Down the Susquehanna River

 

The Susquehanna River is known as the "longest river on the American East Coast

that drains into the Atlantic Ocean" (Wikipedia).  Stretching down from the middle

of New York, cutting through Pennsylvania, it finally releases into the Chesapeake

Bay.  In total the river is about 444 miles long.  Now, I mentioned in my blog, to

kayak the entire Susquehanna would probably take about a month, weather

depending.  So instead, I am focusing on a smaller section of the river, the middle

and lower section of the Susquehanna, which starts at Sunbury and runs to the

Maryland border.  The Susquehanna River Trail Association provides a few parts of

the middle section of the river, but I still bought a map of the middle and lower

sections, so I had a tangible copy.

 

The water levels of the Susquehanna are very variable.  Not only do you have to

worry about the recent waterfall, but you have to take into account the dams that

are holding and releasing water at different rates.  When I met Karen, a woman who

is an avid kayaker and works at Eastern Mountain Sports, she provided me with a number for the hotline that details the river flow of the Susquehanna, mainly around Safe Harbor.

 

I am familiar with a few parts of the Susquehanna river just by driving alongside it.  I know that there are some sections that are not kind to small boating crafts, such as dams, rocky outcrops, and rapids.  There are also islands on the Susquehanna.  Some of the campsites are on the islands, but just know which islands are public and private, and whether you can camp on them or not!

 

 

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Susquehanna_River

http://fishandboat.com/watertrails/trailindex.htm

http://www.susquehannarivertrail.org/home

http://www.susquehannagreenway.org/susquehanna-river-water-trail-middle-section

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_dams_and_reservoirs_of_the_Susquehanna_River