The Little Juniata River, sometimes called the "Little J," is a
[U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data]
The National Map
, accessed August 8, 2011 tributary
A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drai ...
of the
Juniata River in the
Susquehanna River watershed of
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, ...
. It is formed at
Altoona by the confluence of several short streams. It flows northeast in the Logan Valley at the foot of
Brush Mountain.
At
Tyrone, the river receives the southern
Bald Eagle Creek, then turns abruptly southeast, passing through a
water gap
A water gap is a gap that flowing water has carved through a mountain range or mountain ridge and that still carries water today. Such gaps that no longer carry water currents are called wind gaps. Water gaps and wind gaps often offer a prac ...
between the Brush and
Bald Eagle Mountain
Bald Eagle Mountain – once known locally as Muncy Mountain – is a stratigraphic ridge in the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians of central Pennsylvania, United States, running east of the Allegheny Front and northwest of Mount Nittany. It lies al ...
ridges and enters Sinking Valley where it receives Sinking Run. Approximately northwest of
Huntingdon
Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cromwell was born there ...
, near
Petersburg, it joins the
Frankstown Branch Juniata River, forming the Juniata River.
In
colonial America, the river was used to float freight downriver on boats called "arcs". Shipments were placed on board in
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
, just east of Tyrone, to await water high enough to clear the rocky stream bed. Thus the Little Juniata was (and still is) listed as a commercially "navigable" river.
The Little Juniata River is a good spot for
fly fishing; it holds a Class A population of wild
brown trout and requires no stocking.
See also
*
List of rivers of Pennsylvania
This is a list of streams and rivers in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania.
By drainage basin
This list is arranged by drainage basin, with respective tributaries indented under each larger stream's name.
Delaware Bay
Chesapeake Bay
*'' ...
References
External links
U.S. Geological Survey: PA stream gaging stations
Rivers of Pennsylvania
Tributaries of the Juniata River
Rivers of Blair County, Pennsylvania
Rivers of Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania
{{Pennsylvania-river-stub