Is There Whitewater Rafting in York County? Holtwood Whitewater Park

There is whitewater in York County, but not rafting. Holtwood Whitewater Park is a Class III kayak play park built at the foot of Holtwood Dam on the river-right, York County bank of the Susquehanna in Lower Chanceford Township, and it only runs when Brookfield Renewable schedules a water release. Rafts and tubes are not allowed, and helmets and life jackets are required.

I made the video below and the three aerials on a release day. It is one of the least-known places in the county and one of the loudest.

What is Holtwood Whitewater Park?

It is a man-made set of rapids fed by a gate in the dam. Holtwood Dam was finished in 1910, is 55 feet tall and 2,392 feet long, and spans the river between Martic Township in Lancaster County and Lower Chanceford Township in York County. When the dam's federal license was renewed, American Whitewater negotiated a settlement that required the operator, then PPL, to build a play park and guarantee 264 hours of releases a year to replace whitewater lost to the project. The park, reported at about $4 million, opened to paddlers in the fall of 2014. Brookfield Renewable runs the dam today. The park sits at the base of the old fish ladder on the river-right shore, just upstream of the Route 372 Norman Wood Bridge: a fast breaking wave at the top, a strong hole in the middle and a small wave at the outflow.

Can I raft or tube it?

No. Brookfield's rules are plain: only appropriate whitewater craft, helmet and PFD required, rafts and tubes not allowed. American Whitewater rates it Class III for intermediate and advanced paddlers; swimmers are not permitted and beginners are discouraged. If you do not paddle, you come to watch from the spectator space. The annual Holtwood Rodeo, a freestyle kayak competition, is held here.

When does the water run?

Only on the published schedule, at a projected 1,100 cubic feet per second. As of September 2026 Brookfield's Safe Waters page lists three windows: March through May, weekdays 3 to 6 p.m. and weekends 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; July and August, evenings and weekend mornings only when river flow is above 31,500 cfs; and October, weekdays 3 to 6 p.m. and weekends 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. There is no release when water is spilling over the six-foot flashboards on the dam. Check safewaters.com before you drive down.

What else is at Holtwood?

Brookfield keeps several public areas around the dam. Along Route 372 near the Norman Wood Bridge is the Lock 12 Historic Area, a canal lock built between 1836 and 1839. Lake Aldred, the 2,400-acre pool behind the dam, is open to boating, water skiing and fishing, with a wheelchair-accessible pier in the tailrace. Weise Island has a sandy day-use beach, and the Otter Creek and Pequea Creek campgrounds have more than 150 sites.

Who does this matter to?

Buyers looking at Delta, Airville, Lower Chanceford and Peach Bottom, the corner of the county where the river gorge and the Mason-Dixon Trail are your back yard. It is a long drive to York or Lancaster; the trade is land, quiet and this river. South Eastern School District, which covers this area, had a median sale price of $380,000 for January through August 2026.

If the southeast corner of the county is on your list, I know the roads down there and which properties actually have river access. Call or text me at 717-356-9413.