Walnut Creek (Neuse River tributary)

Walnut Creek is a 17.93 mi (28.86 km) long 4th order tributary to the Neuse River in Wake County. Its source is a small pond near WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, and it flows generally eastward through several small reservoirs, including Lake Cramer in Cary as well as Lake Johnson and Lake Raleigh in Raleigh, before reaching its confluence with the Neuse just south of Poole Road in East Raleigh. The course of the creek closely parallels Interstate 40, running mostly along the north side of the freeway.

Walnut Creek
Tributary to Neuse River
Location of Walnut Creek mouth
Walnut Creek (Neuse River tributary) (the United States)
Location
CountryUnited States
StateNorth Carolina
CountyWake
CitiesCary
Raleigh
Physical characteristics
Sourcedivide between Walnut Creek and Crabtree Creek
 • locationCary, North Carolina
 • coordinates35°47′22″N 078°45′17″W[1]
 • elevation485 ft (148 m)[2]
MouthNeuse River
 • location
Raleigh, North Carolina
 • coordinates
35°45′03″N 078°31′55″W[1]
 • elevation
151 ft (46 m)[1]
Length17.93 mi (28.86 km)[3]
Basin size45.98 square miles (119.1 km2)[4]
Discharge 
 • locationNeuse River
 • average49.58 cu ft/s (1.404 m3/s) at mouth with Neuse River[4]
Basin features
Progressioneast
River systemNeuse River
Tributaries 
 • leftSimmons Branch
Rocky Branch
 • rightWildcat Branch
Big Branch
WaterbodiesLake Johnson
Lake Raleigh

The Walnut Creek Trail, a branch of the Capital Area Greenway, follows the length of Walnut Creek from Lake Johnson to its confluence, and is the second longest trail in the Greenway System. A large swampy wetland (which has been partially reclaimed by urban development), occupies the area around the last several miles of the creek; the Walnut Creek Wetland Center, operated by Raleigh Parks and Recreation, is dedicated to the study and preservation of the wetlands. The Coastal Credit Union Music Park, commonly known by its original name of Walnut Creek Amphitheater, is located near the wetland area near where the creek passes under the I-40/I-440 interchange.

Variant names

According to the Geographic Names Information System, it has also been known historically as:[1]

  • Wall-nut Tree Creek

Course

Walnut Creek rises in a pond in Cary, North Carolina in Wake County and then flows east to meet through Cary and Raleigh to join the Neuse River.[2] Walnut Creek drains most of the southern areas of Raleigh, North Carolina.

Watershed

Walnut Creek drains 45.98 square miles (119.1 km2) of area and is underlaid by a number of geologic formations on its course east. These include the Carolina terrane, Crabtree terrane, Falls Leucogneiss, Raleigh terrane, and the Rolesville Batholith.[5] The watershed receives about 46.8 in/year of precipitation, has a wetness index of 429.16 and is about 22% forested.[4]

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References
  1. "GNIS Detail - Walnut Creek". geonames.usgs.gov. US Geological Survey. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  2. "Walnut Creek Topo Map, Wake County NC (Raleigh East Area)". TopoZone. Locality, LLC. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  3. "ArcGIS Web Application". epa.maps.arcgis.com. US EPA. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  4. "Walnut Creek Watershed Report". Waters Geoviewer. US EPA. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  5. "Generalized Bedrock Geologic Map of Wake County, North Carolina" (PDF). County of Wake. Wake County, North Carolina. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
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