Lehigh River Overview

Lehigh River

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lehigh River
Lehigh River near Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania
Country	United States
State	Pennsylvania
Counties	Wayne, Lackawanna, Monroe, Luzerne, Carbon, Lehigh, Northampton
Major cities	Lehighton, Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton
Length	103 mi (166 km)
Watershed	1,345 sq mi (3,484 km²)
Discharge at	Glendon
- average	3,740 cu ft/s (106 m³/s)
- maximum	11,700 cu ft/s (331 m³/s)
- minimum	1,160 cu ft/s (33 m³/s)
Discharge elsewhere
- Stoddartsville	280 cu ft/s (8 m³/s)
Source	Pocono Peak Lake
- location	Lehigh Township, Wayne County, Pennsylvania, USA
- coordinates	41°16′42″N 75°24′22″W / 41.27833, -75.40611
- elevation	2,056 ft (627 m)
Mouth	Delaware River
- location	Easton, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, USA
- coordinates	40°41′20″N 75°12′17″W / 40.68889, -75.20472
- elevation	160 ft (49 m)
Major tributaries
- left	Tobyhanna Creek, Pohopoco Creek, Aquashicola Creek, Hokendauqua Creek, Monocacy Creek
- right	North Bear Creek, Nesquehoning Creek, Mauch Chuck Creek, Mahoning Creek, Lizard Creek, Jordan Creek, Saucon Creek
Lehigh River watershed

The Lehigh River, a tributary of the Delaware River, is a 103 mile (166 km) long river located in eastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. Part of the Lehigh, along with a number of its tributaries, is designated a Pennsylvania Scenic River by the state's Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. "Lehigh" is an Anglicization of the Lenni Lenape name for the river, "Lechewuekink," meaning "where there are forks."

The river flows in a highly winding course through valleys between ridges of the Appalachian Mountains. Its upper course is characterized by numerous whitewater rapids and supports a broad range of recreational pursuits including whitewater rafting, kayaking and canoeing. Its lower course forms the heart of the Lehigh Valley, an historically important anthracite coal and steel-producing region of Pennsylvania.

The river rises in the Pocono Mountains of northeastern Pennsylvania, in several ponds in southwestern Wayne County, approximately 15 miles (24 km) southeast of Scranton. It flows initially southwest, through southern Lackawanna County, through Francis E. Walter Reservoir. Near White Haven, Middleburg, it turns south, following a zigzag whitewater course through Lehigh Gorge State Park to Jim Thorpe, then southeast, past Lehighton. Southeast of Lehighton, it passes through Blue Mountain in a narrow opening called the Lehigh Gap.

From the Lehigh Gap, the river flows southeast to Allentown, where it is joined by the Little Lehigh Creek, then northeast past Bethlehem, where it joins the Delaware River in Easton, along Pennsylvania's border with New Jersey.