Susquehanna River Water Trail
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9feb21-20pg-12x13-cx2.qxp_Layout 1 2/10/21 3:10 PM Page 1 A Paddler’s Map & Guide Susquehanna River Water Trail – North Branch Includes the Great Bend area, and from Sayre, PA to the confluence with the Susquehanna River Amanda Kovalick West Branch at Northumberland 9feb21-20pg-12x13-cx2.qxp_Layout 1 2/10/21 3:10 PM Page 2 Owego 86 TIOGA Elmira CHEMUNG 17 Binghamton 81 17 17 BROOME Susquehanna River North Branch Water Trail 2 NEW YORK 2 Little PENNSYLVANIA Meadows Sayre Hallstead 1 Table of Contents The INDEX MAP shows the location of the 0 5 10 Kilometer SSaltlt Friendsville Starrucca water trail, which is divided into 14 sections. 0 2 4 6 Mile Spring Water Trail Index Map 2 220 State WAYNE Individual SECTION MAPS show major roads, Thompson Enjoying the River’s Heritage 3-4 Rome Park Roseville county boundaries, boat access areas, river Le Montrose 12°32' Raysville Planning Your Trip 5 True True North Magnetic North obstructions, portages, and public lands, 3 Camping, Outfitters, Water Level 6 6 Towanda SUSQUEHANNA including state parks and game lands. 6 Trip List with Points of Interest 7-11 Descriptive text provides information on 81 River Access & Services Chart 12-15 Hop river navigation, points of interest and Monroe 4 Bottom Water Trail Resources 16-17 emergency services. Forest 6 City Paddling Safety & Camping Tips 18 220 Wyalusing Magnetic Declination Laceyville Vandling Boating Regulations 19 INSET MAPS that accompany several Nicholson Lackawanna increasing 1' annually 5 Meshoppen (as of 1 May 2007) New State of the section maps provide more detailed Albany Park Factoryville Carbondale List of Section Maps (and Communities) information on access sites and portage areas. 6 6 Dalton (Printed on water resistant paper) WYOMING Dushore Tunkhannock LACKAWANNA Blakely Best Practices for Paddling STATE FOREST Clarks Dickson 6 WYOMING 7 Summit 1: Great Bend (Susquehanna Depot, Hallstead, TIADAGHTON Forksville City • Be prepared — make sure you have all STATE Great Bend) World’s End necessary boating and camping equipment FOREST State Park Laporte 476 Scranton 2: Tioga Point (Sayre, Athens, Ulster) for your trip. Frances 92 Eagles 81 84 Mere Slocum 3: Towanda (Towanda, Wysox) SULLIVAN Harveys State Park 380 • Follow boating safety regulations and tips. Ricketts 8 Lake Moscow Glen 4: French Azilum /Wyalusing Rocks (Wyalusing) See pages 18-19 for information on State Pittston Park 5: Indian Hill (Laceyville, Meshoppen) PADDLING & BOATING SAFETY and Wilkes- BOATING REGULATIONS. Williamsport LUZERNE 6: Vosburg Neck (Mehoopany, Tunkhannock) Hughesville Barre 180 7: Falls (Osterhout, West Falls, Harding) • Practice good stewardship — the North LYCOMING Benton Nanticoke Muncy New Branch is ecologically important, both locally Columbus Montgomery 476 8: Pittston (Upper Wyoming Valley, West Pittston) Stillwater and in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Shickshinny Nescopeck MONROE 9: Wilkes-Barre (Central Wyoming Valley, Kingston) Millville State Park Penn Follow the LEAVE NO TRACE practices COLUMBIA Lake Turbotville Park 10: Nanticoke (Lower Wyoming Valley, Shickshinny) Orangeville 80 outlined on the inside back cover. 80 McEwensville Berwick Washingtonville 11: Council Cup (Nescopeck, Berwick) 11 Hickory • Paddling may be limited by water levels. MONTOUR Freeland UNION 80 Run 12: Bloomsburg (Mifflinburg, Bloomsburg, Catawissa) Review information for the specific section Milton Conyngham Jeddo State Danville Park 13: Danville (Danville) of river you are planning to visit; check water West Hazleton Lewisburg Hazleton 476 Beaver CARBON Beltzville levels before leaving on your trip. The Trip 13 Meadows 14: Northumberland (Northumberland, Sunbury) State Northumberland 14 81 List section (page 5) lists gauging stations McAdoo Park New Jim Berlin Nesquehoning Thorpe Brochure and maps updated Feb 2021 accessible online. Ringtown Sunbury SCHUYLKILL Lehighton SNYDER Mahanoy Shenandoah NORTHUMBERLAND City Coaldale Palmerton Kulpmont 9feb21-20pg-12x13-cx2.qxp_Layout 1 2/10/21 3:10 PM Page 3 Enjoying the River’s Heritage & Wildlife 3 The key to an enjoyable trip on the water Glacial action and erosion over the eons Like the Iroquois, who also settled in the County at Sayre and continues 166 miles, trail is advance planning and safe boating. have created a landscape of broad rolling hills region, the Delaware were farmers. Both ending at Shikellamy State Park in This guide will assist you in preparing for your crisscrossed by an extensive network of valleys quickly adapted to life in the rich Susquehanna Northumberland - Sunbury at the confluence trip. Included are maps, information on trip and streams. A prominent regional feature is the River Valley, taking advantage of the river’s with the West Branch of the Susquehanna. planning, portages, safety, camping, and North Branch of the Susquehanna River, which resources and abundant game. The North You will paddle through a region of beautiful equipment to bring. meanders through Susquehanna, Bradford, Branch Susquehanna River Valley became meandering