NCJCS 2015

Thank You to the Students and Staff of the Northampton County Junior Conservation School 2015! Normally during the week of NCJCS the students are taken on a two day canoe trip down the Delaware River. This year the Delaware was too high to safely take a group on. So we ended up doing a section of the Lehigh from Sand Island in Bethlehem to the Route 33 access in Easton. There are four main goals for the students, follow what they have learned about river safety, have fun, learn about their surroundings while paddling and collect as much trash as possible. They did a great job at this for the short amount of time they had on the water!

I would also like to thank the DCNR educators Rick and Andy, that joined us on the trip. In this photo they are trying to get a good shot of the juvenile peregrine falcon they had just pointed out to the students. Having knowledgable staff along that know wildlife and ecosystems really helps to not only put a name on things that are found, but also give the students information about them.

The juvenile peregrine. The adults were also close by on a building where they nest.

For me this is my favorite photo in this post. Seeing others cleaning up makes me smile and especially when it is the younger generations.

This was my haul for the trip. Two bags of assorted items, three tv fronts (bottoms stuck in the riverbank), one tire, multiple cans and one large piece of foam insulation. I do have to say that a Mr. Tyler Sacks did help fill up the bags. So, I didn't collect all of it.

This was a mystery item that I collected off of a strainer. It was a cooler wrapped in a tied plastic bag. The mystery part was what was inside. The horrible thing was I had to find out. By the smell it was clearly something dead. The question that needed answering was what? At the boat ramp I did finally open it. I was relieved to see fish bones and food packaging. If you ever find something like this on the river or in the woods and it clearly smells like death, it is best to inform the local law enforcement and not open it yourself.

Once again, Thank You Students and Staff of NCJCS 2015! You made a difference on the Lehigh this year!