The Guest River is a short tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 of the Clinch River

Clinch River

The Clinch River rises in Southwest Virginia near Tazewell, Virginia and flows southwest through the Great Appalachian Valley, gathering various tributaries including the Powell River before joining the Tennessee River in East Tennessee.-Course:...

 in southwestern

Southwest Virginia

Southwest Virginia, often abbreviated as SWVA, is a mountainous region of Virginia in the westernmost part of the commonwealth. Southwest Virginia has been defined alternatively as all Virginia counties on the Appalachian Plateau, all Virginia counties west of the Eastern Continental Divide, or...

 Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It is part of the watershed

Drainage basin

A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...

 of the Mississippi River

Mississippi River

The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...

 by way of the Clinch, Tennessee

Tennessee River

The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately 652 miles long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other names...

 and Ohio

Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...

 Rivers. According to the Geographic Names Information System

Geographic Names Information System

The Geographic Names Information System is a database that contains name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features located throughout the United States of America and its territories. It is a type of gazetteer...

, the river has also been known historically as the Guests River.

Course

The Guest River flows for nearly its entire length in Wise County

Wise County, Virginia

Wise County is a county located in the U.S. state of Virginia. In 1856, the county was formed from land taken from Lee, Scott, and Russell Counties. It was named after Henry A. Wise, who was the Governor of Virginia at the time. As of 2010, the population was 41,452, making it the largest...

. It rises in the north-central part of the county and flows initially south-southeastwardly to the city of Norton

Norton, Virginia

Norton is an independent city within the confines of Wise County in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2010 Census, the city population was 3,958, making it the smallest city in the state by population...

; then eastwardly to the town of Coeburn

Coeburn, Virginia

Coeburn is a town in Wise County, Virginia, along the Guest River. The population was 1,996 at the 2000 census with many small peaceful wooded communities in the outskirts. Camping is available nearby at Bark Camp Lake in the Jefferson National Forest with other activities including boating and...

; then southeastwardly for the remainder of its course. It flows into the Clinch on the common boundary of Wise and Scott

Scott County, Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 23,403 people, 9,795 households, and 7,023 families residing in the county. The population density was 44 people per square mile . There were 11,355 housing units at an average density of 21 per square mile...

 Counties. Portions of the river flow through the Jefferson National Forest. The Guest River's lower course below Coeburn is paralleled by the Guest River Gorge Trail, formerly the Interstate Railroad

Interstate Railroad

The Interstate Railroad was a railroad in the southwest part of the U.S. state of Virginia. It extended from the Clinchfield Railroad at Miller Yard in northeastern Scott County north and west to Appalachia and north to the main yard at Andover, with many branches to the north into the mountains...

. The section of river which runs along the Guest River Trial contains multiple class 4 and 5 rapids.