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FAQs

The Etowah River

  • Have any species been lost from the watershed over time?

    Yes. Biological inventories show that 15 native fish species have already been lost since the first records were taken in the late 1800s.

  • How does the Upper Etowah compare to the entire Etowah Basin?

    The upper watershed is only a fraction of the wider Etowah Basin, which spans a total drainage area of approximately 1,858 square miles and includes all 150 miles of the river.

  • How large is the Upper Etowah River Watershed?

    The Upper Etowah River Watershed encompasses 610 square miles, which equals 390,400 acres.

  • How many tributaries feed into the Upper Etowah River?

    There are over 100 tributaries in the upper watershed, including major streams like Shoal, Amicalola, Yellow, Setting Down, Long Swamp, and Sharp Mountain creeks.

  • What is a watershed, and how does it relate to the Etowah River?

    Think of a watershed like a bowl. The Etowah River runs along the bottom of the bowl, while the surrounding high points of land form the sides. Rain or snow falling on these high points drains down through various tributaries into the river, meaning everything that happens within that “bowl” directly affects the quality of the water.

  • Where does the Etowah River begin and end?

    The river begins its journey in the mountains near Dahlonega and flows for 98 miles until it reaches Lake Allatoona.

  • Which counties are included in the Upper Etowah River Watershed?

    It includes parts of five counties in central north Georgia just above Atlanta: Lumpkin, Pickens, Dawson, Forsyth, and Cherokee.

  • Why is the Etowah watershed ecologically significant on a global scale?

    The Etowah River watershed is biologically one of the richest river systems in the entire world, housing 76 native fish species.

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