The Lehigh Gap or Lehigh Water Gap is 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 pract ...

located in the townships of Lehigh,

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, Lower Towamensing, and East Penn in the

Lehigh Valley The Lehigh Valley () is a geography, geographic and urban area, metropolitan region formed by the Lehigh River in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh and Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Northampton counties in eastern Pennsylvania. It is a co ...

and

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

regions of eastern

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. It was formed by 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 ...

, where it cuts through the Blue Mountain in

. The gap allows easy travel between Carbon County to the north and Lehigh and

Northampton Northampton ( ) is a town and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is the county town of Northamptonshire and the administrative centre of the Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority of West Northamptonshire. The town is sit ...

counties to the south of the mountain. One of the gap's more distinctive features is Devil's Pulpit, a rock formation that reminds hikers of a church pulpit. Lehigh Gap is also the name of a village once known as Weider's Crossing at the south end of the gap in Lehigh and Northampton Counties.

Travel

PA Route 248 runs directly through the gap, connecting the two Lehigh Valley cities

Allentown Allentown may refer to: Places * Allentown, California, now called Toadtown, California * Allentown, Georgia, a city in four counties in Georgia * Allentown, Illinois, an unincorporated community in Tazewell County * Allentown, New Jersey, a boroug ...

and

Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

to the smaller Carbon County boroughs of Palmerton, Bowmanstown and Lehighton. PA Routes

873 __NOTOC__ Year 873 ( DCCCLXXIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * Carloman, son of King Charles the Bald, is hauled before a secular court and condemned to death – for plotting ...

and

145 145 may refer to: *145 (number), a natural number *AD 145, a year in the 2nd century AD *145 BC, a year in the 2nd century BC *145 (dinghy), a two-person intermediate sailing dinghy *145 (South) Brigade, a regional brigade of the British Army that ...

connect to PA Route 248 just south of the gap. Besides vehicular travel, the gap also provides a crossing through the mountain for hikers on 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 Tra ...

. Appalachian Thru-hikers call this Dante's inferno because it is a very exposed rock scramble. The Delaware and Lehigh Heritage Corridor Trail also intersects Lehigh Gap.

Rail transport

Railroads

Four railroad companies once had trackage (owned or leased) through the Lehigh Gap. The

Lehigh and New England Railroad The Lehigh and New England Railroad was a Class I railroad located in Northeastern United States that acted as a bridge line. It was the second notable U.S. railroad to file for abandonment in its entirety after the New York, Ontario and Weste ...

used to have a bridge crossing the

within the gap. The bridge was abandoned in 1961 and torn down in 1967, but its foundations on each side of the river are still visible as are telegraph poles. The

Lehigh Valley Railroad The Lehigh Valley Railroad was a railroad in the Northeastern United States built predominantly to haul anthracite, anthracite coal from the Coal Region in Northeastern Pennsylvania to major consumer markets in Philadelphia, New York City, and ...

had its mainline, the Lehigh Line, on the south side of the Lehigh River. The

Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad The Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad is a defunct railroad that operated in eastern Pennsylvania during the 19th and 20th centuries. The company was a subsidiary of the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company (LC&N). For much of its lifetime, however, it ...

's mainline was on the north side of the Lehigh River; the Lehigh and Susquehanna was leased to the

Central Railroad of New Jersey Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

and labeled the operations of the lease as the "Lehigh and Susquehanna Division".

Lehigh Line

Today the

's mainline, the Lehigh Line, runs on the north side of the

rather than on the south side, as the majority of the Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad's mainline became part of the Lehigh Line. The Lehigh Line's absorption of the majority of the Lehigh and Susquhanna mainline caused some original trackage to break away from the Lehigh Line and became separate rail lines now operating as branch lines, including the Lehigh Line's former trackage on the south side of the Lehigh River. The Lehigh Line's original Lehigh Gap trackage which was on the south side and now operating as a separate rail line on its own was later abandoned and was removed by

Conrail Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do busine ...

in 1984. With the Lehigh Line being the surviving rail line even though it now runs on the north side via the former Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad mainline trackage it got, the Lehigh Line is now owned by

Norfolk Southern Railway The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...

(chartered in 1894 as the Southern Railway and is owned by the

Norfolk Southern Corporation The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...

) and

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

(owned by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited) has trackage rights on the Lehigh Line so that it can reach the major cities

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

and

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Lehigh Gap Nature Center

In 2002, the Wildlife Information Center, since renamed Lehigh Gap Nature Center, purchased more than near Lehigh Gap. Their goal is to restore the wildlife along the Kittatinny Ridge. From 1898 to 1980, the New Jersey Zinc Company emitted sulfur dioxide at rates of up to 3,600 pounds per hour, killing plant life and animal habitats. Twenty years later, a noticeable lack of tree density remains on the Palmerton side of the gap. The Lehigh Gap Nature Center currently includes The Osprey House on the Slatington side of the river. The nature center works closely with colleges and universities on various wildlife-oriented research projects. The center also offers several clubs for young naturalists. The nature center is home to approximately 15 miles of hiking trails, open to the public from dawn to dusk.

References

External links

Lehigh Gap via Appalachiain Trails
at Alltrails {{authority control Geography of Carbon County, Pennsylvania Geography of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania Geography of Northampton County, Pennsylvania Landforms of Carbon County, Pennsylvania Landforms of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania Landforms of Northampton County, Pennsylvania Landmarks in Pennsylvania Nature centers in Pennsylvania Tourist attractions in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania Water gaps of Pennsylvania