Middle Creek (4-Mar-2017)

I had never been to Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area during the annual waterfowl migration. More than a couple people told me it was a sight to see and when I found out Rick Wiltraut from Jacobsburg Environmental Education Center was running a program there, I had to go. Most of the group drove down with Rick from Jacobsburg and some of us met them there. For me it was closer just to drive to Middle Creek. Above Rick is starting the program in Middle Creek's Education Center. He explained the importance of the Management Area and went over the species that we might come across while taking the tour. From the center it was down to the water! 

Tundra Swans were the first thing I saw. There large size and numbers at the first stop drew me right to them even though there were other birds around. Much of the management area has restricted access, but there are a few places, like this roadside stop where you can get up close to the birds. In total just off the road I would estimate that there were over a hundred Tundras that could be seen. 

These are shots of the group closest to the road. In the photo on the right you can clearly see the size difference between a Tundra Swan and a Canada Goose.

There were many good flybys throughout the day that started with this Great Blue Heron. Over the winter I do not get to see to many of these. Most migrate out of my area during the cold months.

A Canada Goose coming in for a landing. We did see a lot of Canadas on the water, but no where near the numbers of Tundra Swans and Snow Geese.

A small group of American Coots were swimming and feeding close to the road. None of the birds seemed to mind all of the people standing on the side with cameras, scopes and binoculars. 

The group from Jacobsburg taking in all of the birds. As you can see everyone is bundled up. Temperatures which had been unusually warm dropped sharply and it felt like we were thrown back into winter. 

At a stop on the driving tour of the management area, we had our closest look at Northern Pintail flying over head. 

At the same stop as the Pintail I got my favorite photo from the trip. Three Tundra Swans went right overhead!

The main flock of Snow Geese were on a smaller pond in a restricted area. Here the group is getting a very distant look at the birds that numbered in the tens of thousands. 

The geese blanketed much of the pond and some of the surrounding fields. This was really the best look we had at them all day. 

This Snow Goose was all alone in a field. It looked as though it may have a wing issue. With so many geese in one area there are bound to be some that get injured. If this goose couldn't fly, it most likely fed some of the other local wildlife.

As a result of the cold snap we weren't seeing as many species as we had hoped so the group decided to start heading back and bird another location where recently a rare bird had been sighted. Tyler Sacks and I did one more walk to a point on the lake before leaving. I was happy I stayed. Going out to the point we found the main group of Tundra Swans! There had to have been around a thousand! After walking back, both Tyler and I decided to try to catch up with the group.

We did find them and although we did not see the rare bird we were looking for we did make a stop to see a common bird with a rare coloration. This is a wild leucistic Red-tailed Hawk. It is amazing that this almost entirely white bird survived into adulthood and seems to be doing well. 

From this view you can see some red in the tail feathers. It was a cool bird to see and it was awesome that it flew towards us when we stopped. For such a cold day this was a great program. If you would like to see other programs Jacobsburg Environmental Education Center offers throughout the year you can visit: Jacobsburg's Calendar of Events.

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Beltzville Gamelands (16-Feb-2017)

Not that long ago I had checked out a problem spot at one of the gamelands accesses at Beltzville Lake. At the time it was too cold to do a clean-up, but there was enough trash for me to come back and remove. On this trip I did just that. Above is just a Canada Goose that was near the trailhead where I came out to the lake.

I walked a small portion of lakeside before getting to the problem area. Along it I did find a few items, not too much though. 

Then I got to the problem area and started removing the trash. This area was a little worse last year, still it is very annoying having to do it all again and knowing it will probably be a mess again at the end of the year.

This was the pile by the time I was done. I was happy I found some grocery bags because there definitely wasn't enough room in my pack for everything. 

On the way out I picked up the loose items. Because I already had one photo of the rest of the trash, I didn't do an end trash photo and just loaded everything up in the car. 

I made a stop at the Pine Run Boat Launch in the State Park and found this Muskrat hoping out of the water underneath the dock at the launch. It had something in its mouth and it looked as though it was putting whatever it had up into the dock. Maybe it has its own little food storage area under there. 

