Clarion River

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The Clarion River is a tributary of the Allegheny River, approximately 110 mi (177 km) long, in west central Pennsylvania in the United States. It drains a mountainous area of the Allegheny Plateau in the Ohio River watershed, flowing through narrow serpentine valleys and hardwood forests.

[edit] Description

It is formed at Johnsonburg in central Elk County by the confluence of its East and West Branches. The East Branch, approximately 15 mi (24 km) long, rises in northeastern Elk County and flows southwest through East Branch Clarion River Lake to the join the West Branch. The river flows generally WSW across western Pennsylvania in a tight meandering course past Ridgway and Clarion. It joins the Allegheny from the east in eastern Clarion County approximately 5 mi (8 km) south of Emlenton.

In 1996 the United States Congress designated approximately 52 mi (83 km) of the upper river as the Clarion Wild and Scenic River as part of the National Wild and Scenic River program.