Cumberland River Tennessee, where it is joined by the Obey River and Caney Fork. Northeast of Nashville, the river is dammed twice more, forming Cordell Hull Lake and Old Hickory Lake. After flowing through Nashville and picking up the Stones River, the river is dammed to form Cheatham Lake. The river turns northwest toward Clarksville, where it is joined by the Red River, and then flows back into Kentucky at the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area, a section of land nestled between Lake Barkley, which is fed by the Cumberland River, and Kentucky Lake. Finally, the river flows north and
Big South Fork of the Cumberland River groups. The first is primarily made up of Ramsey, Hartsells, Grimsley, and Gilpin soils and is located adjacent to the river gorge. The second consists of Hartsells, Lonewood, Ramsey, and Gilpin soils and is found on the nearby plateau. The river draws water from a drainage basin of Carboniferous rock in the Cumberland Plateau. Taken together, the Big South Fork and its tributaries drain between and , of which about 17% is covered by the associated National Recreation Area. The maximum recorded water flow on the Big South Fork was , the minimum recorded was , and the river averages