Apalachicola River

Apalachicola River
Map of the Apalachicola River watershed showing the two main tributaries, the Chattahoochee River (left) and the Flint River (right).
Location
CountryUnited States
StateFlorida
Physical characteristics
SourceLake Seminole
  locationChattahoochee, Florida
  coordinates30°42′31″N 84°51′50″W / 30.7086°N 84.8639°W / 30.7086; -84.8639
  elevation75 ft (23 m)
MouthGulf of Mexico
  location
Apalachicola, Florida
  coordinates
29°43′27″N 84°58′39″W / 29.7243°N 84.9776°W / 29.7243; -84.9776
  elevation
0 ft (0 m)
Length160 mi (260 km)
Basin size19,500 sq mi (51,000 km2)
Discharge 
  average19,602 cu ft/s (555.1 m3/s)

The Apalachicola River /æpəlæɪˈklə/ is a river, approximately 160 miles (260 km) long, in the state of Florida. The river's large watershed, known as the Apalachicola, Chattahoochee and Flint (ACF) River Basin, drains an area of approximately 19,500 square miles (50,500 km2) into the Gulf of Mexico. The distance to its farthest head waters (as the Chattahoochee River) in northeast Georgia is approximately 500 miles (800 km). Its name comes from Apalachicola Province, an association of Native American towns located on what is now the Chattahoochee River. The Spanish included what is now called the Chattahoochee River as part of one river, calling all of it from its origins in the southern Appalachian foothills down to the Gulf of Mexico the Apalachicola.