Mauch Chunk Lake Park: Switchback Trail (26-Jan-2017)

I started off the day at Owl Creek Reservoir to try to get some photos of Red Crossbills that were overwintering there. Although distant, I was able to get a couple shots, one of which I have at the end of this post. I didn't want to go too far from Owl Creek for my clean-up so I decided to check out the condition of the Switchback Trail below Mauch Chunk Lake. You can access this trail by the dam or further towards Jim Thorpe where the trail ends. I tend to start at the access closest to Jim Thorpe. 

For the most part it was the usual kind of trail clean-up. A bottle here, a bottle there just off of the side of the trail.

I did find a couple places where there was a pile. Here someone bagged up bottles and other items and threw them in some Rhododendron. Near by there was another larger Rhododendron that had a lot of loose items underneath it. Through my experience of doing these clean-ups I have learned that a lot of people like throwing garbage into Rhododendrons and these plants do hide it well. In some cases it also makes retrieving the items much harder than it needs to be.

I went strait down the trail to the lake and back. On the return I found some items I didn't see on the way out. I wasn't sure if I would be able to get these bottles or if the debris caught on the log would support my weight. Luckily it did and I was able to retrieve them. I did have to leave some items I saw on the opposite side of the stream. It was too cold and I had no place to cross to retrieve them. 

This was a lot of trash for this section of trail. It really isn't that far from the lake to the end. This area gets a lot of traffic during the summer, both tourists and locals. I wish I could think of some way to reduce litter in areas like this. Many would say it's the tourists that leave the place a mess and I know that isn't always true, locals are just as bad. How do you just get everyone to pick up after themselves? It should be easy and more people should care. 

These next three photos are all from Owl Creek Reservoir earlier in the day. Above is a Brown Creeper. It blends in nicely with the tree and if you are having trouble spotting it you can click on the photo to enlarge it.

There were many Red-breasted Nuthatches within the pines at Owl Creek. Most tend to only briefly check me out then go about their business. This individual stuck around for awhile and allowed me to photograph it. Red-breasted Nuthatches spend most of the year further north. During winters where there is a lack of food in there northern range they will head south to areas with a greater abundance. This year I have seen more Red-breasted Nuthatches than any other year and even have a regular one at my feeders. As the temperatures rise in spring they will migrate back north to their nesting areas. 

Another visitor from the north. This is the Red Crossbill. I have tried on multiple occasions to photograph this species at Owl Creek. I do not see them on every visit and when I do they do not stick around in one place for too long. They seem to like to feed towards the top of the pines and have many different trees that they like to frequent. I found that the best way of finding them is not to look for them at all. Just go on a hike and hope that they show up in a nearby tree. Like the Red-breasted Nuthatch this species will migrate back north to nest. 
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Switchback Trail (9-June-2016)

When I set out the intention was to go back to Glen Onoco access and work on pulling more tires off of the riverside. That plan changed because of traffic. A new bridge is nearing the end of construction in Jim Thorpe and for some reason the traffic was really backed up there. I took the quickest way out of the stopped traffic and that led me away from Glen Onoco and to the Switchback Trail below Mauch Chunk Lake. 

Mauch Chunk Creek borders the Switchback most of the way up to the lake. This area is popular for hiking, trout fishing and there is a campground that borders the stream. Unfortunately, all of these things lead to litter.  

I don't think I have ever come to this dam and not found trash. This trip was no exception. 

These items were on the other side of the dam and I had to get my feet wet to get them. 

There was not a whole lot of trash along the Switchback itself. I took a couple side trails and did end up finding more.

These were off of one of the side trails. I also took the Board Bottom Trail, not much trash on that one either. From there I headed down another small trail to the creek and then followed that up to the lake. 

The rain this past week must have spurred the fungus to start growing. This is a Coral Fungus and is very common in this area. I often find it even growing on trails, just generally not at this time of year. 

This is how the entirety of this stream should look. There are no trails here, there are trees down everywhere and there is a visible difference in biodiversity compared to the section along the switchback. What is the difference and what makes this area so much nicer to me? Human impact, here there is very little and on the lower section there is a lot. The only signs of humans I found in this particular area was trash and a couple footprints on one of the banks. I fear that in coming years this place will be ruined as well. This is a place I probably won't return to for years. I hope it stays this way, it really is a nearly perfect place. 

Every time I find one of these I just shake my head. There are so many of them still out there and most haven't degraded in any way. This one was buried up to the neck on the creek bed. With only being able to see the top I wasn't sure if I was going to be pulling up a small glass bottle or one of these.

The greatest amount of trash in one area in the creek was caught in strainers just below where the Mauch Chunk Creek flows out of Mauch Chunk Lake. These items most likely came from the lake itself. 

It was the Switchback all the way to the car on the way back. This allowed me to cover some of the areas I missed by taking the Board Bottom and creek detours. 

I think fishing events for kids are great. My only complaint is that those who organize the event make sure they take down all of their signs when the event ends. This contest has was over last month, these plastic laminated signs will most likely end up in the creek. We all need to do more to keep our waterways clean, especially those of use that utilize them for events like this. 

There was a variety of Dragonfly and Damselfly species out and flying. These were two of the most colorful I came across. On the left is a species of Saddleback Dragonfly and on the right is a Damselfly. Although there are some exceptions to the rule, for the most part you can distinguish a dragonfly from a damselfly when they land. At rest dragonflies hold their wings out horizontally, damselflies hold theirs vertically. Like I said there are exceptions, but this is true with most species of each.

One of the highlights of the trip for me. If you look closely there are two Common Snapping Turtles in this photo. They are mating. I have come across snappers mating many times, what made this occasion different was that they were in flowing water. Every other time it was stagnant water and always fairly large turtles. These were smaller and the only reason they were not drifting down stream was they looked to be hung up in a small jam of fallen branches.  

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