Gandaki River

The Kali Gandaki or Gandaki River is one of the major rivers of Nepal and a left bank tributary of the Ganges in India. It is also called Krishna Gandaki in Nepal. It has a total catchment area of 46,300 square kilometers (17,900 sq mi), most of it in Nepal. The basin also contains 3 of the world's 14 highest mountains over 8,000m, the three being Dhaulagiri I, Manaslu and Annapurna I.Dhaulagiri I is the highest point of the Gandaki basin.The river is called Sapta (seven) Gandaki for seven tributaries rising in the Himalaya or further north along the main Ganges-Brahmaputra divide. These are called Daraudi, Seti, Madi, Kali, Marsyandi, Budhi, and Trisuli.

The Kali Gandaki river source is at the border with Tibet at an altitude of 6,268 m (20,564 ft) at the Nhubine Himal Glacier in the Mustang region of Nepal.  The headwaters stream on some maps is named the Chhuama Khola and then, nearing Lo Manthang, the Nhichung Khola or Choro Khola. The Kali Gandaki then flows southwest through a sheer-sided. In Kagbeni a major tributary named Johng Khola or Kak Khola descends from Muktinath.The river then flows southward through a steep gorge known as the Kali Gandaki Gorge, between the mountains Dhaulagiri (8167 m) to the west and Annapurna I (8091 m) to the east. If one measures the depth of a canyon by the difference between the river height and the heights of the highest peaks on either side. The portion of the river directly between Dhaulagiri and Annapurna I is at an elevation of 2520 metres, 5571 metres lower than Annapurna I. The river is older than the Himalayas.

South of the gorge, the river is joined by Rahughat Khola at Galeshwor, Myagdi Khola at Beni, Modi Khola near Kushma and Badigaad at Rudrabeni above Ridi Bazaar. The river then turns east to run along the northern edge of the Mahabharat Range. The largest hydroelectricity project in Nepal is located along this stretch of the river. Turning south again and breaking through the Mahabharats, Kali Gandaki is then joined by a major tributary, Trishuli at Devighat,The trisuli river is already mixed with five tibutaries named budugandaki, marshyandi, daraudi, seti and madi, then by the (East) Rapti draining the Inner Terai valley known as Chitawan. The Gandaki then crosses the outermost foothills of the Himalayas—Sivalik Hills—into the Terai plains of Nepal. From Devighat, the river flows southwest of Gaindakot town and is known as Narayani or Sapt Gandaki.