Blue Mountain, Blue Mountain Ridge, or the Blue Mountains of Pennsylvania, is a ridge of the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. The ...

in eastern

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. Forming the southern and eastern edge of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians physiographic province in Pennsylvania, Blue Mountain extends from the Delaware Water Gap on the

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

border in the east to Big Gap in Franklin County in south-central Pennsylvania at its southwestern end. Views of Blue Mountain dominate the southern tier of most eastern and central Pennsylvanian counties, providing an ever-visible backdrop cutting across the northern or western horizon. Most transport corridors and road beds piercing the barrier necessarily pass through either large water gaps (west to east: the Susquehanna, Schuylkill, Lehigh and

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, before ...

valleys) or wind gaps, low gaps in the ridge caused by ancient watercourses. The

barrier ridge The terms barrier ridge, a term of art in the earth sciences, especially geology and sometimes barrier range (more common as a geography term) describing the existence of gross landforms describing long ridgelines which are particularly difficu ...

forms a distinct boundary between a number of Pennsylvania's geographical and cultural regions. To the south of the

Susquehanna River The Susquehanna River (; Lenape: Siskëwahane) is a major river located in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, overlapping between the lower Northeast and the Upland South. At long, it is the longest river on the East Coast of the ...

gap in the south-central part of the state is the Cumberland Valley, part of the

Great Appalachian Valley The Great Appalachian Valley, also called The Great Valley or Great Valley Region, is one of the major landform features of eastern North America. It is a gigantic trough—a chain of valley lowlands—and the central feature of the Appalachian M ...

; to its northwest side are the southern reaches of the

Susquehanna Valley The Susquehanna Valley is a region of low-lying land that borders the Susquehanna River in the U.S. states of New York, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. The valley consists of areas that lie along the main branch of the river, which flows from Up ...

with picturesque streams channeling travel corridors deep into and over the central and western mountains and valleys—the heartland interior counties of Pennsylvania; along the Main Branch Susquehanna, the valleys also lead into the

Coal Region The Coal Region is a region of Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is known for being home to the largest known deposits of anthracite coal in the world with an estimated reserve of seven billion short tons. The region is typically defined as compris ...

of northeast Pennsylvania, the Wyoming Valley, and the distant Poconos. To the south of Blue Mountain lies the Capital Region of

Harrisburg Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in ...

and nearby communities, the rich farming country of the

Lebanon Valley The Lebanon Valley is a geographic region that lies between South Mountain and the Ridge and Valley Province of eastern Pennsylvania. The valley lies almost entirely within Lebanon and Berks counties in Pennsylvania. Portions of the valley lie ...

and

Pennsylvania Dutch Country The Pennsylvania Dutch Country ( Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Deitscherei'' Dutchery', also called Pennsylvania Dutchland ( Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Pennsylvania Deitschland'', german: Pennsylvania Deutschland), or simply the Dutch Country or Dutchland ( ...

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

and Lancaster counties, the lower half of the

Lehigh Valley The Lehigh Valley (), known colloquially as The Valley, is a geographic region formed by the Lehigh River in Lehigh County and Northampton County in eastern Pennsylvania. It is a component valley of the Great Appalachian Valley bound to the no ...

, and the lower

Delaware Valley The Delaware Valley is a metropolitan region on the East Coast of the United States that comprises and surrounds Philadelphia, the sixth most populous city in the nation and 68th largest city in the world as of 2020. The toponym Delaware Val ...

; the latter two extend north through water gaps beyond the ridgeline.

Geography

The ridge of Blue Mountain runs for through

, reaching an elevation of above sea level just north of the

Pennsylvania Turnpike The Pennsylvania Turnpike (Penna Turnpike or PA Turnpike) is a toll highway operated by the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC) in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. A controlled-access highway, it runs for across the state. The turnpike's we ...

, near the borough of Newburg. Most of the ridgecrest, however, only reaches between in elevation. The mountain's width varies from . The southwestern end of the mountain is at Big Gap, west of

Shippensburg Shippensburg is a borough in Cumberland and Franklin counties in the U.S. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Settled in 1730, Shippensburg lies in the Cumberland Valley, southwest of Harrisburg, and is part of the Harrisburg–Carlisle Metropolitan ...

