The New River Gorge Bridge is pretty amazing (and we know, we’re biased).  But did you know that the river that runs beneath it is pretty unique too? Here are 5 facts that you should know about the New River.

• The river begins in western North Carolina, in Ashe County.  From there it flows through Virginia into West Virginia, where eventually it becomes a tributary for the Kanawha River.  The river is around 320 miles long.

• The New River is old.  As in somewhere between 10 and 360 million years old.  That makes it one of the oldest rivers in the world.  Many believe that it is certainly the oldest river in the United States.

• Interestingly, the New River flows primarily from south to north.  Only a handful of rivers in the world have this unique feature, including the Nile.

• The New was designated a national river in 1978 and is part of the United States National Park Service.  In 1998, it was designated an American Heritage River.

• The first commercial rafting trip on the New took place in 1968.  The Dragan brothers started it all when they founded Wildwater Unlimited.  After that many of the outfitterswidl you know today started running the river.

What else should people know about the New River?