Perkiomen Sojourn (4-June-2016)

This past Saturday I set out to help guide the Perkiomen Sojourn. The section of creek paddled is around nine miles and with over fifty participants it was an all day event. For me this was not a trash collecting trip and the safety of the participants was the number one goal. I did pick up a few things on the way down when I had a chance though. 

This was the ninth annual Perkiomen Creek Sojourn which is put on by the Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy. 

Andrew Curtis another volunteer guide did the safety talk before we set out on the water. 

The group just getting out on the water. 

It turned out to be a great day for paddling. No rain, not much direct sun, it was near perfect. 

In all this was a great group. Everyone knew how to paddle, they followed directions well and this led to the trip ending a little bit earlier than past sojourns I have been on. 

Not every section of the Perkiomen is navigable. This was one of several areas where there was a short walk involved. 

I was able to remove a small pile of trash. I wasn't able to photograph what Tyler removed, but he also had a small pile of mostly recyclable items by the end. 

This very well could be the same Bald Eagle we had run into last Monday. It was kind enough to stop in two separate trees while the group passed by. I think just about everyone who was paddling got to see this eagle. 

The other guides for the Sojourn. Tim, Steve, Andy and Tyler. They helped make this years Sojourn a safe one.

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

Perkiomen Creek Sojourn: Preliminary Run (5-June-2015)

This past Friday I took a paddle down the Perkiomen Creek. Saturday the Perkiomen Watershed Conservancy was running a sojourn and I was one of the guides. Creeks and rivers are ever changing, so before any trip it is good to have someone run the route to make sure there are no hang ups and to plan the best possible route. 

I set out in the afternoon and it was a beautiful day. Sunny, but not too hot and the water levels were low, yet still deep enough to get through most areas easily. 

This Northern Water Snake was the first animal I came across. This individual was not bothered at all by me paddling by and didn't move at all as I passed. 

Three Whitetail deer decided to go for a swim in one of the deeper sections at the start of the trip.

This male Painted Turtle was not quick enough and was caught for a shot. The sex of painted turtles can be easily distinguished by the size of the turtles front claws. Males have long front claws, females generally tend to have short ones. 

This water wheel still sits on the first dam on this section of creek. The dam is blown out in the middle and the wheel has not been functional for some time.

A lot of calm water.

Lots of painted turtles were sitting out basking. Almost every downed tree or log in the river in the sun had at least one on it.

This fawn seemed to be a little curious. It lifted its head and watched me as I drifted by.

One really nice thing was that there was not much trash. I did clean up most of what I could see.

At this point I ended up backtracking a little bit and taking another channel to see if there was a better way to make it around.

This mink wasn't bothered at all with me being there. It came running down the bank and jumped in the water in front of me. It stayed under water much longer than I expected it could and I snapped this shot when it re-emerged and ran back up the bank with a crayfish in its mouth.

This is the main reason to run a creek or river ahead of a trip. This channel was the best way around an island as far as depth, but a blockage like this could cause serious trouble with a group.

Another Northern Water Snake.

This little Red-Eared Slider is a non-native species here in Pennsylvania. It shows that these released turtles are breeding in our waterways. I collected two small sliders on this trip and found them new homes. I would like to point out it is illegal to release any reptiles or amphibians in this state. This species does make life a little bit harder for native species like painted turtles. The more Red-Eared Sliders there are in our waterways the more painted turtles have to compete for resources like basking areas and food.

Great Blue Heron in flight. There were many Great Blues on this section. None wanted to stick around for a photo.

This is some sort of old factory. It looks abandoned, yet isn't in that bad of shape.

A small construction project blocked the right side of the creek.

Up another stream to the take out point.

Finished at Hoy Park. The whole trip only took around 3 hours. It was an extremely nice paddle and it was good to see the amount of wildlife I came across on the trip.

This was it as far as trash. Not much, but still got some out of there!