Northeast Cape Fear River is a long 5th order tributary to the

Cape Fear River The Cape Fear River is a long blackwater river in east central North Carolina. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Fear, from which it takes its name. The river is formed at the confluence of the Haw River and the Deep River (North Carol ...

in southeastern North Carolina.

Variant names

According to the

Geographic Names Information System The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database of name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories, Antarctica, and the associated states of ...

, it has also been known historically as: * North East River * Northeast Fork

Course

Northeast Cape Fear River rises about 1 mile southeast of

Mount Olive, North Carolina Mount Olive is a town in Duplin and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The population was 4,589 at the 2010 census. It is included in the Goldsboro, North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area. The town is home to the Mt. Ol ...

in Wayne County and about south of Goldsboro and then flows south to the Cape Fear River at

Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington is a port city in and the county seat of New Hanover County in coastal southeastern North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 at the 2020 census, it is the eighth most populous city in the state. Wilmington is the ...

. On its course it flows past Albertson, Hallsville, and Chinquapin. In Pender County near the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

coast, it passes along the west side of Angola Swamp and

Holly Shelter Swamp Holly Shelter Swamp is a pocosin in southern coastal North Carolina near Jacksonville, in Pender County. Much of the swamp is included in the Holly Shelter Game Land, administered by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. The Bear Garde ...

. It joins the Cape Fear River on the north end of Wilmington, forming an

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environment ...

that emerges at Cape Fear. The lower 50 mi (80 km) of the river is tidal.

Watershed

Northeast Cape Fear River drains of area, receives about 53.8 in/year of precipitation, and has a wetness index of 593.72 and is about 19% forested.

Animals and plants

The river and its valley are home to a variety of interesting and uncommon flora and fauna, including the palmetto,

cypress Cypress is a common name for various coniferous trees or shrubs of northern temperate regions that belong to the family Cupressaceae. The word ''cypress'' is derived from Old French ''cipres'', which was imported from Latin ''cypressus'', the ...

alligator An alligator is a large reptile in the Crocodilia order in the genus ''Alligator'' of the family Alligatoridae. The two extant species are the American alligator (''A. mississippiensis'') and the Chinese alligator (''A. sinensis''). Additiona ...

pileated woodpecker The pileated woodpecker (''Dryocopus pileatus'') is a large, mostly black woodpecker native to North America. An insectivore, it inhabits deciduous forests in eastern North America, the Great Lakes, the boreal forests of Canada, and parts of the ...

venus flytrap The Venus flytrap (''Dionaea muscipula'') is a carnivorous plant native to subtropical wetlands on the East Coast of the United States in North Carolina and South Carolina. It catches its prey—chiefly insects and arachnids—with a trapping ...

, and bowfin.

Bridges

* Isabelle S. Holmes Bridge (

US 74 U.S. Route 74 (US 74) is an east–west United States highway that runs for from Chattanooga, Tennessee to Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina. Primarily in North Carolina, it serves as an important highway from the mountains to the ...

/ NC 133) *

Dan Cameron Bridge The Dan Cameron Bridge is a four-lane automobile bridge spanning the Northeast Cape Fear River Northeast Cape Fear River is a long 5th order tributary to the Cape Fear River in southeastern North Carolina. Variant names According to the Geogr ...

( I-140) * Frank H. Kenan Bridge (

I-40 Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west Interstate Highway running through the south-central portion of the United States. At a length of , it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to ea ...

) * Northeast Cape Fear Bridge (

US 117 U.S. Route 117 (US 117) is a north-south United States Highway located completely within the state of North Carolina. A spur route of US 17, the highway runs for from the Port of Wilmington, south of downtown Wilmington, to US&nb ...

/ NC 133)

References

External links

USGS Water Gauge near Chinquapin, North Carolina

USGS Water Gauge near Burgaw, North Carolina
Rivers of North Carolina Rivers of Wayne County, North Carolina Rivers of Lenoir County, North Carolina Rivers of Pender County, North Carolina Rivers of New Hanover County, North Carolina Tributaries of the Cape Fear River {{NorthCarolina-river-stub