Pennsylvania · White Haven, PA

Lehigh River float season

Gauge 01447800 on the Lehigh Gorge — White Haven to Jim Thorpe. Scheduled dam releases send rafts bouncing through a 1,000-foot-deep state park gorge lined with waterfalls and old railroad grade, with Jim Thorpe's beer gardens waiting at the takeout.

raftkayak Fullest: Mar–May Leanest: Jul–Sep
Lehigh River — typical flow through the year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 200 750 1.5k 3k
median flow for the date middle half of years (25th–75th percentile) most years (10th–90th)

Right now at this gauge

loading CFS

Checking the live gauge…

Live reading from the USGS gauge page for Lehigh River. Provisional data — subject to revision.

The year on this river

In a typical year at the White Haven gauge, the Lehigh River runs fullest Mar–May and leanest Jul–Sep. Where today's reading falls inside that rhythm matters more than the raw number — the same flow that feels thin in spring can be the summer norm. Half of all past March days at this gauge ran above 748 CFS; the September median is 187 CFS.

Median of daily flows in each month across this gauge's full record — half of past days ran above these figures, half below.
Month Typical flow (CFS)
January 461
February 457
March 748
April 708
May 594
June 381
July 260
August 239
September 187
October 311
November 471
December 564

Record context

This gauge has measured daily flow since 1961 — 64 years of record. The largest daily average ever logged here was 11,000 CFS, in January 1996. Rivers do that sometimes; it's why the safety panel above isn't decoration.

Planning dates? The trip-window checker shows what flows have historically looked like on any week you pick for this river, or see what a CFS actually looks like.

More Pennsylvania float rivers

Common questions

When is the Lehigh River usually at its fullest?

At the White Haven gauge, the fullest stretch of a typical year is Mar–May, with the single highest monthly median in March (about 748 CFS). The leanest months are usually Jul–Sep.

What is a typical summer flow on the Lehigh River?

The July median at this gauge is about 260 CFS — half of past Julys ran higher, half lower. Late summer is this river's lean season, so expect readings to drift down as the season goes on.

Is the Lehigh River safe to float right now?

No flow number can answer that, and this site never labels a river safe. What the data can tell you is how today's reading compares with 65 years of this date's history — well above typical means pushier, colder, faster water. Pair that context with a PFD, a look at the river from the bank, and a call to a local outfitter before you commit.

Which USGS gauge does this page use?

USGS gauge 01447800 (Lehigh R bl Francis E Walter Res nr White Haven PA), chosen because it best represents the Lehigh Gorge — White Haven to Jim Thorpe. Daily records here reach back to 1961.

Data: USGS gauge 01447800, approved daily records 1961–2025, retrieved 2026-08-07. Live readings are provisional and subject to revision. U.S. Geological Survey data is public domain.