | (numerous) |
| Source | |
| - location | Jefferson County, Alabama |
| - coordinates | 33°41′15″N 86°36′0″W / 33.68750°N 86.60000°W |
| Mouth | Alabama River |
| - location | Dallas County, Alabama |
| - coordinates | 32°19′9″N 87°35′41″W / 32.31917°N 87.59472°WCoordinates: 32°19′9″N 87°35′41″W / 32.31917°N 87.59472°W |
| Length | 194 mi (312 km) |
| Basin | 1,870 sq mi (4,843 km2) |
The Cahaba River is the longest substantially free-flowing river in Alabama and is among the most scenic and biologically diverse rivers in the United States. The Cahaba River is a major tributary of the Alabama River and part of the larger Mobile River basin. With headwaters near Birmingham, the Cahaba flows southwest, then at Heiberger turns southeast and joins the Alabama River at the ghost town and former Alabama capital of Cahaba in Dallas County. Entirely within central Alabama, the Cahaba River is 194 miles (312 km) long and drains an area of 1,870 square miles (4,800 km2).
The Cahaba River is flows across three physiographic provinces of the state: Appalachian Plateau, Ridge and Valley, and Coastal Plain. The Mobile River basin has the largest Gulf Coast drainage basin east of the Mississippi River, and the Cahaba is one of the seven river systems that contributes to its flow. The mean discharge of water as an average from 1938-2000 is about 80 m3/s. The average rainfall is 138 cm/yr. The terrestrial biome of the river is classified as Eastern Deciduous Forest.
The Cahaba River begins in the Valley and Ridge region bounded by the Piedmont to the southeast and the Cumberland Plateau to the northwest. It has two major physical regions: Upper and Lower Cahaba. The river empties into the Alabama River. The upper Cahaba is approximately the first 100 miles, starting at the headwaters and continuing to the fall line, a region in which the Appalachian Mountains end and the Gulf Coastal Plain begins. It passes through Trussville, Leeds, Irondale, Birmingham, Mountain Brook, Helena, West Blocton, and Centreville. The lower Cahaba begins at the fall line and continues through Selma and empties into the Alabama River at the former town of Cahaba.
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Wikipedia