Where does the Swatara Creek Water Trail start in Schuylkill County?

Its Mile 0 access is at Pine Grove, unambiguously in Schuylkill County; from there the trail runs down the creek through the Swatara State Park corridor and on into Lebanon and Dauphin counties. A DCNR launch permit or boat registration is required to launch within Swatara State Park.

Water-sports · Straddles the county line

Swatara Creek Water Trail

Type: Water trail (creek paddling)
Where: Mile 0 at Pine Grove, Schuylkill County — the trail continues into Lebanon and Dauphin Counties
Managed by: Swatara Watershed Association (DCNR-designated PA Water Trail)
Coordinates: Not yet verified — see access notes below; check the managing agency's map for exact parking and trailheads.
Last verified: 2026-06-18

The Swatara Creek Water Trail is a DCNR-designated Pennsylvania Water Trail that begins at the Mile 0 Pine Grove access in Schuylkill County and runs down the creek for roughly 58 miles through the Swatara State Park corridor into Lebanon and Dauphin counties.

Paddling

The upper accesses — Mile 0 (Pine Grove), Mile 5 (Swopes Valley), Mile 11 (Waterville, at the historic Appalachian Trail bridge), and Mile 13 (Lickdale) — sit in the Pine Grove–Swatara State Park corridor straddling the Schuylkill/Lebanon line. A DCNR launch permit or boat registration is required to launch within Swatara State Park.

This is an unpowered (canoe/kayak) trail. Levels can change quickly, and hazards include rocks, ledges, strainers, sandbars, and downstream low-head dams (the Jonestown dam has no public portage); children 12 and under must wear PFDs.

Fishing

The PFBC stocks trout in the upper, western-Schuylkill Swatara system — the main Swatara Creek and the Upper and Lower Little Swatara Creeks — so the corridor doubles as trout water; confirm current stocked sections and dates with the Fish & Boat Commission.

Access & parking

Getting there: The trail begins at the Mile 0 Pine Grove access (in Schuylkill County); the Mile 5 (Swopes Valley), Mile 11 (Waterville / Appalachian Trail bridge), and Mile 13 (Lickdale) accesses lie in the Pine Grove–Swatara State Park corridor straddling the Schuylkill/Lebanon line.

Sources

PA DCNR Trails — Swatara Creek Water Trail
Source type: government
Swatara Watershed Association — water-trail access points
Source type: publisher

Frequently asked

Where does the Swatara Creek Water Trail start in Schuylkill County?: Its Mile 0 access is at Pine Grove, unambiguously in Schuylkill County; from there the trail runs down the creek through the Swatara State Park corridor and on into Lebanon and Dauphin counties. A DCNR launch permit or boat registration is required to launch within Swatara State Park.

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