The Lek () is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater Fresh water or freshwater is any naturally occurring liquid or frozen water containing low concentrations of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids. Although the ...

in the western

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

of some in length. It is the continuation of the Nederrijn after the Kromme Rijn branches off at the town of Wijk bij Duurstede. The main westbound

waterway A waterway is any navigable body of water. Broad distinctions are useful to avoid ambiguity, and disambiguation will be of varying importance depending on the nuance of the equivalent word in other languages. A first distinction is necessary ...

is hereafter called the Lek River. The Nederrijn is, itself, a

distributary A distributary, or a distributary channel, is a stream that branches off and flows away from a main stream channel. Distributaries are a common feature of river deltas. The phenomenon is known as river bifurcation. The opposite of a distribut ...

branch of the river

Rhine The Rhine ; french: Rhin ; nl, Rijn ; wa, Rén ; li, Rien; rm, label=Sursilvan, Rein, rm, label=Sutsilvan and Surmiran, Ragn, rm, label=Rumantsch Grischun, Vallader and Puter, Rain; it, Reno ; gsw, Rhi(n), including in Alsatian dialect, Al ...

. Portions of the river form the boundary between the provinces of Utrecht and

Gelderland Gelderland (), also known as Guelders () in English, is a province of the Netherlands, occupying the centre-east of the country. With a total area of of which is water, it is the largest province of the Netherlands by land area, and second by ...

, and between Utrecht and South Holland. In Roman times, the Nederrijn flowed into the Kromme Rijn and these streams were the main outflow of the river Rhine. When the Kromme Rijn began to silt up in the Middle Ages, the Lek became the primary branch. A short distance past Wijk bij Duurstede, the river intersects with the Amsterdam-Rhine Canal, which continues south towards the Waal. A branch of this canal, the ''Lekkanaal'' (Lek Canal) is connected to the river at the city of Nieuwegein. Other major towns on its banks are Culemborg, Vianen, Schoonhoven,

Nieuw-Lekkerland Nieuw-Lekkerland () is a town in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. It is situated on the southern shores of the Lek River, in the north-west of the Alblasserwaard. The town's name evolved slightly over time: in 1280 Le ...

Lekkerkerk Lekkerkerk is a town and former municipality on the Lek River, now part of the municipality of Krimpenerwaard, South Holland province, the Netherlands. Since 1 January 1985 Lekkerkerk is no longer an independent municipality. Lekkerkerk is ...

and Krimpen aan de Lek. The bed of the river lies slightly higher than the surrounding lands and dikes are therefore essential to contain the Lek. At the village of Kinderdijk the Lek meets the Noord River and the combined stream is thereafter known as the Nieuwe Maas as it flows down towards the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lek (River) Distributaries of Europe Rivers of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta Rivers of the Netherlands Rivers of South Holland Rivers of Utrecht (province) Alblasserwaard Wijk bij Duurstede