Q: Where is Rivendell in Middle-earth?
ANSWER: People ask where Rivendel is located in Middle-earth for many different reasons. Some people get confused by the geography of the story in either The Hobbit or The Lord of the Rings. Some people are curious about the overall landscape of Middle-earth and lose track of where Rivendell (also known as Imladris) is positioned on the highly detailed maps in the books.
Within the context of the story, Rivendell (Imladris) lies about 3-350 miles to the east of the Shire, the homeland of the Hobbits. Frodo and his companies travel in a generally eastward direction from his home in Hobbiton to the Buckland, southeast from Buckland to Tom Bombadil’s house, northeast from Bombadil’s house to Bree, and then eastward from Bree to Rivendell.
Boromir starts out in Gondor and heads west along the north side of the White Mountains (Ered Nimrais) until he reaches Rohan. He follows the curve of the mountains west until he reaches the Gap of Rohan between the Ered Nimrais and the southern end of the Misty Mountains (Hithaeglir). Crossing the Isen river, Boromir passes north into Enedwaith, a land between the Misty Mountains and the sea. Boromir follows an ancient road north to the river Gwathlo and there he crosses the river at Tharbad, once an important town.
From Tharbad Boromir wanders in a generally northeastern direction until he finds Rivendell nestled in the western valleys of the northern Misty Mountains.
Gloin and his son Gimli live in Erebor, which lies hundreds of miles east of the Misty Mountains. Although Tolkien does not say how they would have reached Rivendell, it seems likely they would have travelled around the north side of Mirkwood until they reached the land of the Beornings, and from there would have taken the old road east across the Anduin river and then west into the Misty Mountains.
Legolas lived in northern Mirkwood near the Kingdoms of Dale and Erebor. His people maintained a road through the forest at least to the border of their realm but possibly extending to the western edge of the forest. Legolas most likely followed this path to the land of the Beornings, where he would then probably have followed the same route Gloin and Gimli took to reach Rivendell.
The Rangers — Aragorn’s people, also known as the Dunedain of the North and the Dunedain of Arnor — apparently lived just south of Rivendell in the land called the Angle. This was a region of woodlands running south along the edge of the Misty Mountains between two rivers, the Mitheithel and Bruinen. The two rivers became the Gwathlo when they joined together.
Rivendell’s western border appears to be guarded by the river Bruinen. There is no bridge across the river but it can easily be forded. The “valley” itself seems more likely to be the first in a series of valleys between foothills of the Misty Mountains that are connected to each other. At one time many Elves lived there but by the time of the War of the Ring Elrond appears to have relatively few people left with him. He says he can no longer raise an army.
See Also:
How Many Elves Lived in Rivendell?
Who Were the Rivendell Elves Living with Elrond?
Who In Rivendell Had Power against the Nazgûl?
Where Does Elrond Live and Who Does Elrond Live With?
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