Uttara Kannada is a district in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is sometimes called North Canara, or North Kanara. It is bounded on the northwest by the state of Goa, on the north by Belgaum district, on the northeast by Dharwad district, on the east by Haveri district, on the southeast by Shimoga district, on the south by Udupi district, and on the west by the Arabian Sea. The district has an area of 10291 sq. km., and a population of 1,353,299 (2001 census), a 10.90% increase since the 1991 census. The town of Karwar is the administrative headquarters of the district.

The main geographic feature of the district is the Western Ghats or Sayadhri range, which runs from north to south through the district. Between the Sayadhris and the sea is a narrow coastal strip, known as the Payanghat, which varies from 8 to 24 km. in width. Behind the coastal plain are flat-topped hills from 60 to 100 meters in height, and behind the hills are the ridges and peaks of the Sayadhris. East of the Sayadhris is the Balaghat upland, part of the vast Deccan plateau.



Moisture-bearing winds come from the west, and yearly rainfall averages 3000 mm. on the coast, and as high as 5000 mm on the west-facing slopes of the Sayadhris. East of the crest is the rain shadow of the Sayadhris, which receive as little as 1000 mm annually. Much of the rain falls in the June-September monsoon.

Four principal rivers drain westwards from the crest of the Sayadhris to the sea; from north to south they are the Kali, Gungawali, Tadri and Sharavati. These rivers form numerous waterfalls, the most famous of which is Jog falls, on upper reaches of the Sharavati in neighboring Shimoga district. Other famous waterfalls include Lushington falls, where the river Aghanashini drops 116 meters, Magod falls, where the Bedti river plunges 180 meters in two leaps, Shivganga falls, where the river Souda drops 74 meters, and Lalguli and Mailmane falls on the river Kali. In the lowlands, these rivers form wide estuaries, extending several kilometers inland from the coast.