The Lehigh River
Updated Apr 2026
WEATHER
Get a more detailed forecast here.
DESTINATION
THE LEHIGH RIVER
Tap the map image above to explore. You'll be redirected to the Wildland's Convervancy's site.
WATER LEVELS & DAM RELEASE ON THE LEHIGH
Tap here for U.S. Geological Survey website to see explore this map.
Your rafting experience is based on how high and fast the water moves. Water levels on rivers are graded by Class 1 through Class 5. And all you have to remember is that the lower the Class, the slower the water moves. And the Lehigh River is between class 1 and 3 all throughout.
In the water levels graph above (featuring Apr 2024 to Mar 2025), the spikes reflect either rainy days or Dam Release days, when the water level is at it's highest and flowing at its fastest.
As you can see from the map of the river above in What To Expect, there are over a dozen dams. Dams are used by the (pre-47) US Army Corp of Engineers to manage water for everyone's use.
Dam Release days are days when all the dams are open and the flow of the water doubles. On rainy days, it can even triple!
That much water makes your rafting experience much more exciting. Consequently, safety precautions are strictly enforced.
HISTORY
The Lehigh River is a 109-mile-long (175 km) tributary of the Delaware River in eastern Pennsylvania. The river flows in a generally southward pattern from the Pocono Mountains in Northeastern Pennsylvania through Allentown and much of the Lehigh Valley before joining the Delaware River in Easton. The river's name is an anglicisation of the Lenape name for the river, Lechewuekink, which means "where there are forks". Both Lehigh County and Lehigh Valley are named for the river. Between 1821 and 1966, the Lehigh River was owned by the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, making it the only privately owned river in the United States. This private ownership continued until a local representative, Samuel Frank, promoted a bill to return control of the river to the state in 1967.
#WHATYOUMISSED
From the official Outerthere blog here.
PRO-TIP
Bring your friends. You will laugh non-stop. And also, get a MORE 3 Membership and pay $0 to reserve your whitewater rafting adventure.