North Branch Buffalo Creek begins in a wetland in Haines Township, Centre County.

It flows east-northeast for several tenths of a mile through a deep, narrow valley before exiting Haines Township and Centre County.

The creek then flows between Buck Ridge and Dogback Mountain before turning south-southeast for a few tenths of a mile.

After some distance, the creek turns northeast and then east-northeast, passing through the Mifflinburg Reservoir.

The creek then turns south-southeast for a few miles, passing by Lake McClure and receiving the tributary Coal Run from the right.

It then turns southeast for several tenths of a mile before reaching its confluence with Buffalo Creek.

[2] Some stream reaches in the watershed of North Branch Buffalo Creek are designated as impaired.

[4] On November 29, 1945, the discharge of the creek upstream of the Mifflinburg Reservoir was measured to be 6.28 cubic feet per second (0.178 m3/s).

[4] The waters of a stream in the watershed of North Branch Buffalo Creek in The Hook Natural Area are a dark amber color.

[6] The elevation near the mouth of North Branch Buffalo Creek is 531 feet (162 m) above sea level.

[8] The headwaters of North Branch Buffalo Creek are on rock containing carbonate minerals, such as limestone and dolomite.

[10] North Branch Buffalo Creek flows through a narrow valley surrounded by steep hills in mountainous terrain.

[8] In the northern arm of its jökulhlaup surface, North Branch Buffalo Creek has a braided channel.

The top 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 cm) of this soil are a pale brown, porous loam that contains some organic matter.

[12] A total of 0.1 miles (0.16 km) of streams in the watershed of North Branch Buffalo Creek have fences.

[4] In the early 1900s, the average rate of precipitation in the watershed of North Branch Buffalo Creek was 40 to 45 inches (100 to 110 cm) per year.

[11] A total of 87 percent of the watershed of the main stem of North Branch Buffalo Creek is on forested land.

It is owned by the borough of Mifflinburg and is one of two water supply reservoirs in the Buffalo Creek drainage basin.

[8] North Branch Buffalo Creek was entered into the Geographic Names Information System on August 2, 1979.

[15][16] In 1771, Jacob Fought purchased a tract of land at the mouth of North Branch Buffalo Creek from Captain Joseph Green.

[10] North Branch Buffalo Creek was historically used as the power source of a number of small mills that produced grist, lumber, woolens, and cider.

[8] A steel stringer/multi-beam or girder bridge carrying T-357 was built over North Branch Buffalo Creek in 1954 and is closed.

A two-span prestressed box beam or girder bridge carrying State Route 3007 was built over the creek in 1972.

[19] The drainage basin of North Branch Buffalo Creek upstream of the Mifflinburg Water Supply Dam is designated as Exceptional Value and a Migratory Fishery.

[4] No agricultural stream reaches in the watershed of North Branch Buffalo Creek contain forested riparian buffer strips.

The conifer swamp contains eastern hemlock, rhododendron, peat moss, and various shrubs and herbs.

[6] A reach of North Branch Buffalo Creek is in Bald Eagle State Forest.

[25] Although North Branch Buffalo Creek historically had industrial uses, its main applications in modern times are recreational.