Susquehanna River — Harrisburg to Middletown: River Level Today — Can You Paddle It?

At 18,800 cfs the Susquehanna River is sitting in the middle of the 2,000 cfs–40,000 cfs range for this reach, with 16,800 cfs of margin to the nearer edge — the most forgiving part of the window on the numbers alone.

Over the last 24 hours it has gone from 22,600 cfs to 18,800 cfs, 17% down. Daily means over the past 7 days have run between 11,400 cfs and 26,200 cfs, 94% higher at the end of the week than the start. The last day and the week as a whole point opposite ways, which usually means a recent rain bump on top of a longer rising trend — worth a second look at the chart before you commit to the drive.

Susquehanna River at Harrisburg to Middletown is a 10-mile Class I run in Pennsylvania — easygoing moving water with light riffles and nothing technical. Most paddlers put in at City Island, Harrisburg, PA and take out at Middletown, PA access (approx.), a trip that runs about 4 hours at a relaxed pace.

Whether it's worth the drive comes down to flow. This section generally paddles well at 2,000–40,000 cfs (a conservative estimate — see our methodology). Much below that and the Susquehanna River gets low and bony, so you end up scraping gravel and walking the shallows; well above the top of the range it turns fast, cold and pushy, which is a more serious day than most casual boaters want. We read USGS gauge 01570500 about every 30 minutes and compare the live number to that window, so the verdict at the top of this page reflects conditions right now rather than a monthly average.

Flows here are usually most dependable April–October. Spring can run high after rain or snowmelt, and late summer often drops too low to float well — but the gauge always beats the calendar, so check today's reading before you go.