It flows north from Glenshane in the Sperrin Mountains to Lough Foyle, via the settlements of Dungiven, Burnfoot, Limavady and Myroe.
This roughly translates into English as "The River of Rowing", possibly due to common passage by oar-powered boat craft in earlier times.
The river flows most of the way to Limavady through an open, grassy, pastoral farmland landscape before narrowing through a metamorphic rock gorge within the Roe Valley Country Park.
Due to the wide, open nature of the upper reaches of the Roe, heavy rainfall can result in large surges of water or floods.
Many lower lying fields have earth defences to prevent flooding when the river rises above its natural banks.