Mauch Chunk Lake (11-Apr-2016)

April showers again, this made me decide to stick close to home and head back to Mauch Chunk Lake to finish off the dam. When I arrived the rain had stopped, but by the time I got down to the lake it started up again. It was off and on the whole time I was out. Much warmer than the past couple days and was actually a nice day for a clean-up. 

Cans were some of the first items I found. The one on the left was unopened the one on the right half full. The amount of trash would be greatly reduced if people just followed the parks rules and didn't drink by the lake.

First lure of the day and it was a different one. The main body was the normal hard plastic, but the tail was rubbery. I would be interested to see how this actually works when fishing and if it attracts fish any better.

The goal was to clean this part of the dam. It isn't the easiest to walk and there was a lot of trash between the rocks. I started working my way across and thought it would probably be better if I started at the other end and worked the area back. So that's what I did. 

That's a whole reels worth of fishing line. My guess is someone decided to change the line while on the dam. Of course a whole between the rocks is just like a trash can, so that's where they put it. 

Many bottles. Most were easy to grab, but there were a couple that I couldn't understand how they got wedged in the way they were.

This was on the dam as well. I can tell it is snake bones, most likely from a Northern Watersnake, but with what I had I could not determine species. I hope the snake died of natural causes, it really is a shame when people kill them just because they are what they are.

Looking up the lake near the end of the walk back. The water was calm and I was thinking the whole time this would have been a much better day compared to what I dealt with yesterday. 

By the end I had close to a bag and a pack full. More productive than yesterday and even with the rain I didn't get soaked. 

This was it. Since most of this was hidden from sight between the rocks, most people that visit the area or walk over the dam don't realize how trashy it really is. 

I had Penny along on this clean-up and for her we took another walk further up the lake. I took this on the walk and it was my favorite photo of the day. 

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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