Big Wapwallopen Creek
Big Wapwallopen Creek is a tributary of the Susquehanna River in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 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. 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 high. The creek flows through the Wapwallopen Gorge in its lower reaches, where it descends. 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. The creek's watershed is mainly rural and most of it is forested. It is the main source of flooding in six townships.
Wapwallopen Creek is named after a Native American village that historically existed on the creek. The Delaware tribe inhabited the area by 1675 and the Shawnee tribe also historically inhabited the area. Numerous mills were built on the creek in the 1700s and 1800s, including two powder mills in the Wapwallopen Gorge. The second powder mill was built in 1859 by E.I. Du Pont de Nemours and Company and was one of the largest powder mills in the United States at the time. That powder mill operated until 1912. Numerous bridges were built across the creek in the 1900s. The Wapwallopen Gorge is listed on the Luzerne County Natural Areas Inventory. It is possible to canoe on of the creek, but there are some unrunnable points.
Course
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 upriver of its mouth.
Tributaries
Big Wapwallopen Creek has three named tributaries: Balliet Run, Watering Run, and Bow Creek. The creek also has numerous unnamed tributaries. Balliet Run joins Big Wapwallopen Creek upstream of its mouth. Its watershed has an area of. Watering Run joins Big Wapwallopen Creek upstream of its mouth. Its watershed has an area of. Bow Creek joins Big Wapwallopen Creek upstream of its mouth. Its watershed has an area of. Two unnamed tributaries of Big Wapwallopen Creek include "Big Wapwallopen Creek Tributary E" and "Big Wapwallopen Creek Tributary H". Their watersheds have areas of, respectively.Hydrology
A portion of the Big Wapwallopen Creek was considered impaired according to the EPA in its "2004 Waterbody Report for Big Wapwallopen Creek." The cause of the impairment is organic enrichment and/or low levels of dissolved oxygen. The creek has a United States Geological Survey stream gage near Wapwallopen.The concentration of dissolved oxygen in Big Wapwallopen Creek near its mouth in 1975 and 1976 ranged from 9.4 to 13.0 milligrams per liter. The concentration of hydrogen ions ranged from 0.00003 to 0.00127 milligrams per liter milligrams per liter in December 1975 and February to August 1976 and the concentration of carbon dioxide ranged from 0.7 to 30 milligrams per liter during the same time period. Between December 1975 and August 1976, the ammonia concentration ranged from 0.026 to 0.090 milligrams per liter.
In the mid-1970s, the concentration of nitrogen in the form of nitrates in Big Wapwallopen Creek near its mouth ranged from 0.60 to 1.96 milligrams per liter. The concentration of nitrogen in the form of nitrites ranged from 0.026 to 0.076 milligrams per liter. The phosphorus concentration ranged from 0.050 to 0.500 milligrams per liter, the sulfate concentration ranged from 10.0 to 36.0 milligrams per liter, and the chloride concentration ranged from 6.0 to 13.0 milligrams per liter.
In 1975 and 1976, the calcium concentration in Big Wapwallopen Creek near its mouth ranged from 5.60 to 9.60 milligrams per liter. The magnesium concentration ranged between 0.50 and 5.50 milligrams per liter. The concentration of iron ranged from less than 10 to 3,150 micrograms per liter.
The turbidity of Big Wapwallopen Creek near its mouth was measured several times in 1975 and 1976. It ranged from less than one Jackson Turbidity Unit to 50 Jackson Turbidity Units. The specific conductance of the creek ranged from 70 to 100 micro-siemens per centimeter at. The creek's pH ranged from 5.9 to 7.5 in December 1975 and February to August 1976. The concentration of water hardness in the creek between December 1975 and August 1976 ranged from 12 to 42 milligrams per liter.
Between 1920 and 2013, the average annual discharge of Big Wapwallopen Creek at Wapwallopen was more than five times: in 1928, in 1978, in 1994, in 2004, and in 2001. The average annual discharges in these years were,,,, and, respectively. The average annual discharge of the creek has been less than four times: in 1931 and 1932, in 1965, and in 2001. The values in these years were,, and. The average annual discharge of the creek in 2013 was
The peak annual discharge of Big Wapwallopen Creek at its mouth has a 10 percent chance of reaching 3350 cubic feet per second. It has a 2 percent chance of reaching 6550 cubic feet per second and a 1 percent chance of reaching 8400 cubic feet per second. The peak annual discharge has a 0.2 percent chance of reaching 15,000 cubic feet per second. The peak annual discharge of the creek at the confluence of Balliet Run has a 10 percent chance of reaching 1900 cubic feet per second. It has a 2 percent chance of reaching 3050 cubic feet per second and a 1 percent chance of reaching 3600 cubic feet per second. The peak annual discharge has a 0.2 percent chance of reaching 5200 cubic feet per second.
