page_title: Big Wapwallopen Creek
section_title: Course
hierarchical_section_title: Big Wapwallopen Creek / Course
caption_attribution_description: English: Big Wapwallopen Creek looking downstream in June 2015 in its lower reaches
context_page_description: Big Wapwallopen Creek is a tributary of the Susquehanna River in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 23 miles long and flows through Bear Creek Township, Fairview Township, Rice Township, Wright Township, Dorrance Township, Hollenback Township, Nescopeck Township, and Conyngham Township. The watershed of the creek has an area of 53.2 square miles. The creek has three named tributaries: Balliet Run, Watering Run, and Bow Creek. The creek is designated as a Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery and is also Class A Wild Trout Waters for part of its length. However, a portion is considered to be impaired by organic enrichment and/or low levels of dissolved oxygen and its pH ranges from moderately acidic to slightly alkaline.
  Big Wapwallopen Creek has three large waterfalls, all of which are more than 25 feet high. The creek flows through the Wapwallopen Gorge in its lower reaches, where it descends 210 feet. It mainly flows through rock formations consisting of sandstone and shale. The creek has existed for several million years, but the portion of its course that flows through the Wapwallopen Gorge is less than 20,000 years old.
context_section_description: Big Wapwallopen Creek begins in Crystal Lake in Bear Creek Township. It flows west for several tenths of a mile and enters Fairview Township. The creek turns west-southwest for approximately a mile, passing Arbutus Peak to the south and crossing Pennsylvania Route 437. It then turns west-northwest for several tenths of a mile before turning southwest and then west, crossing Pennsylvania Route 309. It passes through Pole Bridge Swamp and begins flowing along the border between Rice Township and Wright Township. Over the next couple of miles, the creek gradually turns south-southwest, still following the township line. It then passes through Hickory Swale and receives Bow Creek, its first named tributary, from the left. It turns southwest for several tenths of a mile before turning south and then southwest. It then turns west for more than a mile before turning southwest for a few miles, receiving the tributary Watering Run from the left before entering Dorrance Township and crossing Interstate 81. The creek then turns south for a few tenths of a mile before turning west and then southwest for a few miles, passing Feys Grove. It eventually turns west-southwest and enters Hollenback Township. After a few miles, the creek turns south for a short distance and receives Balliet Run, its last named tributary, from the left. It then turns west-northwest for more than a mile before turning south. At this point, the creek turns west again and enters a gorge. After several tenths of a mile, it turns north again, still flowing through the gorge and crossing the border between Hollenback Township and Nescopeck Township several times. The creek then turns west-northwest and begins flowing along the border between Nescopeck Township and Conyngham Township. After approximately a mile, it leaves the gorge and crosses Pennsylvania Route 239. It then reaches its confluence with the Susquehanna River just southwest of Wapwallopen.
  Big Wapwallopen Creek joins the Susquehanna River 166.64 miles (268.18 km) upriver of its mouth.
caption: Big Wapwallopen Creek looking downstream in June 2015 in its lower reaches
exif: {"Image Make": "Canon", "Image Model": "Canon EOS REBEL T3", "Image XResolution": "72", "Image YResolution": "72", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Picasa", "Image DateTime": "2015:06:03 17:10:32", "Image Artist": "Picasa", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image Copyright": "", "Image ExifOffset": "222", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "72", "Thumbnail YResolution": "72", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormat": "8426", "Thumbnail JPEGInterchangeFormatLength": "6342", "EXIF ExposureTime": "1/100", "EXIF FNumber": "5", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "100", "EXIF SensitivityType": "Recommended Exposure Index", "EXIF RecommendedExposureIndex": "100", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0230", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2015:06:03 01:31:19", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2015:06:03 01:31:19", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF ShutterSpeedValue": "53/8", "EXIF ApertureValue": "37/8", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF Flash": "Flash did not fire, compulsory flash mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "28", "EXIF SubSecTime": "61", "EXIF SubSecTimeOriginal": "61", "EXIF SubSecTimeDigitized": "61", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "3088", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "2056", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "Interoperability RelatedImageWidth": "3088", "Interoperability RelatedImageLength": "2056", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "8278", "EXIF FocalPlaneXResolution": "617600/181", "EXIF FocalPlaneYResolution": "411200/119", "EXIF FocalPlaneResolutionUnit": "2", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF ImageUniqueID": "ddd175fed3bed7ea7b36ea353dd730dd", "EXIF CameraOwnerName": "", "EXIF BodySerialNumber": "182063129374", "EXIF LensSpecification": "[28, 105, 0/0, 0/0]", "EXIF LensModel": "EF28-105mm f/3.5-4.5 USM", "EXIF LensSerialNumber": "0000000000"}