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Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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I think Pittsburgh has the most iconic River City setting with downtown framed like the bow of ship at the confluence. The vintage bridges add a lot to the aesthetic of the city, and it's a very good looking city.
For a big broad & mighty river with impressive width and influence on the city, you can't top New Orleans.
Honorable mention to Albuquerque's Rio Grande bosque. The built urban environment around it hasn't interfered with its natural river setting with a beautiful strip of cottonwood forest abutting the river banks.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mighty Joe Young
Naturally, City-Data sleeps on Omaha.
I walked around Omaha when visiting and I was pleasantly surprised how nice the parkland and landscaping was around the waterfront on the Missouri River. Definitely an underrated gem.
Last edited by Champ le monstre du lac; 05-18-2022 at 07:26 PM..
The City Limits of Buffalo is 23% water, and include offshore Lake Erie, along with the Niagara River, Buffalo River, creeks, channels, and canals. Once cut off almost entirely by industry (freighters still utilize the waterways), almost the entire lakeshore and riverfront are now lined with apartments, marinas, bike paths, beaches, and other recreational uses.
The Buffalo River winds through the city just south of Downtown, and is undergoing a massive transformation from purely isolated industries, and has been reclaimed and is now part of the Buffalo Blueway, with new residential, parklands, boating, kayaking, entertainment, and other recreational facilities like the Riverworks complex.
Downtown, the Buffalo River converges with the City Ship Canal and Lake Erie to form the Inner Harbor area, which includes Canalside, the last stop of the old Erie Canal, that include hotels, parks, docks, restaurants, museums, and other recreational uses at the site, adjacent to HarborCenter and Key Bank Center Arena. Just past Canalside, as Lake Erie flows into the Niagara River, is the Naval and Servicemen's Park and Erie Basin Marina, where the Waterfront Village lies between the river and downtown.
Lake Erie narrows as it approaches Buffalo, and just south of downtown are the Outer Harbor areas of the city, and include Tifft Farms Nature Preserve, Times Beach Nature Preserve, Buffalo Harbor State Park, Gallagher Pier and Beach, Wilkeson Point, and miles of walking and biking trails, water access, parkland, thousands of boat docks, and summer-long scheduled events and concerts on the lakefront.
As Lake Erie flows into the Niagara River, the Bird Island Pier separates the river from the Black Rock Canal, which allows boats as large as lake freighters to avoid the strong currents (and low railroad bridge) of the Niagara. LaSalle Park and Front Park lie above the bluffs on the canal side, while Broderick Park (last stop of the Underground Railroad) and Unity Park on Unity Island overlooks the Niagara and Canada. The Black Rock Canal include the home of the West Side Rowing Club, that hosts his school and collegiate rowing events, along with Buffalo Yacht Club and Navy Officers Club. Past Unity Island, the river grows calmer and wider, over 1 mile, and becomes popular with recreational boaters and fisherman for many more miles as it surrounds Grand Island before converging again just before Niagara Falls.
Of course, outside the city limits of Buffalo are many, many more water related activities than just in the city alone.
Not the US, but Canada's generally allowed on this forum and so wanted to mention what might be the ultimate river city, Montreal. It's a city situated on islands in the middle of a river as part of an archipelago of islands at the confluence of two rivers. The riverfront's pretty well-used by the public with ferries, marinas, beaches, and parks along with piers that have some venues and bits. It's also still a working riverport so that's pretty neat. It also hasn't covered too much of the riverfront with freeways so being along the river is pretty pleasant.
Also, there's even some pretty exciting standing wave surfing:
La Grande OR if you are looking for a quite, relatively small place. John Day OR for a very small place. Prineville Oregon. St. Maries ID. Orofino ID. Salmon ID. Great Falls MT for a moderate sized place. Thompson Falls MT. Billings MT. Wenatchee WA. Canon City CO. Craig CO. Cody WY. Evanston WY. Douglas WY. Lots of smaller places in Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Could think of more if you are after a living place and set a population size range and say how much winter, if any, you want.
Manchester TN may not qualify as a special river city but it should be fairly affordable. Storms and sun enough for you? You decide.
Last edited by NW Crow; 05-23-2022 at 06:55 PM..
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