The peak annual discharge of Big Wapwallopen Creek upstream of the tributary Watering Run has a 10 percent chance of reaching, a 2 percent chance of reaching, a 1 percent chance of reaching, and a 0.2 percent chance of reaching. The peak annual discharge of the creek upstream of the tributary Bow Creek has a 10 percent chance of reaching, a 2 percent chance of reaching, a 1 percent chance of reaching and a 0.2 percent chance of reaching.
Geography, geology, and climate
The elevation near the mouth of Big Wapwallopen Creek is above sea level. The elevation of the creek's source is between above sea level. The gradient of the creek for its first is. For the next it is only. From there to the creek's mouth, the gradient is. The mean elevation of the creek's watershed upstream of State Route 3012/Hobbie Road is above sea level.Big Wapwallopen Creek is in the ridge and valley physiographic province. It flows off the southwestern edge of the Pocono Plateau. Closer to its mouth, there are three large waterfalls on the creek. All of the waterfalls are more than high with the highest being high. The uppermost waterfall cuts through red sandstone. The falls are known as the Upper Falls, the Middle Falls, and the Lower Falls, respectively.
Big Wapwallopen Creek has a long stretch of rapids formed from numerous small ledges and boulders. The creek flows through a gorge known as the Wapwallopen Gorge or as the Powder Hole. The gorge is in Conyngham Township, Hollenback Township, and Nescopeck Township. The creek drops a total of in the gorge. Within the gorge, there are large floodplains that are relatively forested and flat. The gorge was likely created several million years ago by the precursor to Big Wapwallopen Creek. However, the creek's original channel in this location was slightly to the west of its current one. It moved to its present channel 20,000 years ago, during the last Ice Age, when glaciers covered the area for a thousand years. Along most of the creek's length, it cut through glacial material to flow through its preglacial valley. However, at the site of the Wapwallopen Gorge it failed to do this and instead carved a new path through bedrock. The old glacial valley of Big Wapwallopen Creek was broad and gently sloping.
Big Wapwallopen Creek has been described as a small creek. The topography of the creek's watershed mainly consists of broken hills, with a few swamps and lakes. Nescopeck Mountain is on the watershed's southeastern border.
The channel of Big Wapwallopen Creek is sinuous and flows through rock formations consisting of sandstone and shale. The creek is surrounded by steep, high hills with a height of for its last. In the Wapwallopen Gorge, it cuts through a rib of gray siltstone belonging to the Trimmers Rock Formation. This rock formation dates to 380 million years ago and covers the northern three quarters of the gorge. It mainly consists of gray siltstone, shale, and sandstone. The southern quarter of the gorge has bedrock consisting of the Irish Valley Member of the Catskill Formation. This formation contains siltstone, sandstone, shale, and claystone. The Soil Infiltration Index near the creek at State Route 3012/Hobbie Road is.
The Carbondale coal formation occurs near Big Wapwallopen Creek and also appears as far away as the Wyoming Valley. The coal formation is estimated to be long, several miles wide, and thick. It is lighter in color and burns more easily than the Mauch Chunk coal or the Lehigh Coal.
The annual rate of precipitation in the watershed of Big Wapwallopen Creek ranges from. The average rate of precipitation where the creek crosses State Route 3012/Hobbie Road is per year and the average rate for the whole drainage basin is per year. A precipitation intensity of in 24 hours is expected to occur at this site once every two years. The water temperature of the creek was measured several times from late 1975 to 1976. The values ranged from in January 1976 to in August 1976. The rate of groundwater recharge in the creek's watershed is per year, or 32 percent of the annual precipitation rate. It ranges from 218 to 721 gallons per minute per square mile, with an average of 469 gallons per minute per square mile. The rate of evapotranspiration ranges from per year, with an average of per year.