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Middle Creek Reservoir (14-Nov-2016)

I picked up around a pack full of trash on this trip, but I am not including it in this post. I went to Middle Creek Reservoir in Lancaster County with, father and son, Joe and Jeff Greco. The Reservoir and surrounding lands are owned and managed by the Pennsylvania Game Commission. Although it is State Gamelands a large portion of the area is not open to hunting. Migratory birds use this large waterbody as a stop on their long journeys and at times hundreds of thousands of geese and other waterfowl can be seen congregating on the water. By not allowing hunting here, the Game Commission has given these migratory birds a large safe haven for them to rest and feed. We were too early for the large migrations of Snow Geese, but on sections there were many Canada Geese. Our main goal for this trip was to see a variety of duck species and we managed to do just that.

Here Joe is scanning a smaller pond disconnected from the main lake by the road. All of the waterfowl here stuck to the far shore and nothing really came in close. Joe and Jeff did spot Canada Geese, Black Ducks, Mallards, Mergansers, Ring-Necked Ducks, Gadwall and an American Coot the first time we stoped at this location. 

The visitors center was closed on Mondays, but we did park at it and did some birding around it. If you are interested in going to the visitors center it is always closed on Mondays and during the winter from Thanksgiving to January 31st. Above is a Red-Bellied Woodpecker that was in one of the trees around the center. 

I walked down one of the access roads while Joe and Jeff were birding around a small empty impoundment. Somehow I spotted this Brown Creeper and by the time they caught up with me it was gone. They said this was hardest bird to find out of all that we saw on the trip. I wish they could have seen it too. 

This is a mammal that shouldn't be found in wildlife management areas. Feral house cats are very good at stalking and killing wild birds and other small wildlife. If you have a house cat please keep them indoors and never release them into wild areas. They really can do a lot of damage to our native wildlife. This was one of several we noticed around the management area. 

These deer looked like they knew they were in a protected area and didn't pay too much attention to us. We passed this small group a couple times and they didn't move far from where we spotted them in the morning. 

Canada Goose on the left and Ring-Necked Ducks in the middle and to the right. You can click on the photos to enlarge them for a better look. 

In this photo there are Common Mergansers to the left, a Gadwall with wings up in the center and in the back and to the left Canada Geese.

The only bird in focus and in flight in this shot is the one bird I wanted to see on this trip. It is a Northern Shoveler and this was only the second time I have ever seen one. They get there name from their wide, long bill which kind of resembles a shovel. 

I didn't take many photos of the main portion of the reservoir. There was very limited access at this time of year and most of the birds that were close on the water were Canada Geese. 

A Pileated Woodpecker flying over the reservoir. I have been trying for a long time to get closer photos of a Pileated. For me that seems to be impossible. 

A special thanks to Joe and Jeff Greco for letting me tag along. Before I left for home I got to see this Opossum in their yard. I hope that you, the reader, have enjoyed the photos. I would have done more trash collecting on this trip, had I been able to access some of the areas. I could see a lot of trash on the waters edge at least in the areas along the road. During the summer when there are not large numbers of waterfowl the reservoir is open to boating and I do plan on going back for an on the water clean-up. 

You too can help with taking out the trash! If you get out hiking take a grocery bag with you, give it a second use and fill it with trash while you are out! Every bit helps. You can also help contributing to this project here: Help Fund Taking Out the Trash

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Lehigh River (24-Apr-2016)

When I set out on this trip the idea was to start in Walnutport and float down the river until I got to the very end of where the canal holds water. I wasn't going to pick up much on the river and I was mainly going to work on the canal which really needs it. Little did I know these plans would change quickly and I would end up with a lot of trash and hardly any of it from the canal.

The view from just setting out on the water. My original idea had me paddling through and far past the bridge pillars that can be seen in the distance. I ended up making it to them, just no farther. 

Along the river bank I noticed a bucket and some other smaller items. I too, noticed this Canada Goose on a nest. I saw it yesterday and just kept paddling. Today I figured I would see if I could get the items without bothering it that much. I kept my distance never coming within fifteen feet of it when I was out of the boat and it never moved or hissed. It did keep an eye on me though. 

Normally when I find a bottle like this it is just a broken top. When I lifted this one a whole bottle came out. If only there was a time lapse of how the sediment filled in around it. The bottle was perfectly upright. For some reason my mind runs through all of the possibly scenarios as to how this could have occurred. Funny how even an average trash item can be interesting to me.  

