Lehigh River: Walnutport (21-Sept-2016)

Out for a short paddle down the Lehigh River and up the Lehigh Canal. Started and ended this trip at a park in Walnutport. I worked on this section a few times earlier this year and wanted to see what it is like now. Without much rain the river is still running low and I thought this section might be somewhat difficult. 

On my last trips I stuck to the left side of the river. This time I paddled right across and worked my way down river right. Luckily the water was a little deeper on the right side of the river.

The trash collecting started off slow. Only a few bottles to start and the tv above was my first and only larger item of the day. The screen was broken and I only took the plastic shell. I did not feel comfortable paddling with the large shards of glass from the screen nor the rusty metal piece that was left behind when I took the shell. With the broken glass there is too much of a chance my bags will be cut and I do not want to loose any of the trash I remove from the river while paddling. 

I found it! Just under the surface of the water is a blue truck cap. Last year it was up river just below Lehigh Gap. This year I hadn't seen it and had wondered where it had gone. I don't know what to do with larger items like this. I am sure if I left it by a dumpster or a trash can at a riverside park, the park probably wouldn't be that happy in having to dispose of it. Until I can come up for someplace for it to go, it has to stay in the river. I honestly don't even know if I could remove it by myself either. 

A few of the smaller plastic items picked up from the right bank. I don't often find six pack rings. I made sure to break all of the rings before putting it in the trash bag. I don't know what the tubing was for. Only about a foot section was visible and when I pulled on it, it just kept coming. 

I got out for a couple jugs and other plastic items and when I sat back in my kayak I noticed this on the river bottom. Anyone need a slightly used umbrella? 

Stopped at the top of an island I have worked on before. On previous trips I picked through debris piles on the lower end of the island that were just packed full of trash. This time I explored the upper and mid sections of the island. 

Starting off I found a lot of beer and other cans. The way some of them were placed it was clear that these were not wash down, but that someone had a party here. There was also a diaper, this too did not look like it had washed down the river. I keep finding more and more diapers in places that people really should not be taking babies to.

In the mid section of the island it was mostly older items. I did my best to pick through, however I know I didn't get everything. 

The first pile from the island. The diaper was the only thing in the black bag that came from the island. 

Went back to the middle of the island and worked on it some more after loading up the other trash and moving my boat to a more secure location. On the left is what I think is an old plastic rim from the front of a child's tricycle. On the right a piece of a bucket in a tree. 

I couldn't take a bag with me into the interior of the island, too many thorns and other things that could possibly tear it. Instead I improvised and used the broken bucket to collect and haul things out. 

The second pile from this island. By this point it was getting late in the day and although I didn't go far I knew I needed to get back and I still had the canal to paddle. I sorted the recyclables out and loaded everything into the boat. 

There was a take out right across the channel so I walked the kayak across and hauled everything up to the canal side. 

When I got up to the canal I was very happy I didn't go any further. Work is currently being done on the lock here and the canal below it is drained. It would have taken me forever to drag my kayak back the canal path had I kept going down the river. 

Above the lock the canal was at normal levels and I had no problem paddling up it. Along the sides I did pick up a good amount of trash. This section of canal was really a mess. I think it looked worse this time than my last couple paddles through. Many plastic bags and recyclable items. 

Found some older stuff too. On the left a round bottomed 2-liter bottle and on the right a pull tab can.

Next to the one public dock there were lots of bait containers. There is no reason for this at all, trash cans are not far away from this location. 

Back at the park I hauled my kayak out of the canal then drug it to the parking lot. The hull was also full of recyclables. 

The was everything, a tv shell, a full bag on non-recyclables and a bunch of bottles and cans. Non-recyclables went in a dumpster and the rest was loaded into and onto my car. A lot of trash for a short trip.
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 project? Like it on Facebook: Taking Out the Trash in Eastern PA

Lehigh River: Walnutport (16-Sept-2016)

For this trip I drove down river to Walnutport. There I can access the canal, paddle up, then take the river back down to my car. I did this same trip earlier this year and I wanted to see what accumulated in both the canal and river over the summer. The canal like the river was low, this was a little odd normally the canals depth is regulated by the locks that have been converted into dams and not the height of the river the canal draws its water from. I would see later in the trip that the river was so low that there was barely any water flowing into the canal at all. That changes things and was most likely the reason for the low water in the canal. 

