Heavy metal contamination in rivers has become a major issues in recent decades due to their biogeochemical cycling, environmental persistence, and ecological risks. Intensive attention has been given to river sediment contamination but heavy metals in soils and plants along the river ecosystem have been inadequately studied. The results of this research will contribute to a better understanding of heavy metal characteristics, pollution status assessment, affect in river ecosystems, and environmental protection of rivers. A total of 32 soils and 16 dominant plants samples were collected in the riparian of the Fenghe river of Shaanxi Province from the headwater to the river mouth. The spatial distribution, accumulation characteristics, and potential risk of heavy metals in the soils and plants were investigated by measuring total concentrations of Cr, Cu, Mn, Pb, Zn, and Ni in soils and plants via X-Ray fluorescence spectrometry and atomic absorption spectroscopy, GIS mapping, and by analyzing the relationship between heavy metal concentrations in soils and plants. Significant spatial accumulation of Cr, Mn, Pb, Zn, and Ni in soils and plants were found midstream and downstream. The geometrical mean concentrations of Cr, Mn, and Pb in soils were 92.1, 611.1, and 32.9 mg/kg, respectively. The average concentrations of Cr, Mn, and Pb exceeded the corresponding background values of Shaanxi topsoil while the average concentrations of Zn, Cu, and Ni were lower. Taking the China Environmental Quality Standard (GB15618-1995, GradeⅠ) for soils as a reference, the ratio of all the samples in soils above the limit were 75% for Cr, 19% for Cu, 63% for Mn, 25% for Pb, and 6% for Ni, which indicates the pollution characteristics of multi-metals in soils are mainly due to Cr. The Nemero Index showed that the soils in the riparian of the Fenghe River were moderately polluted. The Geo-accumulation Index showed that soils were not polluted with Mn and Zn but there was mild Pb, Ni, Cr, and Cu contamination in some samples. The heavy metal concentrations in plants in the riparian of the Fenghe River had normal distribution. The Cr, Cu, and Ni concentrations of Pb in some samples were above critical values, while the Pb concentrations were high in all samples. The geometrical mean concentrations of Pb in the above-ground biomass, which accumulated to 15.5 mg/kg, was 7-8 times the normal concentrations in plants. This paper did not screen out new plants which satisfied with the standard of hyperaccumulators, but Portulaca oleracea., Artemisia argyi, Phragmites communis, and Polygonum hydropiper grew well and were potentially tolerant species. There were significant positive correlations among the concentrations of Cr, Cu, Zn, Mn, Ni, and Pb in the soils and plants, and the Cr concentrations in soils promoted the accumulation of Ni in the underground biomass. Along with Pb increase in the soil was a corresponding increase in Zn, Mn, and Pb in plant roots. It is necessary to focus on the potential risk of heavy metals for water safety and human health in soils and plants in the riparian of the Fenghe River.