Big Cove Creek rises on the west side of
Cove Mountain, just outside the
Buchanan State Forest. It flows southward in the valley between Cove Mountain and
Little Scrub Ridge and
Scrub Ridge, generally paralleling
U.S. Route 522. About four miles south of its source, it passes through
McConnellsburg, the only town of note along its course. About five miles to the south, the creek swings westward and cuts the gap along the south side of
Strawberry Ridge, meeting
Back Run. It now flows in a narrow valley between Scrub Ridge and the northern outliers of
Dickeys Mountain, and is fed by
Roaring Run and
Spring Run. At the hamlet of Big Cove Tannery, Route 522 swings away to cross Scrub Ridge, and
Pennsylvania Route 928 follows the creek south. Just below,
Esther Run cuts a deep gap between Dickeys Mountain and
Lowery Knob to enter it from the east. It passes through an outlying parcel of Buchanan State Forest, then hugs the west side of the valley while Route 928 climbs away on the east side. It finally joins Licking Creek north of the town of
Dickeys Mountain. In 2017, the
Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission announced that a part of Big Cove Creek near
Big Cove Tannery in Fulton County, had been selected as one of 14 Keystone Select Stocked Trout Waters to be stocked with 14- to 20-inch trout. ==Tributaries==