Angler/Paddler Alert for Union County:

Please be advised while fishing or paddling along Penns Creek downstream of Cherry Run, Union County. A collapsed steel pedestrian bridge has fallen into the water at this location, causing a potentially hazardous obstruction. This obstruction is approximately ½ mile downstream from the confluence with Cherry Run off Weikert Road. The Herndon Rod and Gun Club, which owns the bridge, is tentatively scheduled to remove the structure on May 14th using heavy equipment.

The monthly meeting of the Susquehanna Chapter of Trout Unlimited for Wednesday April 14, 2021 has been changed to 7:00 PM at Covenant Central Church. There will be no brown bag picnic. We will have presentations about our TAG grant, the Get Outdoors Program on May 1 and a discussion about a possible outing in May.

The meeting was previously scheduled to be held at the Trout Run Park and this has been changed to be held at the Covenant Central Presbyterian Church.

Masks are required and social distancing will be practiced.

The April 2021 issue of the Susquehanna Ripples is now available. You can get your copy here

Introducing the New Orvis PRO Dog Waders!

Below is a link to a good article posted on the StateImpact Pennsylvania website.

https://stateimpact.npr.org/pennsylvania/2021/03/26/injection-wells-exist-to-hold-fracking-wastewater-but-the-water-can-move-heres-how/

The following are the results of the Susquehanna Chapter of Trout Unlimited’s raffle for the benefit of the chapter’s Veterans Service Program.  The raffle was held on March 10, 2021 at the beginning of our ZOOM meeting.  It was postponed from February 10 due to problems with the mail. 

1. The first place prize of the Orvis Green Mountain 8’6” flyrod with Orvis Reel, vest loaded with flies and a landing net was won by Dan Lamade.

2. The second place prize of the Orvis Green Mountain flyrod 8’ with Martin Classic reel was won by James Furey.

3. The third place prize of the Orvis Limestone Special 8’ 6” flyrod was won by Amy Kopec.

4. The fourth place prize of the Orvis Small Stream 7’ flyrod was won by Mike Engel.

5. The fifth place prize of the E. Hille Lamiflex  6’, 4 wt. flyrod was won by Glen Lehman.

6. The sixth place prize of the Lamiglass 7’ spinning rod was won by Leslie Miller.

7. The seventh place Browning Gold Medallion 9’ flyrod was won by Mike Engel.

     There were 330 tickets sold and we would like to thank everyone who participated in the raffle.  The proceeds will be used for fly tying equipment and supplies, rod building supplies, and outings for the veterans and first responders in our program.

Susquehanna Chapter TU will be holding its March 10th monthly meeting at 7 pm as a Zoom meeting (link info, below). The first order of business will be the drawing for the prizes in the raffle to raise funds for our Veterans Service Partnership. The main program will be on a current study being done on Loyalsock Creek which has suffered from past coal mining pollution and atmospheric deposition impacts in its upper watershed. Shawn Rummel of the National Trout Unlimited PA Coldwater Habitat Restoration Program and Neil Wolfe of Hedin Environmental will be reviewing findings of a recent Technical Assistance Grant (TAG) study. The TAG study has performed a rapid characterization of several existing abandoned mine discharges (AMD) treatment systems, including a snapshot of water quality and biological assessment of Loyalsock Creek in the stretch just downstream of Lopez. The potential for rehabilitation of existing AMD treatment projects to further reduce metal discharges and improve the alkalinity and quality of water in the mining discharge streams will be discussed.

Partners in the program include Loyalsock Creek Watershed Association, Lycoming College Clean Water Institute, Susquehanna University Freshwater Research Institute, EPCAMR (Eastern PA Coalition for Abandoned Mines Reclamation), and Sullivan County Conservation District.  Our interest in looking at ways to improve the water quality and habitat of this portion of Loyalsock Creek has increased following findings of recent research by Shannon White at Penn State University which provided new insight into how the main stem of Loyalsock Creek in the vicinity of Worlds End State Park is important to brook trout populations. After spawning in the fall, significant numbers of brook trout from the smaller tributaries of the Loyalsock were found to migrate down into the main stem in the winter months where there may be more food and suitable habitat. This leads to the realization that the main stem is an important movement corridor for “wild” brook trout, and that such movement of individuals in the population may help protect and improve genetic diversity and resiliency characteristics necessary to sustain viable populations of our state fish in this beautiful and scenic watershed

Please let us know if you would like to attend this meeting an we will give you the information needed to log into Zoom

The March issue of the Susquehanna Ripples is now available. You can get your copy by clicking here

     Our great friend Don Daughenbaugh has written his first book.  Although he has written articles and stories for numerous publications over the years, he has spent the last few years working on a book.

