Wappinger Creek

Wappinger Creek (Ma-we-na-wasigh)
Wappinger Creek at Red Oaks Mill at high flow
Name origin: Native American Indians known as the "Wappingers"
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Dutchess
Municipality	Wappingers, New York, Poughkeepsie
Source	Thompson Pond
- location	Pine Plains
Mouth	Hudson River
- location	New Hamburg, New York, Dutchess County, USA
- coordinates	41°34′56″N 73°56′52″W / 41.5823158°N 73.9479157°W / 41.5823158; -73.9479157Coordinates: 41°34′56″N 73°56′52″W / 41.5823158°N 73.9479157°W / 41.5823158; -73.9479157
Length	41.7 mi (67 km), North–south
Wappinger Creek Watershed

Wappinger Creek is a 41.7-mile-long (67.1 km) creek which runs from Thompson Pond to the Hudson River at New Hamburg in Dutchess County, New York, United States. It is the longest creek in Dutchess County, with the largest watershed in the county.

The creek flows in a north–south direction on the eastern side of the Hudson River. The creek's source is Thompson Pond near Pine Plains, and it heads southwestward towards its mouth in the Hudson River near New Hamburg. Along the way, it goes through fluctuations in width and follows an erratic path; in Wappingers Falls, it forms Wappinger Lake, a man-made reservoir. The initial .25 mi (0.40 km) of the creek runs through rocky, steep, wooded terrain. However as it approaches the Hudson it enters the river's tidal range, and has sandbars, mudflats and marshes. The creek is also home to numerous species, and is an important spawning area for anadromous fish, which thrive in the creek between April and June. Largemouth bass, bluegill, pumpkinseed, red-breasted sunfish, and brown bullhead, however, are resident species. Also, the creek is annually stocked with various species of trout for the purpose of recreational fishing. Some residents and maps such as the 1867 Dutchess County Atlas refer to the creek as the Wappingers, as does the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, the National Weather Service, and the Hudson River Riverkeeper.

Wappinger Creek has four distinct tributaries; the longest of which is Little Wappinger Creek which enters the creek from the east bank.