Lehigh River

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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 smaller tributaries, is a designated Pennsylvania Scenic River.

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.

See also

• Lehigh Canal
• List of Pennsylvania rivers
• Pennsylvania Real Time River Flows from the USGS
• Rafting

External links

• U.S. Geological Survey: PA stream gaging stations
• Lehigh River Watershed Conservation Management Plan
• Lehigh River and Canal at Jim Thorpe
• Lehigh River Fly Fishing Adventures
• Lehigh River Sojourn
• Lehigh River Watershed Association
• Lehigh River Water Trail
• Lehigh River Whitewater
• Lehigh River Whitewater Rafting
• Lehigh River Scenic River Corridor

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Last updated on Tuesday January 29, 2008 at 16:28:47 PST (GMT -0800)
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