Beltzville State Park (27-Jan-2017)

I wanted to see if there were any accesses around Beltzville Lake that I hadn't yet been to for a clean-up. I thought there might be another on the route 209 side of the lake and I was right. It was at the lower end of the lake and only had a small parking area. From what I found there doesn't seem to be any trailheads here, but there is an old access road down to the lake. 

One of the first pieces of trash I picked up someone kindly placed on the gate and it was an old pull tab can. I don't recall ever finding this brand can before. 

With the water still low in the lake I was able to walk the edge for my trash search. Areas like this would only be accessible by boat when the lake is at normal levels. For some items, like plastic bags entangled in downed trees, it is much easier to remove them when on foot than from a kayak. 

The first finds by the lake were fishing gear, of course line and part of a rod too.

Some things, like this plastic container full of rocks, just make me wonder... What are people doing? Was someone collecting rocks from this spot? Were they trying to hide the container they no longer wanted in the lake by sinking it with rocks? These a questions I will just never have the answers too.  

Balloons are a very common find. You may not think you are littering when you release a balloon into the air, but they do come down eventually and end up where they do not belong. I know I am repeating myself, but if you choose to use balloons for a party, please make sure they are secured and pop and dispose of them properly after the party is over.

I only went a little further than the downed tree in this photo. Most of the trash was around the access point and I wasn't finding much working my way up the bank. 

I did discover this Turtle Platform. Too heavy to move out by foot, this is something that I can come back with a kayak for in warmer weather. You may see these floating generally in coves around lakes or ponds. This one is upside down, the capped pvc pipes keep these tiny rafts afloat and they are tethered to the bottom of the lake. Turtles will use these platforms to bask and in areas that do not have a lot of natural basking spots artificial platforms are perfect. Hopefully the park will be able to use this again!

This was all I collected from the first stop. After loading the trash into my car I headed further up the lake to the Preacher's Camp access.

At Preacher's Camp I took trails that lead down the lake and hit the points where the trails generally meet the water. Most of the time these are the trashiest places. 

This is a small pile from one of the trail access points. Most of the trash was normal except for a bag that looked like it could have been a laptop case. It may have held someone's fishing gear, who knows?

Penny found herself once again tied to a tree as I cleaned up another access to the lake. I think for the most part she enjoys going on these clean-ups, she just doesn't like the waiting when we come to an area with a lot of trash. She does get extra treats when I make her wait tied up like this. 

I walked back along the edge of the lake and collected a few more items. There were some things along this section that I could see on the shore that I just couldn't get to due to thick thorns. When the lake if full I may try to get back along here in the kayak with tongs. I did remove the bottle in this photo. 

The second pile of the day was a little larger than the first. Non-recyclables were disposed of and the recyclables were loaded in the car. Overall it was a good haul for a day in January. 
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State Gamelands and Beltzville State Park (13-Jan-2017)

Again after a clean-up down by the Lehigh, I headed over to Beltzville State Park with the intention of walking Penny and doing a little bit of birding. I stopped at one of the gamelands accesses along the lake and very quickly a leisurely walk turned into another clean-up. Along the paths there were some items, but where the main path at this access runs into the lake there were piles. The piles were a mixture of picnicking and fishing waste with a few oddities like a detergent bottle. 

It also looked as though someone went to the trouble to try to cover the items with branches. I guess the idea was, out of sight, out of mind. Much of the trash looked as though it was bagged at one point, but the time out in the elements had deteriorated the bags. 

Penny once again seemed not to be pleased and again I had to tie her up while I picked up and put this pile together. 

This was everything at this stop. More trash than recyclables this time. I bagged everything up. Did a quick walk around of the parking lot and picked up a few more items, then it was off to the next stop for a walk. 

The Pine Run Access of Beltzville State Park was the next destination. When parking I spotted the Northern Harrier above hunting over the fields. I was hopping to get a closer shot, but Harriers can cover a vast amount of ground in a relatively short time and when I made it over to the field edge it was already way off in the distance. 

Starting down a path that borders the fields and runs to the lake, I felt like I was being watched. Then something else caught my eye in the field. I was being watched! By this White-Tailed Deer. I give this deer credit, it found one place in the park that most humans definitely won't go. Much of the plants surrounding it have thorns and I know I wouldn't want to walk through there. 

Where the path I was on met the lake it splits. Normally I go left which follows the lake for a bit then cuts up on the back edge of the field. This time I went right and of course I found another pile of trash. This time I did not have a burlap sack on hand and was happy to find a bag in the pile so I didn't have to walk back to the car. Above are before and after photos.

This was everything pulled out of the area above. I packed the non-recyclables in the charcoal bag and recyclables went in my pack which I did have on me. 

I found a few more items along the trail which dead ended at the lake. The oddest items were packaging materials for snorkels which you can see sticking out of the bag. In addition to those I did find one snorkel. Non-recyclables were thrown out at the access and recyclables packed into the car.

Ending this post with a Bluebird. I took this photo at Beltzville between stops. There was a small flock that seemed to be enjoying the Staghorn Sumac. This particular one took a break from eating to check me and Penny Out. It took awhile, but Penny did get a good walk in. 

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Frances Slocum State Park (7-Dec-2016)

I was in the area visiting family and decided to do a small clean-up at Frances Slocum. This was only my second time to this park and I still have a lot of it to explore. My first stop was at a boat launch access and from here I worked my way along the bank to a small dam where I picked up most of the trash on this trip. 

The lake is the biggest attraction this park has. I do plan to get out on the water here sometime for a clean-up, but it will have to wait until the spring or summer. On the lake itself there were several dozen Common Mergansers. In this photo the white dot on the right is one, I couldn't get close enough to any for a good photo though. 

This was all of the trash from the first stop. Most lined the base of the dam. As usual the recyclables were loaded into my car and everything else was deposited in one of the cans near the launch. It seemed as though fishermen were the biggest litter offenders at this location. 

In addition to the Common Mergansers, I also came across some common mammals. The Grey Squirrel on the left was chowing down on something on the log and the young White-Tailed buck was nibbling on some small plants. From the angle of the photo of the buck you may not be able to tell it is a male, but it did have two small spikes.

I made another stop in the main portion of the park and took some trails. For the most part the trails away from the lake were pretty clean. On the lake edge and around a picnic area is where almost all of this was found. The kids throwing toy has already found a new home and I can happily say that this specific piece of trash is being used again before it will eventually be discarded. 

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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