​Knotted in a nest of discarded fishing line, the body of a small crayfish washed ashore near the Adam T. Memorial Dam outside of Sunbury.

The corpse was among a massive pile of litter cleaned up on May 21, the first of several pick-ups at that location over a week's time that highlight a growing issue as we head into a Memorial Day weekend where people surge to local waterways to celebrate the unofficial start of summer.

​“Life jackets?”

“They’re on the back seat,” I answered my friend who was taking out his dad’s small bass boat for the first time on the Susquehanna. ​

​With an equal mix of excitement -- and nervousness -- we went around the boat, making sure everything was in place. We had a pair of oars in case the old 20-horsepower motor failed. We had the anchor, we had our fishing gear and a cooler with lunch. Everything seemed to be in place.

Flood waters earlier this spring along the Penns Creek brought with them a large tree that became wedged along the shoreline of Snyder County stretch of stream behind our home.

The tree offers a great vantage point for a variety of species to check out the creek, and I thought it would be fun to place a trail camera overlooking this log.

Taking over as a watershed management extension specialist for the Penn State Extension a year ago, Tyler Groh chats in the most recent episode of the Middle Susquehanna Riverkeeper Podcast about agricultural and urban stormwater issues, sedimentation and ways that people get make a difference locally.

​During the process of investigating an unexplained smallmouth bass die-off in 2018, the United States Geological Society and the Department of Environmental Protection found areas of concentrated endocrine disruptors within the waterway.

The cause of death later was determined to be a virus or disease, but researchers noticed an alarming trend among the bass found in areas where endocrine disruptor levels were the highest.

Kathryn Hayden, a graduate research assistant at Penn State University, chats in our most recent episode of the Middle Susquehanna Riverkeeper Podcast about her current study of Endocrine Disrupting Compounds in our waterways, their impact on the ecosystem and how people can help improve the issue.

She also offers a resource where individuals and families can calculate how big of an impact they are having via products that contain endocrine disruptors.

John Oast of Fishyaker.com, Brian Swingle of Five Mountain Outfitters and the Middle Susquehanna Riverkeeper Association (MSRKA) have teamed up to host a charity kayak fishing tournament on Saturday, June 12, 2021.

Proceeds from the tournament will go directly to cover the cost of new kayaks for the Middle Susquehanna Riverkeeper Association's HERYN (Helping Engage our River's Youth with Nature) Program, a series of program days where young people are introduced to kayaking and fishing skills with a goal of inspiring a lifelong passion for our outdoor resources.

​​Late in the afternoon on April 28, Thomas Grove was fishing along the Susquehanna River just downstream from the mouth of the Penns Creek when a red helicopter flew straight toward him from Hoovers Island.

“They hovered just above the shore line at Hoovers and dumped some kind of reddish-brown liquid into the river,” he said. “They flew across the river directly upstream from us directly in the Penns Creek discharge toward Route 15 dumping the remaining fluid into the river.”

Tickets are still available in three of six Floating Classroom sessions set up for this summer aboard the Hiawatha Paddleboat in Williamsport.

On Tuesday, Aug. 10, from 10-11 a.m.​, Master Naturalist Jon Beam and other guests will present an overview of the various common fish species within our watershed and the threats they face. On Tuesday, Sept. 7, hellbender specialist Dr. Peter Petokas will talk amphibians found within our region with a focus on the hellbender. On Tuesday, Sept. 21, we will take a deep dive into the microplastic issue focusing on recent research and the science behind it.