Ardèche (river)

The Ardèche () is a long river in south-central France, a right-bank tributary of the River Rhône. The river gives its name to the French department of Ardèche.
Geography.
The Ardèche river has a length of and a drainage basin with an area of approximately .
Its average yearly discharge (volume of water which passes through a section of the river per unit of time) is 64.8 cubic metres per second at Saint-Martin-d'Ardèche in the Gard department.
Course.
The Ardèche river starts in the Massif Central, within the "Parc naturel régional des Monts d'Ardèche" ("Regional nature park Mountains of Ardèche"), in the "commune" of Astet (Ardèche department), at an elevation of about .
It then flows roughly to the southwest and, after the towns of Aubenas and Ruoms, it gets into its famous gorge (or canyon) below Vallon-Pont-d’Arc.
The valley of the Ardèche is very scenic, in particular a section known as the Ardèche Gorges (or the Canyon of Ardèche). The walls of the river here are limestone cliffs up to high. A kayak and camping trip down the gorge is not technically difficult and is very popular in the summer. The most famous feature is a natural stone arch across the river known as the Pont d'Arc.
Finally, the river flows into the Rhône river, on the right side, near the "commune" Pont-Saint-Esprit, Gard department.
Communes.
The Ardèche passes through the following regions, departments and communes:
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Occitanie
Main tributaries.
The main tributaries of the Ardeche river are:
Left tributaries:
Right tributaries: