Vales of Anduin

The Lands of the River

On and on the River Anduin flows, from its cold springs in the wastelands of the far north down to the warm lands of Gondor in the south. It runs for nearly five hundred leagues from source to mouth, and holds half the Wild in its mighty grasp.

Its northern part is named by some the White Anduin, because of its many rapids and fast current. South of the forest of Lórien it becomes the Green Anduin. Where the River plunges over the Falls of Rauros and joins with the waters of the Entwash it is called the Brown Anduin, and it is the Blue Anduin whence it passes the port of Pelargir in the southern lands of Gondor.

However, our tales do not take us there, for the full tale of the history of the Great River would be far longer than the river itself. For now, we consider only the region between Mirkwood and the Misty Mountains, lands known as the Vales of Anduin.

Those who dwell in the Vale

Anduin could be called the River of Men, as Men have thrived in the lands watered by it for many ages of the world. Few Elves ever settled along its banks — most of the Fair Folk crossed the river and continued west over the mountains; some lingered east in Mirkwood, and others stopped to dwell in the woods of Lórien, where the Silverlode flows into the Anduin.

Dwarves have little love for the Great River. Its waters are too deep and fierce. They delight in underground rills, in fast-flowing mountain streams that can drive millwheels or be channelled into reservoirs and mirror-smooth lakes. Most of all, they love rivers that are shallow, for Dwarves cannot swim and have a great dread of drowning.

For Orcs and the other creatures of the Enemy, the Great River has long been a barrier. In the south, in Gondor, it girds the citadel of Minas Tirith, and the enemy dares not traverse it. In the north, the Goblins of the Misty Mountains avoid crossing the Anduin where possible. When they marched to war at the Battle of Five Armies, they went north around the springs of the river instead of daring to ford the river.

Other, stranger folk know the river too. In Rohan and other places, tales are told of the Shepherds of the Trees who dwell in the Forest of Fangorn, and who, in ages past, would come down to the banks of the Anduin to drink its waters and listen to its song. It is said that the river brought tidings from the forests of the north to the Ents, carrying the words of mountain pines and ash.

Hobbits, too, once lived along the Great River. Few now remember them, save as creatures out of legend. The holebuilders dug into the sandy banks of the Nether Vales, and made their homes there. Some of these Hobbits migrated west over the Mountains, and eventually settled in the Shire. Others vanished into the Wild. Hobbits (even ones not wearing magic rings) are very good at going unseen when they want to, and wild Hobbits doubly so. There might still be Hobbits in Rhovanion, nervous and fearful as rabbits, hidden from the sight of Men and Elves alike.

"For Nimrodel flows into SIlverlode, that the Elves call Celebrant, and Celebrant into Anduin the Great, and Anduin flows into the Bay of Belfalas whence the Elves of Lorien set sail."

Included Locations

• East Anduin Vales
• East Middle Vales
• East Nether Vales
• East Upper Vales
• Gladden Fields
• West Anduin Vales
• West Middle Vales
• West Nether Vales
• West Upper Vales