. The mountain ridge continues to the southwest toward

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...

as Broad Mountain. The northeastern end of the mountain is at the Delaware Water Gap on the

border. Mount Minsi, elevation , forms the promontory overlooking the

. The ridge of Blue Mountain continues northeast into New Jersey as Kittatinny Mountain. U.S. Geological Survey 1:24,000-scale and 1:250,000-scale

topographic map In modern mapping, a topographic map or topographic sheet is a type of map characterized by large- scale detail and quantitative representation of relief features, usually using contour lines (connecting points of equal elevation), but histori ...

series Blue Mountain marks the boundary between the

and the main Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians.

Water gaps

Four of Pennsylvania's major rivers cut through Blue Mountain in water gaps: * The

, which forms Pennsylvania's eastern border with New Jersey, passes through the ridge just southeast of Stroudsburg. * The

Lehigh River The Lehigh River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 1, 2011 tributary of the Delaware River in eastern Pennsylvania. The river flows in a generally southward pat ...

, which feeds the Delaware at Easton, passes through the Lehigh Gap at the ridge near

Palmerton Palmerton is a borough in Carbon County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania. The borough's population was 5,414 at the 2010 census. Palmerton is located northwest of Allentown and northwest of Philadelphia ...

. * The

Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania. The river was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal, and several of its tributaries drain major parts of Pennsylvania's Coal Region. It f ...

, which feeds the Delaware at

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

, passes through the ridge just north of

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

. * The

, which feeds the

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the Eastern Shore of Maryland / ...

, passes through the ridge just north of

, Pennsylvania's capital.

Pennsylvania Turnpike

The

system passes through Blue Mountain at two points: * The Blue Mountain Tunnel carries the turnpike's east–west mainline ( Interstate 76) through the ridge in northern Franklin County. The Kittatinny Mountain Tunnel bores through a parallel ridge of the same mountain just to the west, with the two tunnel portals only apart. * The Lehigh Tunnel carries the turnpike's north–south Northeast Extension ( Interstate 476) through the ridge between Lehigh and

Carbon Carbon () is a chemical element with the symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalent—its atom making four electrons available to form covalent chemical bonds. It belongs to group 14 of the periodic table. Carbon ma ...

. Both tunnels consist of two tubes and carry two lanes in each direction of travel.

Blue Mountain attractions in Pennsylvania

* The

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian ...

is concurrent with the top of the ridge from New Jersey to northern

Lebanon County Lebanon County ( Pennsylvania Dutch: Lebanon Kaundi) is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 133,568. Its county seat is the city of Lebanon. The county was formed from portions of Dauphi ...

. * Hawk Mountain Sanctuary is located at the very northern edge of Berks County. *

Hawk Mountain Ranger School Hawk Mountain Ranger School (HMRS) is a Search and Rescue school operated by the Pennsylvania Wing Civil Air Patrol, Pennsylvania Wing of the Civil Air Patrol (CAP). The school is located in the foothills of the Blue Mountain (Pennsylvania), Blue ...

, located just south of the Sanctuary, trains

Civil Air Patrol Civil Air Patrol (CAP) is a congressionally chartered, federally supported non-profit corporation that serves as the official civilian auxiliary of the United States Air Force (USAF). CAP is a volunteer organization with an aviation-minded mem ...

members for their ground search and rescue Ranger Teams. *

Blue Mountain Resort Blue Mountain Resort is a ski resort located in Palmerton, Pennsylvania on Blue Mountain. Blue Mountain serves the Allentown, Philadelphia, New York City, and Wilmington urban areas and Carbon County, Schuylkill County, and the Hazleton are ...

is found on the north face of the ridge in the southeastern corner of Carbon County. * Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area reaches across

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England ...

, Monroe, and Pike counties and into New Jersey, mostly to the northwest of the ridge. * Boyd Big Tree Preserve Conservation Area is located in Dauphin County

Blue Mountain School District The Blue Mountain School District is a midsized, rural public school district in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania. The district is one of the 500 public school districts of Pennsylvania. The district serves the boroughs of Auburn, Cressona, De ...

is named after the mountain range. It is located just off Route 61 in Schuylkill Haven, Pennsylvania.

References

External links