river rising in the Nantahala Mountains southwest of Asheville, North Carolina, U.S., near the border between Georgia and North Carolina. It flows 40 miles (64 km) north through Nantahala National Forest. Nantahala Dam (1942) impounds Nantahala Lake, sometimes called Aquone Lake. Farther north, the river cuts a scenic gorge 8 miles (13 km) long with sides up to 2,000 feet (600 metres) high. Nantahala Gorge is the subject of many Cherokee legends; its name is derived from a term meaning “the place where only the noonday sun can shine.” The river empties into Fontana Lake on the Little Tennessee River.