How Many Rivers Flow North?
Unless the land it totally flat, rivers of water run downhill. The vast percentage of rivers on the planet flow in a southerly direction because the source (usually in the mountains) is to the north of the mouth. If the source of a river is at a higher elevation than the mouth, that river will run from the source to the mouth. However, if that (higher) source is to the south of the mouth, that river will then flow to the north (downhill). Below is a partial list of rivers (length listed when known) that do just that. I haven’t listed rivers that run to the northwest, or rivers that don’t meet the exact requirements. Athabasca Alberta, Canada, 765 miles Bann Northern Ireland Bighorn Wyoming and Montana, USA, 336 miles Cauca Colombia, 597 miles Deschutes Oregon, USA, 250 miles Eel Northern California, USA, 78 miles Erne Ireland and Northern Ireland, 60 miles Essequibo Guyana, 600 miles Genesee New York, USA, 144 miles Jordan Utah, USA, 45 miles Lena Russian Federation, 2735 miles Little
