Pennypack Creek rises from headwater springs and wetlands in the suburbs of Horsham, Warminster, and Upper Southampton, then gains strength along its middle mainstem in Upper Moreland, Bryn Athyn, Lower Moreland and Abington. The creek then drops into the winding greenbelt of Philadelphia’s Pennypack Park before discharging into a broad mudflat on the Delaware River.
Whether you’re biking along the new rail-to-trail in Lorimer Park or strolling along the creek in Fairmount Park or the many municipal parks, you can enjoy seeing many types of birds, fish, plants, reptiles and amphibians. You could even be following in the footsteps of John James Audubon, the famed American naturalist, who is said to have spent many hours in the Pennypack woods.
Other watershed attractions include the restored warm season meadows, open spaces and wooded trails of the Pennypack Ecological Restoration Trust, numerous golf courses, Fetter’s Mill Historic District in Bryn Athyn, and Bethayres Swamp, an important wetland habitat recently acquired in Lower Moreland Township.
Lower Pennypack Creek has long been preserved within Fairmount Park, edged by the neighborhoods and urban centers of Northeast Philadelphia. Watershed residents and organizations continue to acquire and restore a network of preserves, parks, and protected lands with the ultimate goal of establishing a greenway along the length of the creek that offers a variety of recreational, personal, and stewardship experiences.
Watershed Fast Facts
Area
drains approximately 56 square miles
Stream Miles
approximately 125 linear miles
Population
approximately 230,000
Impervious Cover
approximately 33% impervious
Counties/Municipalities
encompasses areas of Montgomery, Philadelphia, and Bucks Counties, with all or part of 12 municipalities, including Abington, Bryn Athyn, Hatboro, Horsham, Lower Moreland, Rockledge, Upper Dublin, Upper Moreland, Upper Southampton, and Warminster
Help protect your watershed!
Aquatic wildlife markers are an easy way to remind your neighborhood to keep trash and chemicals out of drains.