• Winter sunrise, Kittatinny Ridge

    Delaware Water Gap

    National Recreation Area NJ,PA

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    Childs Park opens May 25. Dingmans Falls, Blue Mt Lakes/Skyline and unpaved Old Mine roads are open. STILL CLOSED PA: Mt. Minsi spur trails closed due to falcon nesting; Hornbecks & Adams Trails closed; McDade Trail closed trail miles 24.5 to 27.5 More »

Waterfalls

Raymondskill Falls

Raymondskill Falls

The ravines carved between the ridge tops are partly the result of glaciers moving across the landscape, deepening and widening the path opened up by the creek. When each glacier retreated, the creeks then tumbled over ledges of rock, forming waterfalls.

Where the rock at the top of the waterfall is more resistant to weathering than the rock below the falls, the waterfall is steep. Where the rock at the top of a waterfall is not much harder than the rock at the bottom, more gradual waterfalls can form.

Natural springs, swamp runs, and outlets of natural and artificial lakes drain the mountain sides along the river valley and form part of the Delaware Watershed. The drops of water that you see hurtling over these waterfalls will reach the Delaware River, and, in time, flow into the Atlantic Ocean.

 

Waterfall Hikes in Pennsylvania | Buttermilk Falls, Walpack NJ
Delaware River Basin Commission | Delaware River Organizations
National Parks along the Delaware River

Feature Pages on Natural Features and Ecosystems

Did You Know?

A ranger in the uniform of the French and Indian War.

... that in the 1750s, the northwest border of New Jersey (now Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area) was a frontier of the English colonies. In the French & Indian (Seven Years) War, a string of forts protected these settlements. The sites of seven of these outposts are in the park. More...