The Potomac River is located within the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and flows from the Potomac Highlands into the Chesapeake Bay. The river is approximately 405 miles (652 km) long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles (38,000 km2). In terms of area, this makes the Potomac River the fourth largest river along the Atlantic coast of the United States and the 21st largest in the United States. Over 5 million people live within the Potomac watershed.
The Chesapeake Bay is an estuary in the U.S. states of Maryland and Virginia. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula with its mouth located between Cape Henry and Cape Charles. With its northern portion in Maryland and the southern part in Virginia, the Chesapeake Bay is a very important feature for the ecology and economy of those two states, as well as others. More than 150 major rivers and streams flow into the Bay's 64,299-square-mile (166,534 km2) drainage basin, which covers parts of six states and all of Washington, D.C.
Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 437,994. In 2015, the population was estimated to be 452,745. In 2017 the estimated population was 450,435. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city in Virginia and the 41st most populous city in the nation. Located on the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay, Virginia Beach is included in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area. This area, known as "America's First Region", also includes the independent cities of Chesapeake, Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Suffolk, as well as other smaller cities, counties, and towns of Hampton Roads.
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows 348 miles (560 km) to Chesapeake Bay. The river length extends to 444 miles (715 km) if one includes the Jackson River, the longer of its two source tributaries. It is the longest river in Virginia and the 12th longest river in the United States that remains entirely within a single state. Jamestown and Williamsburg, Virginia’s first colonial capitals, and Richmond, Virginia's current capital, lie on the James River.
The Rappahannock River is a river in eastern Virginia, in the United States, approximately 195 miles (314 km) in length. It traverses the entire northern part of the state, from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the west where it rises, across the Piedmont to the Fall Line, and onward through the coastal plain to flow into the Chesapeake Bay, south of the Potomac River.
The York River is a navigable estuary, approximately 34 miles (55 km) long, in eastern Virginia in the United States. It ranges in width from 1 mile (1.6 km) at its head to 2.5 miles (4.0 km) near its mouth on the west side of Chesapeake Bay. Its watershed drains an area of the coastal plain of Virginia north and east of Richmond.
Sleepy Creek is a 44.0-mile-long (70.8 km) tributary of the Potomac River in the United States, belonging to the Chesapeake Bay's watershed. The stream rises in Frederick County, Virginia, and flows through Morgan County, West Virginia before joining the Potomac near the community of Sleepy Creek.
Transportation in the Commonwealth of Virginia is by land, sea and air. Virginia's extensive network of highways and railroads were developed and built over a period almost 400 years, beginning almost immediately after the founding of Jamestown in 1607, and often incorporating old established trails of the Native Americans.
York River State Park is located near the unincorporated town of Croaker in James City County, Virginia on the south bank of the York River about 10 miles downstream from West Point.
The Pamunkey River is a tributary of the York River, about 93 miles (150 km) long, in eastern Virginia in the United States. Via the York River it is part of the watershed of Chesapeake Bay.
Trout Run is an 18.5-mile-long (29.8 km) tributary of the Cacapon River, belonging to the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay watersheds. The stream is located in Hardy County in West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle. Trout Run rises between Devils Hole Mountain and Great North Mountain near the Virginia state line in the George Washington National Forest. The stream empties into the Cacapon River at Wardensville.
Pohick Creek is a 14.0-mile-long (22.5 km) tributary stream of the Potomac River in Fairfax County in the U.S. state of Virginia. It takes its name from the Pohick Native American tribe once prevalent in the area.
The Chesapeake Bay Gateways Network is a partnership program of the National Park Service and a system of over 150 parks, refuges, museums, historic communities and water trails in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. As a partnership program, it is not considered a Unit of the National Park System. Sites in the greater Chesapeake Bay Watershed are eligible to participate in the Network, including sites in the Potomac River basin out to West Virginia and sites in the Susquehanna River basin out to New York State. The Network is managed by the National Park Service's Chesapeake Bay Office in Annapolis, Maryland, which also manages the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail and the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail
The Piankatank River is a 24.4-mile-long (39.3 km) river in the U.S. state of Virginia. Located on the Middle Peninsula, between the Rappahannock and York rivers, it was the site of numerous actions during the American Civil War.
Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve (WBNERR) encompasses open waters, barrier beaches, marshlands and uplands on the south shore of Cape Cod in the towns of Falmouth and Mashpee. The park is managed by the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve contains a diverse collection of habitats including oyster reefs, seagrass beds, tidal wetlands, sandy shoals and mudflats. In order to address the diversity of habitats, the Chesapeake Bay-Virginia Reserve established a multi-site system from tidal freshwater to high salinity conditions along the York River estuary. Reserve components include Sweet Hall Marsh, Taskinas Creek, Catlett Island and Goodwin Islands.
The natural environment of Virginia encompasses the physical geography and biology of the U.S. state of Virginia. Virginia has a total area of 42,774.2 square miles (110,784.67 km2), including 3,180.13 square miles (8,236.5 km2) of water, making it the 35th-largest state by area. Forests cover 65% of the state, wetlands and water cover 6% of the land in the state, while 5% of the state is a mixture of commercial, residential, and transitional.
Mill Run is a 9.1-mile-long (14.6 km) tributary stream of the South Branch Potomac River, belonging to the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay watersheds. The stream is located in Hampshire County in the Eastern Panhandle of the U.S. state of West Virginia. Mill Run rises on Nathaniel Mountain and flows northeast, then northwest into the South Branch south of Romney near Hampshire Park on South Branch River Road.
The Occoquan River is a tributary of the Potomac River in Northern Virginia, where it serves as part of the boundary between Fairfax and Prince William counties. The river is 24.7 miles (39.8 km) long, and its watershed covers about 590 square miles (1,528 km2). It is formed by the confluence of Broad Run and Cedar Run in Prince William County; Bull Run, which forms Prince William County's boundary with Loudoun and the northerly part of Fairfax counties, enters it east-southeast of Manassas, as the Occoquan turns to the southeast. It reaches the Potomac at Belmont Bay. The Occoquan River is part of the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The name Occoquan is derived from a Doeg Algonquian word translated as "at the end of the water".