     Taken from his flier advertising the book;  “Great People, Great Rivers is a celebration of nearly a century of outdoor adventure seen through the eyes of a man with uncanny insight into the natural world and into the character of the people who truly love the outdoors.

     From the holy waters of the East Cost – Penn’s Creek or the Loyalsock, Pine and Yellow Breeches – to the legendary western rivers like the Madison, Yellowstone, Firehole and Snake, Daughenbaugh wanders and reveals the wonders (and secrets) of the most famous fishing destinations in America.  These are Great Rivers, every one.

     His companions are indeed Great People, both famous and infamous.  Senators, congressmen, presidents, financiers, along with a cast of memorable and beloved friends and family. Heroes and villains, they are.

     Whether it’s fooling sea-run Brown Trout in the Falklands or creating some of the most innovative fishing flies of his generation, Daughenbaugh gives us an insider’s view of this beautiful world of rivers and the lovable, memorable people who play in them. “

     Don’s book has been sent to the publisher and he is only having 250 copies printed.  To see the entire flier Don has made advertising his book, click here .   The book is being sold for $34.99 and how to order the book can be found on the flier.

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) invites the public to participate in its 2021 Virtual Fisheries Summit on Saturday, February 20.

This virtual event will feature narrated presentations from PFBC fisheries biologists on the wealth of diverse fishing opportunities across the Commonwealth and discuss the status of various warm-water, cool-water, and cold-water fisheries. Presentations will be viewable on the PFBC Facebook page with a schedule of individual presentations being posted throughout the day. All individual presentations will be also published on the PFBC YouTube channel.

“Many Pennsylvanians don’t realize the incredible number of fishing opportunities that exist well beyond the world-class wild trout and stocked trout fisheries that are so popular,” said Kris Kuhn, Director of the PFBC Bureau of Fisheries. “Through our Virtual Fisheries Summit, we hope to shine a light on many of Pennsylvania’s thriving and diverse angling opportunities, inspire anglers to try something new, and connect them with the resources they need to have a successful experience on the water.”

To provide interactivity between PFBC experts and the public during the Virtual Fisheries Summit, questions and comments that are relevant to the presented topics are welcome on the PFBC Facebook page in the comments section of each virtual presentation. The Summit will conclude with a live streaming panel discussion where comments and questions will be addressed by PFBC experts. All comments submitted must be in compliance with the PFBC’s social media policy.

2021 Virtual Fisheries Summit Schedule: Saturday February 20, 2021

Viewable on Facebook.com/PaFishandBoat and YouTube.com/PAFishandBoat

• 8:45 a.m. Welcome and Opening Remarks from PFBC Executive Director Tim Schaeffer and Commissioner Rick Kauffman

• 9:00 a.m. Riverine Black Bass Fisheries presented by Geoffrey Smith, PFBC Susquehanna River Biologist

• 9:30 a.m. Lacustrine Black Bass Fisheries presented by Geoffrey Smith, PFBC Susquehanna River Biologist

• 10:00 a.m. Panfish Fisheries presented by Mike Porta, PFBC Area 6 Fisheries Manager

• 10:30 a.m. Inland Reservoir Striped Bass Fisheries presented by Bryan Chikotas, PFBC Area 7 Fisheries Manager

• 11:00 a.m. Migratory Fishes presented by Daryl Pierce, PFBC Area 5 Fisheries Manager

• 11:30 a.m. Overlooked Fisheries presented by Doug Fischer, PFBC Nongame Fisheries Biologist

• 12:30 p.m. Walleye Fisheries presented by Timothy Wilson, PFBC Area 1 Fisheries Biologist

• 1:00 p.m. Esocid Fisheries presented by Brian Ensign, PFBC Area 2 Fisheries Biologist

• 1:30 p.m. Catfish Fisheries presented by Michael Depew, PFBC Area 8 Fisheries Biologist

• 2:00 p.m. Lake Erie Fisheries presented by Mark Haffley, PFBC Area 9 Fisheries Biologist

• 2:30 p.m. Wild and Stocked Trout Fisheries presented by David Nihart, PFBC Division of Fisheries Management Chief

• 3:00 p.m. Aquatic Invasive Species presented by Sean Hartzell, PFBC Aquatic Invasive Species Coordinator

• 3:30 p.m. Question and Answer Session featuring a panel discussion with PFBC Fisheries experts

• 4:15 p.m. Closing Remarks from Andy Shiels, PFBC Deputy Director of Field Operations