Kanawha Falls

38°09′10″N 81°12′44″W

Kanawha Falls on the Kanawha River at Glen Ferris, WV

Kanawha Falls is a waterfall on the Kanawha River in West Virginia that has been a barrier to fish movement for more than 1 million years.[1]: 13  The waterfall is formed by a diagonal sandstone ledge across the river about 1 mile (1.6 km) downstream from the confluence of the New and Gauley rivers. It is 24 ft (7.3 m) high.[1]: 13 

A low concrete overflow dam built in 1920 along the crest of the falls directs part of the flow to an electric generating plant on the western (right) bank of the river at the community of Glen Ferris.[2] The plant was rehabilitated beginning in 2010 and fully returned to operation in 2012.[3] The community of Gauley Bridge is 2 mi (3.2 km) upstream from Glen Ferris along U.S. Route 60. On the eastern (left) bank, a community named Kanawha Falls is about 0.6 mi (0.97 km) downstream.

Kanawha Falls is the upstream limit of several fish species that broadly inhabit the Ohio River watershed.[1]: 12–14 [4] Above the waterfall, the watershed has fewer fish species overall, a relatively high number of species found nowhere else in the world, and nearly as many non-native species as natives.

The waterfall also divides the flat-water barge navigation industry downstream[5] from the recreational white-water rafting industry upstream.[6] The waterfall is one stop on the West Virginia Tourism statewide Waterfall Trail.[7]

Streamflow and flood information at Kanawha Falls since 1877 is available from the U.S. Geological Survey.[8] Three reservoirs on the New River (Claytor and Bluestone Lakes) and Gauley River (Summersville Lake) reduced the estimated 100-year flood discharge under 20th-century climate by about half.[9]

Recreation

Fishing

Multiple West Virginia stage record fish were caught along the Kanawha Falls.[10][11][12]

References

1. Paybins, Katherine; others (2000). "Water quality in the Kanawha-New River basin: West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina, 1996-98". Circular. Circular 1204. U.S Geological Survey. doi:10.3133/cir1204.
2. "Rehabilitation of Glen Ferris hydropower begins". The Montgomery Herald. 30 June 2010. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
3. Ross, Jim (15 June 2011). "112-Year-Old Hydro Plant Gets Modern Makeover". The State Journal. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
4. Messinger, Terence; Chambers, Douglas (2001). Fish communities and their relation to environmental factors in the Kanawha River basin, West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina, 1997-98. Water-Resources Investigations Report 2001-4048. U.S. Geological Survey. doi:10.3133/wri014048.
5. "Kanawha River Locks" (PDF). US Army Corps of Engineers. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
6. "Whitewater rafting". West Virginia Department of Tourism. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
7. "Kanawha Falls". West Virginia Department of Tourism. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
8. "Kanawha River at Kanawha Falls, WV". Water data for the nation. U.S. Geological Survey. Retrieved 27 February 2023.
9. Appel, D.H. (1986). "West Virginia Surface-Water Resources". In Moody, David (ed.). National Water Summary 1985: Hydrologic events and surface-water resources. Water Supply Paper 2300. U.S. Geological Survey. pp. 479–484. doi:10.3133/wsp2300.
10. "West Virginia Fishing Records". West Virginia DNR. Retrieved August 25, 2024.
11. "West Virginia Fishing Records". Land Big Fish. Retrieved August 25, 2024.
12. Kirk, Sam (January 10, 2024). "West Virginia DNR creates 5 new state fishing record categories". WBOY. Retrieved August 25, 2024.