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28 . Delaware River

Location: Southeastern New York/northeastern Pennsylvania, about a 2-hour ride from New York City and Newark, New Jersey; a 3-hour ride from Hartford, Connecticut; and a 4-hour ride from Boston, Massachusetts. Full-service airports are available in all four cities.

The East Branch and West Branch of the Delaware River converge just south of the village of Hancock, New York. This Shehawken, a Delaware Indian word meaning “wedding of the waters,” denotes the beginning of the fabled Delaware River. The river is known locally as the “Big D.” It is also called the crown jewel of the Delaware system, well regarded as one of the finest dry-fly fisheries in the country.

The Delaware River drains an area of 14,119 square miles. It flows roughly 420 miles to its termination at Delaware Bay. Along with the East and West Branches, it represents 388 miles of flowing river. It is one of just 19 Great Waters recognized by America’s Great Waters Coalition. The average flow at its termination is 11,550 cubic feet per second (cfs).

In the early 1600s, an East India Company expedition led by Henry Hudson visited the Delaware. This led to the founding of a Dutch colony. The river was known as the South River at the time. What is now referred to as the Hudson River was called the North River. When the English forced out the Dutch in the mid-1660s, they took control of the area. It was at this time that the river was named the Delaware in honor of Sir Thomas West, 3rd Baron De La Warr, the Virginia colony’s first governor.

Fed by the twin tailwaters of the East and West Branches, the first 12 miles of the Delaware remain cool enough to be conducive to trout year-round. Trout range extends downstream from Hancock to Narrowsburg during the springtime months. The Delaware is a large freestone river with classic riffle-run-pool structure that provides a perfect habitat for the wild rainbow and brown trout, as well as myriad aquatic insects.