Yadkin River

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Yadkin River at Elkin, North Carolina

The Yadkin River is one of the longest rivers in North Carolina. It rises in the northwestern portion of the state near the Blue Ridge Parkway's Thunder Hill overlook. Several parts of the river are impounded by dams for water, power, and flood control. The river becomes the Pee Dee River at the confluence of the Uwharrie River. The river flows into South Carolina near Cheraw, which is at the fall line where it becomes the Great Pee Dee River.

The Yadkin-Pee Dee River Basin in North Carolina.

In the upper regions of the river, Moravian settlers from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania began the Wachovia colony in 1753. Between then and the Revolutionary War thousands of settlers came from Pennsylvania using the Great Wagon Road. They were of mostly German and Scotch-Irish background.

The river is extensively used for recreation. Fishing consists mostly of sunfish, catfish, largemouth bass and white bass in the spring and early summer. Canoeing and rafting are also possible. A portion of the river flows through Pilot Mountain State Park. Morrow Mountain State Park and the Uwharrie National Forest are along the banks of the river where the river's name changes to the Pee Dee River.

Principal tributaries of the Yadkin include the Reddies, Roaring, Mitchell, Fisher, Ararat and South Yadkin Rivers.^[1]

Many of the dams on the river create large reservoirs. Some of them are (from upstream to downstream) the W Kerr Scott Reservoir, High Rock Lake, Tuckertown reservoir, Badin Lake, Lake Tillery, and Blewitt Falls Lake.

Water supplies for many communities in North and South Carolina are taken from the Yadkin-Pee Dee and during drought years the division of the water is a contentious issue.

Yadkin County, North Carolina is named after the river.