The James River Gorge is a

water gap A water gap is a gap that flowing water has carved through a mountain range or mountain ridge and that still carries water today. Such gaps that no longer carry water currents are called wind gaps. Water gaps and wind gaps often offer a pract ...

created by the

James River The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...

in Central

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. The Gorge is deep as measured from Highcock Knob to the James River and is approximately long. The James River forms in western Virginia near the border of

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

and initially flows south through the

ridge and valley province The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, also called the Ridge and Valley Province or the Valley and Ridge Appalachians, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Highlands division. The physiographic province is divided into three sec ...

of the

Allegheny Mountains The Allegheny Mountain Range ( ) — also spelled Alleghany or Allegany, less formally the Alleghenies — is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the Eastern United States and Canada. Historically it represented a significant barr ...

, turning northeast when it comes to the western edge of the

Blue Ridge Mountains The Blue Ridge Mountains are a Physiographic regions of the United States, physiographic province of the larger Appalachian Highlands range. The mountain range is located in the Eastern United States and extends 550 miles southwest from southern ...

near

Buchanan, Virginia Buchanan ( ) is a town in Botetourt County, Virginia, United States. The population was 1,196 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Roanoke metropolitan area. It was the western terminus of the James River and Kanawha ...

. From Buchanan the river flows along the base of the Blue Ridge Mountains until it joins the

Maury River The Maury River is a tributary of the James River (Virginia), James River in west-central Virginia in the United States. It is part of the drainage basin, watershed of Chesapeake Bay. Course The Maury flows for its entire length in Rockbridge Co ...

near the town of

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

and then it turns southeast and begins its descent over the Balcony Falls rapids and through the James River Gorge. The rocks of the gorge are metamorphic in nature with the oldest exposed outcrops being from the Proterozoic Era. To the south of the river the peaks of the

James River Face Wilderness The James River Face Wilderness is an 8,907-acre area located near Natural Bridge, Virginia that is protected by the Eastern Wilderness Act of Congress to maintain its present, natural condition. As part of the National Wilderness Preservation ...

dominate and to the north the peaks of Big Rocky Row and Little Rocky Row Mountains form a dramatic backdrop to the river far below. Multiple trails, including the

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail, also called the A.T., is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tra ...

go through the gorge and provide spectacular vistas of the scenery both at river level and from the peaks to the north and the south.

References

{{coord, 37.596, -79.392, type:landmark_region:US-VA_dim:10000, display=title Canyons and gorges of Virginia Water gaps of Virginia