I did not find much in the canal. It was actually a lot less than I found in the spring. I am now interested to see what the lower portions of this section look like. I wonder if they will be the same or if all the trash has just accumulated further down?

Couldn't ask for a nicer day for paddling. Not too hot, not too cold, just right! Not much further up from this point the canals depth did become a slight issue. There was one area where I was only in a couple inches of water and really had to push through to make it. In that section I did see one can I couldn't get to. 

Once through the shallow area, something further up the canal caught my eye. It was swimming across from the canal path to the wooded side of the canal. I picked up the pace and as I got closer it was exiting the water. A Raccoon! In my encounters with healthy Raccoons in the past, they normally don't stick around for photos. This one was very slow and spent a good amount of time watching me. It didn't seem to care that I was getting closer either. 

 

It is best to keep your distance from any Raccoon, especially one that is acting in an odd manor. For the most part Raccoons are active in the evening into the night and not during the day. There are always exceptions though, so daytime activity doesn't necessarily mean that a Raccoon is rabid. I watched it until it moved up into the woods and went behind a tree. It continued watching me to, even from behind the tree. 

Not long after seeing the Raccoon I made it to the lock and ran out of navigable canal. It was at this spot I could see there was just a trickle of water coming in from the river. At the end of the lock, there was a small portage to the river. In the spring when I did this same clean-up, there was a well defined path to the river near where I got out of the canal. Today it was overgrown and I had to find a different way down. 

When I set out I did not have a specific trash goal set for myself, but I did have the goal of not getting my shoes wet. I was able to manage it yesterday, the river height though made this goal impossible. 

The first stop on the river where I found a large amount of trash. This particular spot was much worse last year and since there really were no high water events I think most of this is stuff I missed on previous trips. 

At this stop I just kept finding more and more. I picked through several debris piles and walked a dry channel on the side of the river. The large items found here included a tent, a canoe end, a insertable kayak hold (sticker still intact and looked new), garbage can and whitewater bucket. It really does aggravate me when I find the whitewater buckets, paddles and other items that are clearly from companies profiting off of using the river. They do not do enough to limit refuse their patrons add to the river, nor do they do enough to clean up these items lost on their trips. I have found whitewater buckets as far down as the Delaware River and whitewater paddles as far down as the islands just above Easton. 

I said yesterday that I wouldn't like paddling on moving water with trash piled up in front of me to the point I couldn't see downriver. This was the only way it worked with the amount of trash and how I could attach the larger items to the boat. It became an interesting paddle after this and there were few small rapids after this that I had to navigate. 

The second tent of the day. I find too many of them along the river. In the water wildlife can become entangled and trapped in them and removing them from debris piles or wrapped around trees isn't easy. Do people know these are not single use items and that zippers and poles can be repaired?

This section of bank had mostly newer washed up items along it. I floated the kayak as I walked it picking everything up. 

Back on the water I heard an Osprey and looked up. Man did I get a show! The Osprey had a fish and was being pursued by a Bald Eagle. My camera was in my dry bag under the large bag of trash on the front of my kayak and I had to scramble to get it out. I was thinking they would be gone before I did, but to my amazement the chase continued and they flew in large circles over the river staying in my immediate area. I watched this for over five minutes. 

Both birds had to be exhausted by the end. The Osprey came out to be the winner when the Eagle ended its pursuit. The Osprey headed up river and the Eagle down. 

Not long after the aerial show, I paddled over to this thinking it was trash. Instead it was the remains of a small Common Snapping Turtle. 

Identifying a Common Snapper is easy even with just a sun bleached shell remaining. The photo on the left is of the carapace which is the top portion of the shell. Common Snapping Turtles are the only species native to Pennsylvania that had a jagged edge on the back end of the Carapace. The right photo is half of the plastron, the bottom portion of the shell. Snapping and Musk Turtles have reduced plastrons. This means they cover much less surface area of the bottom of the turtle than the other species we have in the state. In this case if only the plastron piece was found you could still tell it is a snapper just by the size. Common Musk Turtles are tiny in comparison to snappers. 

