Little Juniata River Association -a 501 c3 non-profit organization
Our mission is to: “Monitor, Preserve and Improve the Little Juniata River and its tributaries as cold water resources”.
Photos show the trout habitat structures installed in August 2020. Over 300 tons of stone and 25 hemlock logs were placed strategically to improve this shallow, unproductive stretch upstream from Tyrone. You can see work completed by PFBC workers and LJRA volunteers and partially funded by your donations. The structures handled a couple of high water events and the positioned boulders are starting to carve out good trout holding water.
This was a very wide and shallow stretch that provided no significant trout habitat. During hot sunny weather it became a large solar collector that warmed the water as it slowly passed. Our effort was to narrow and deepen this stretch In all 7 large side log/stone structures were installed and more than 25 large boulders were placed in a flat, shallow unproductive 500 foot stretch of the Little Juniata River. The before (top) and after (bottom) are shown. In all more than 270 tons of stone and 24 10″ dia. logs, 25 ft long were used. With the help of Juniata College Environmental Department, we will continue to monitor this area to gather data on the expected positive impacts regarding water temperature and wild trout usage.
Thanks goes out to PFBC for a professional job, the PA DEP for permits and cooperation and George Bonsell for access to the site. We could not work alongside the state workers (Governor’s orders), but a number of volunteers observed and finished the project by planting seed and spreading straw, including Scott Kavanagh, Bill King, Carl Reed, Bill Anderson, Joe Reese, Mike Moschgat, Jim Rhodes and Jerry Green (JKTU).
More Pictures can be found here https://www.littlejuniata.net/photos-from-the-project/
LJRA will be executing a major fish habitat/water quality project on the Little Juniata River near Grazierville. This stretch is characterized by wide flat, uniformly shallow water. In times as we are experiencing now, the project area becomes a large solar collector, and serves to super heat the slowly moving water. Our plan, designed by PAFBC Habitat Management folks, includes side deflectors to concentrate and deepen the flow, large mid-stream boulders to create pocket water and aeration. You can see the project site looking downstream from the I-99 ramp at Grazierville.
Due to the COVID situation, PFBC does not want volunteers near the state workers. Unfortunately, volunteers are not needed this time.
Waning Sulphurs got you down? No worries. Slate drakes should start soon. Olives have also been providing good action in the early evenings. Bill’s video describing how to tie the CET style dry can be found on the dry fly tying page
Thanks to Bill’s persistence, the stretch of water upstream of Spruce Creek owned by Ms. Morrow (yellow house) has reopened for fishing only. Ms. Marrow does not want people parking or walking through her yard at the yellow house, but the gravel parking area upstream of the house is open. Our access is a fragile thing. Please be respectful of her signs. Please pick up trash and/or report problems to the LJRA so that they can be fixed.
March Meeting
The LJRA will hold its monthly meeting at the Edgewater Inn in Alexandria on Thursday March 12th at 7PM. 2020 projects including the riverbank clean-up on April 4th and the Tipton trout habitat improvement will be discussed. Bill will report on what learned about raw sewage discharge into the J. Come early and enjoy food and drinks at the Inn.
Tim Nulton of the Tyrone water authority named friend of the river
On January 11th the Little Juniata River Association held its Winter Members Banquet at the Edgewater Inn and Riverside Grill. Each year the LJRA honors an individual or organization that has contributed the most to our efforts to “Monitor, Protect and Improve the Little Juniata River” This year’s award winner is Tim Nulton. Tim retired from the Tyrone Borough as of Jan.1st after 42 years as manager of the Tyrone Waste Treatment Plant . We chose Tim for this award because of his dedication to the efficient management of the waste treatment facility and the resulting excellent water quality in our river. Before the TWTP came on-line in 1973, the untreated paper mill effluent and poorly treated domestic sewage flowed directly into the river. It was unfit for any public use. Under Tim’s guidance, the Tyrone Borough Waste Water Treatment facility has kept our river clean!
Restoration of access at the Pemberton quarry!
After almost two years of hard work, we finally have an agreement in place with NES&L regarding the quarry access. It is retroactively effective to November 22nd. The property covered under the lease held by PFBC, includes the river bank and parking areas formerly used by the public. It also covers the Limestone Road access on Rt 453. In order to achieve this for our members and the fishing and boating public, LJRA is paying the 1st years lease of $5,000. NES&L maintains that they need liability insurance to cover use by the public and that it will cost them $5,000. We are not prepared to pay this for future years. LJRA will spend the next 12 months seeking a long term solution which may include the use of grants, PFBC funds and/or donations. We are asking people to be patient since it will take a little time to get the postings down and new signs up denoting the locations of restored access. The ability to renew the lease is dependent on good angler behavior.
No meeting Dec/Jan
No regular meeting for the months of December and January. The next event will be the annual winter banquet. An invitation will be sent to members via email.