After starting I kept working the bank, hitting areas I didn't yesterday. Small pile, after pile, I began filling my kayak. 

From a distance this island looks clean. I went right by it yesterday. I did see some things while passing it on the side, but the water is faster on the side and by the time noticed a good place to stop I was already down river. I stopped at the head of the island this time, secured my boat and started searching. I really didn't expect to find that much. 

It was here I realized my plan for the day was basically over. If it kept going like this I wouldn't be able to take anything off of the canal. I had no clue what I was about to find further down the island. 

On the last trip I noticed a small cove further down the island and I decided to try to stop there. It wasn't hard to do and there were a few cans in the area. I then walked into the interior of the island and quickly realized I would be spending the majority of the rest of the trip there. 

This is the before and after of one of the debris piles on the island. There were two large piles and trash strewn about not in the piles. I got to work picking the plastic and styrofoam, I realized I couldn't take all of the trash, so those items were the main focus. I would like to point out once again that if you come across a debris pile like this you should stay away from it. They are often unstable, contain sharp objects that can be hidden and sometimes have wasps nesting in them. Be smart, stay safe and stay off of debris piles. 

You never know what you are going to find in a large debris pile. Mario on a cap, with a santa hat and beard. I never saw that one coming. An inflatable whale, well not something I find on a regular basis, but is something I have seen on the river before. 

From a distance I could see this large gas can tucked away in some Knotweed. I had to get it, in the summer the Knotweed will be so thick you wouldn't be able to see the can. On a side note, Japanese Knotweed is a non-native species. It likes river and stream side environments and thrives here in Pennsylvania. It is very problematic and in some places has taken over large sections of bank from our native plant communities. Instead of a multitude of species, we end up with just knotweed. It is also extremely hard to get rid of.

After collecting this pile from the island I was left to ponder how I would possibly be fitting everything into my kayak which already had a fair amount of trash in it. I came up with a plan and I put it into action. First I took the garbage bag from the boat and packed it with all the non-recyclables, excluding the whale. Then I started crushing down the plastic bottles and packed them into the back of the boat, the gas can and the bucket on the bow of my boat in the photo. I was still left with more bottles and the whale. The whale went on the stern deck underneath the non-recyclable bag and the remaining bottles I reluctantly shoved inside the front of my boat. I do not like items inside the front of the boat. It makes it really uncomfortable and hard to get in and out in a hurry.

You may be wondering, how did he shove plastic bottles into a gas container? For some reason the previous owner of it cut the top and side, in a manner that it was like the top and side had little swinging doors. I can't come up with any purpose that would serve, but it worked for what I needed.  

With a full boat I formulated a new plan. I was going to round the island and paddle up river on the opposite side of the island. Not far above the island is a place labeled the Old Swimming Hole and there are steps leading up to the canal. Definitely the easiest way to get everything back to the car.

This plan worked out well. I was able to paddle a little more than half way up the island. The current wasn't bad and it was the depth that kept me from paddling further up. I walked the boat the rest of the way to my desired take out and it was pretty simple. 

I did have to unload, walk up and reload all the trash on the deck, wasn't that bad. On the canal I did pick up four plastic bottles, only did that because they were easy grabs. 

After laying everything out like this I just was puzzled as to how I fit everything in and on the kayak. If you look closely I didn't even empty out the bucket and gas container into the plastic bottle pile. So much stuff and I didn't even touch the canal as far as trash removal which was the intended goal of the day. I will try to be back to the area again soon. I think tomorrow will be a tire removal day in the gorge. 

While packing up all of the trash I met the Fly Guy a local fly fisherman and sponsor of the Lehigh River Stocking Association. We talked trash and flies and he showed me some of his creations. I was  impressed, not only do they look real, but each one is meant to mimic a real species at a certain life stage. Thank you Fly Guy for sharing and I hope you real in some monster trout this year!

You too can help with taking out the trash! If you get out hiking take a grocery bag with you, give it a second use and fill it with trash while you are out! Every bit helps. You can also help contributing to this project here: Help Fund Taking Out the Trash

Like this blog? Like it on Facebook: Taking Out the Trash in Eastern PA