The Saint John River is one of Liberia's six main rivers, rising in the Guinean highlands and reaching the Atlantic just east of Buchanan. Its broad estuary forms the boundary between the city and the older settler town of Edina, and the area around the mouth is busy with fishing boats and dugout canoes ferrying people between the two banks.
The river itself is navigable for small craft for some way upstream, through low forested country. A short boat trip from the riverbank in Buchanan or Edina makes a pleasant break from the town — the riverbanks are quiet, lined with palms and mangroves, and the bird life is good. Local fishermen will often take visitors out for a small negotiated fee.