lost river
Stream goes underground
A lost river is a stream that disappears underground, typically flowing into porous limestone or lava formations before reemerging elsewhere or joining subterranean waterways.
The term appears in place names across regions with karst topography: The Lost River in West Virginia vanishes into caves for several miles.
Some lost rivers never resurface, their waters absorbed into aquifers.
- caveUnderground hollow in rock
- cave systemInterconnected underground passages
- subterraneanBeneath earth's surface
- underground streamWater flowing beneath earth's surface
- sinkholeUnderground collapse crater
watercourse · karst · conduit · streambed · resurgence · speleology · limestone · geology · spring · channel · sacred site · Native American · disappearing act · vanishing point · percolation · folklore · impermanence · natural wonder