The Eagle River is a small river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

 on the Keweenaw Peninsula

Keweenaw Peninsula

The Keweenaw Peninsula is the northern-most part of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It projects into Lake Superior and was the site of the first copper boom in the United States. As of the 2000 census, its population was roughly 43,200...

 of the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Michigan

Michigan

Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....

. The river flows into Lake Superior

Lake Superior

Lake Superior is the largest of the five traditionally-demarcated Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded to the north by the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Minnesota, and to the south by the U.S. states of Wisconsin and Michigan. It is the largest freshwater lake in the...

 in the community of Eagle River

Eagle River, Michigan

Eagle River is an unincorporated community in the U.S. state of Michigan and is the county seat of Keweenaw County.The community is on M-26 on the north side of the Keweenaw Peninsula, which projects into Lake Superior. It is about 27 miles northeast of Houghton and is situated in the northwest...

. Most of the river lies within Houghton Township

Houghton Township, Michigan

Houghton Township is a civil township of Keweenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 204 at the 2000 census. The township includes a portion of the Keweenaw Peninsula and also the northern half of Isle Royale.-Geography:...

.

The main branch of the river is formed at the confluence of its East Branch and its West Branch at the community of Phoenix

Phoenix, Michigan

Phoenix is an unincorporated community in Keweenaw County, Michigan, United States. Phoenix lies at the junction of M-26 and US 41. Phoenix lies about two miles south of Eagle River, Michigan, near the shores of Lake Superior.-Copper:...

, about two miles southeast of its mouth, and parallels Michigan Route 26

M-26 (Michigan highway)

M-26 is a state trunkline highway in the U.S. state of Michigan, running from two miles east of Rockland to its junction with US Highway 41 in Copper Harbor. It generally runs southwest-to-northeast in the western half or Michigan's Upper Peninsula...

 from Phoenix into Eagle River.
The east and west branches each run along the south side of the Cliff Range to meet in Phoenix and flow through a gap in the Cliff Range. The west branch rises about three miles southwest of Phoenix in northeastern Allouez Township

Allouez Township, Michigan

Allouez Township is a civil township of Keweenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 1,584.-Communities:The village of Ahmeek is the only incorporated municipality in the township...

. Cliff Drive runs alongside the river, and is joined by U.S. Highway 41 and Michigan Route 26 about a mile and a quarter southeast of Phoenix. The only significant tributary on the west branch is Brodie Creek, which rises a bit further inland from the Cliff Range and enters the west branch just outside of Phoenix.

The east branch rises out of Beaver Pond about five miles east of Phoenix. It flows west along the south side of the Cliff Range, paralleled by US 41. The only significant tributary of the east branch is Buffalo Creek, which enters about three miles east of Phoenix.