River Hoarwell
Quick Facts
The northern river also called Mitheithel
A river of northern Middle-earth, known in Elvish as the Mitheithel, that rose from a turbulent1 spring among the Ettenmoors, on the lower western slopes of the Misty Mountains. It flowed southwestwards out of the highlands, carving a deep valley for itself as it ran through the lands that formed eastern Arnor (and later Rhudaur).
As it passed to the west of the Trollshaws it met the East-West Road, which crossed it by a stone bridge known as the Last Bridge. From there, its course veered to the south, and it continued until it met the Loudwater (or Bruinen) some hundred miles from the bridge. Between these two rivers, a narrow triangle of land was formed, a region known as the Angle. From that point onward, it was generally known as the Greyflood or Gwathló, and it flowed on southwestwards through Tharbad until it met the Great Sea at the ancient port of Lond Daer. During the earlier part of the Third Age, the southerly banks of the Hoarwell were maintained by engineers from Tharbad, until the influence of the Dúnedain waned.
The Hoarwell was significant in history as the route by which the Fallohide Hobbits found their way into Eriador. Crossing the Misty Mountains near its source, they followed the valley of the river southwards into more hospitable country.
Footnotes
| 1 | The springs of the Hoarwell are not explicitly described, but we can imagine their appearance from the river's name, which means 'pale grey spring'. 'Pale grey' here presumably refers to the churning waters of the river's source. |
|---|