river cuts in the Endless Mountains Wyoming, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Columbia, known as the“Breadbasket of the Indians,” and then through the Wyoming Valley, The North Branch meanders through some of Montour, and Northumberland Counties. The supplying tons of corn and other foods for the passing many river towns on your way to the the most remote and diverse plant and animal river was once a major transportation corridor, Delaware and Iroquois peoples. The well-known confluence. While following the North Branch communities found in Pennsylvania. Trail users although its shallow rocky waters are now Route 6 scenic overlook at Wyalusing Rocks was Water Trail, you can see Native American will be presented with multiple opportunities considered unnavigable in the modern sense. once a strategic lookout. lookout points, the remnants of a past canal to witness many of the more common species, Following the retreat of the Wisconsin system, and an area that was the hub of the and quite possibly a few of the state’s rarest Glacier 15,000 years ago, the region underwent Friedenshütten nation’s anthracite coal and industrial boom ones as well. a gradual transformation from a relatively In 1765, David Zeisberger established in the 1800s. Eagles commonly soar high along the rock barren, post-glacial landscape inhabited by Friedenshütten, a Moravian mission, with cuts. Peregrine falcons can be found nesting nomadic bands of hunters and gatherers to Delaware people led by Chief Paupunhank at Water Trail Management under a bridge in the Wyoming Valley. Whitetail a largely forested region supporting diverse M’c hwihilusing (Wyalusing). The mission closed The Susquehanna River Water Trail–North deer, beaver, river otters, and great blue herons wildlife and small agricultural villages. in 1772 before the outbreak of the American Branch is co-managed by the Endless Mountains are seen along the river banks, and the water Revolution. Despite wars and removals, some Heritage Region and the Susquehanna Greenway abounds with smallmouth bass and other fish. Historic Points Native Americans remained in the region, their Partnership. More information about these Geologic Origins The Susquehannocks, a powerful Iroquoian- crops and agricultural techniques adopted by organizations can be found on Page 16. speaking tribe, lived along the North Branch European settlers. The North Branch Water Trail serves as one The fertile valleys of Northeastern Pe nnsylvania of the Susquehanna River at the time of the branch of the Susquehanna River Water Trail, have supported scattered agricultural villages earliest European contacts. As they moved Route of the North Branch which traverses the Commonwealth of since pre-historic times. The steep terrain, south, other peoples moved in, among them In Pennsylvania, the Susquehanna River North Pennsylvania. As part of this larger system, however, historically restricted travel through the Delaware, or Lenni Lenape. A group of Branch Water Trail starts with a 15-mile-long the North Branch is also within the nationally the region, limiting the creation of large thirteen mostly Algonquian tribes, they once paddling journey from Oakland to Great Bend designated Captain John Smith Chesapeake settlements. The majority of the region is lived on the Atlantic coast. They were called in Susquehanna County. The River enters National Historic Trail. located on the Allegheny Plateau, a portion “Delaware’s Indians” after Lord De la Warr, New York State at river mile 340 for 49 miles. of the much larger Appalachian Uplands. governor of the colony where they originated. It re-enters the Commonwealth in Bradford 9feb21-20pg-12x13-cx2.qxp_Layout 1 2/10/21 3:10 PM Page 4 Enjoying the River’s Heritage 4 North Branch Canal Extension Iron Heritage in Danville the riverbanks. Large numbers of songbirds Nearly twenty years in the making from Founded on land purchased by General William use the river corridor as a migration route in the 1836-1855, the extension of the North Branch Montgomery in 1774 and named after his son spring and fall. Enjoy birding from your canoe Canal greatly contributed to the development Daniel Montgomery, who laid out the town in or stretch your legs with a leisurely stroll while of the region. The Canal connected Pittston, 1792. The first American iron "T" rail railroad enjoying the bird life of Pennsylvania. just north of Wilkes-Barre, to Athens in Bradford track was rolled here in 1845 using iron ore Additional information on birding is available County and ultimately with the Junction Canal mined from the nearby Montour ridge. Market on the Susquehanna Birding and Wildlife Trail along the Chemung River to Elmira, New York, Street runs parallel to the river one block north, map — contact Audubon Pennsylvania at and points north. where many fine 19th-century homes reflect (717) 213-6880 or visit their web site at Laborers were contracted and work began the wealth of their iron mine and iron mill pa.audubon.org. along the river in 1836. By the end of the year, owners who resided there. funds had been exhausted and work came Biking & Hiking to a halt.