The same prominent north-south lineament extends toward the north and is occupied by Buckquarter Creek. This sharp angle bend coincides with the Eno encountering a prominent linear feature (a lineament) visible on the LiDAR map ( pl.
![fews ford eno river fews ford eno river](https://live.staticflickr.com/106/367353246_178664def1_b.jpg)
However, at Few’s Mill in Eno River State Park, the Eno River abruptly bends toward the south at a sharp angle. This section of the Eno appears to follow the dominant structure of the underlying rock parallel to the major trend (northeast-southwest trend) of the rocks, with minor deflections as the river follows small-scale fractures and joints. The section of the Eno River from the town of Hillsborough to just west of the Few’s Mill area flows in a general northeast direction with many small-scale kinks and bends. In the Eno River area, most geologic structures (such as layering, joints and foliation) are oriented in a northeast-southwest trend – parallel to the trend of the entire Appalachian Mountains. A close examination of the course of the Eno River reveals many kinks and abrupt bends. When geologic structures like joints and faults intersect, the flow path of rivers and streams may form kinks or abrupt bends at sharp angles. Running water likes to take the “path of least resistance” and will flow into zones that are easier to erode. Zones where pre-existing fractures, joints and faults are present within rock may be more easily eroded. Geologic structures commonly control the orientations, patterns and local gradients of streams and rivers. Some of these geologic structures include joints, layering, faults, fractures and foliations.
![fews ford eno river fews ford eno river](https://withloveturtledove.files.wordpress.com/2018/04/screenshot_20180415-124209_gallery-e1523810648245.jpg)
Rivers and streams typically follow the geologic structure or grain (like the grain in wood) of the rocks that they flow over. The faulted rock is weaker and easier to erode causing that north-south segment to be the preferred flow path of the river. The Eno River flows into an extinct geologic fault that formed more than 200 million years ago during the break-up of Pangea. Why does the course of the Eno River change direction and begin flowing in a north-south direction just east of Cox Mountain?