The last section of the river was not deep enough to paddle and I had to walk and float the kayak. 

My final trash collecting stop was under the bridge in Walnutport. The sun was starting to go down and it was not a place I really wanted to be. I quickly grabbed everything I could see, piled it up, then packed it into the boat.

The launch was not far after the bridge. It is brand new as of this year and this was the first time I have used it and this parking area. This was also the first time I have seen it where it wasn't packed. I don't think I could have removed much more of the river than I did on this trip at least with the larger items I picked up. I disposed of the bag of non-recyclables in the trash can in the back and placed the larger items, canoe piece, garbage can and kayak hold next to a trash can further from the river. I never like leaving larger trash items too close to the river, there is just too much of a chance that someone might help the items find their way back into the water. 

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

Lehigh Canal: Bethlehem to Allentown (17-June-2016)

Back on the canal in Sand Island, Bethlehem. Thought the trip up to Allentown would be quicker this time after just completing this trip a couple days prior. The main goal of the day was to take trash off of the river and the canal was meant to just be a way to make it up river with only one car. 

Almost right away I started finding items I missed on the last trip. In this particular area there were fishermen the last time and I hugged the other bank when traveling through. 

Spotted this hatchling from a distance and immediately I knew it was a non-native Red-Eared Slider. Native Painted Turtles are similar in shape, the carapace is black, this was very green. I paddled over and this little turtle didn't even move. I picked him up and had a kayaking partner for the rest of the trip. Once caught it is unlawful to release Red-Eared Sliders. They do not belong in our waterways and I will find this one a new home.

I enjoyed paddling this particular section. Cleared out all the visible trash on the last trip, it is nice just being able to paddle strait through sometimes and not having to make frequent trash stops. 

One of many American Bullfrogs I went by. When there isn't as much trash to spot, more wildlife can be seen!

More trash than I had hoped by the portage point, not too bad though. I used the trash can at this point to get rid of the basketball which was full of water and impossible to drain out. I did not have a good way to secure it so disposing of it here was the best option.

Someone had moved things around since I cleaned up around this can, the fishing rod I put in there was gone, but everything else hadn't been picked up. Cleaned up a few items around the can, left the basketball and got back on the canal. 

Plucked this from the bottom of the canal. To me this is just ridiculous waste. Who needs a plastic chicken container that fits in their car's cup holder? We waste so much! 

A Juvenile Snapping Turtle. It was just hanging out in the water and didn't even try swimming away when I paddled up to it. Even a Snapping Turtle this size can draw blood, if you do not know how to handle a turtle like this I would suggest not picking them up at all. A fishing license is required in PA to catch any reptiles or amphibians even if you do release them immediately. Follow the laws and help support our law enforcement by buying a fishing license. 

This section had a little more trash than the lower. Still not bad and not too many trains were moving in the yard next to the canal. The trains can be noisy with screeching breaks on some days. 

The canal in the section where I found this Northern Water Snake basking on overhanging branches is narrow and there is a current. While taking this photo the current pushed me into the branches and the snake did not move at all. It must have really liked that basking spot, at the closest point I was only a couple feet away. 

When reaching for the bottle I noticed this Common Musk Turtle underneath it. Picked up both in the same grab. The bottle went into the boat and the Musk Turtle went right back to where it was in the canal. 

The basket sank since the last visit. I didn't want to, but felt I had to remove it. After finding a dead chicken when moving the blue cloth last time, I just figured that's what it was full of. I was surprised when I lifted it out of the water and fruit, vegetables and eggs came out. The chicken was gone. How does a nice basket like this with all of the food inside end up in the canal? 

This roll up sled was caught in a strainer near the take out. 

Not as much as the last trip, still more than I had hoped to find. I threw the non-recyclables away, packed up the recyclables and headed down to the river to paddle back to Bethlehem. 
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 project? Like it on Facebook: Taking Out the Trash in Eastern PA