Muddy Branch is a
tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...
stream
A stream is a continuous body of water, body of surface water Current (stream), flowing within the stream bed, bed and bank (geography), banks of a channel (geography), channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a stream ...
of the
Potomac River
The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Augus ...
in
Montgomery County,
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
, United States, located about northwest of
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
Course
The
headwaters
The headwaters of a river or stream is the farthest place in that river or stream from its estuary or downstream confluence with another river, as measured along the course of the river. It is also known as a river's source.
Definition
The ...
of the stream originate in
Gaithersburg
Gaithersburg ( ), officially the City of Gaithersburg, is a city in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. At the time of the 2020 U.S. Census, Gaithersburg had a population of 69,657, making it the ninth-largest location in the state. Ga ...
, and the stream flows southwest for ,
[U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data]
The National Map
accessed August 15, 2011 through Muddy Branch Park and Blockhouse Point Conservation Park, under the
Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, abbreviated as the C&O Canal and occasionally called the "Grand Old Ditch," operated from 1831 until 1924 along the Potomac River between Washington, D.C. and Cumberland, Maryland. It replaced the Potomac Canal, wh ...
near Pennyfield Lock, to the Potomac River.
Tributaries
*Decoverly Tributary
*Dufief Tributary
*Lakes Tributary
*Pennyfield Lock Tributary
*Potomac Grove Tributary
*Query Mill Tributary
*Quince Orchard Knolls Tributary
*Rich Branch
*Route 28 Tributary
Recreation
Parts of Muddy Branch flow through Blockhouse Point Conservation Park and the Muddy Branch Stream Valley Park. The
Muddy Branch Greenway Trail
The Muddy Branch Greenway Trail is a long natural surface trail that runs from the Potomac River to Darnestown Road in Montgomery County, MD. The trail runs near the course of Muddy Branch, a tributary stream of the Potomac River that originat ...
is a long natural surface trail that runs from the
Potomac River
The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Augus ...
to
Darnestown Road.
along Muddy Branch. There is a boat ramp on Muddy Branch just before it goes under the C & O canal that can be used by small boats (such as canoes and kayaks) to access the Potomac River.
Gaithersburg, Maryland
Gaithersburg ( ), officially the City of Gaithersburg, is a city in Montgomery County, Maryland, Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. At the time of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census, Gaithersburg had a population of 69,657, ...
See also
*
List of Maryland rivers
List of rivers of Maryland (U.S. state).
The list is arranged by drainage basin from east to west, with respective tributaries indented under each larger stream's name and ordered from downstream to upstream.
By drainage basin
Delaware River
*C ...
References
External links
Muddy Branch and Watts Branch Subwatersheds Implementation Plan (2012)- Montgomery County Department of Environmental Protection
Muddy Branch Alliance- Community watershed group
Rivers of Montgomery County, Maryland
Tributaries of the Potomac River
Rivers of Maryland
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