A nice scene

Last Sunday I took a joy ride on The Monongahela Monitor downriver to the Greer fleet, which is just below the power plant on Beechurst Avenue.

I noticed a motor boat along the west bank across from Deckers Creek with a man, woman and two children. The kids and dad were fishing, quietly sharing some quality time in the shade of the big sycamores and paw-paw trees.  I also saw a guy in a kayak fishing.  That's something that takes some coordination, I believe.  Regardless: it was good to see.

I have often thought of the Mon River at Morgantown as our Cheat Late. People are so into recreation on Cheat Lake, but for those of us who live in Morgantown, well, the river's a lot closer.  And now, with our no wake zone from just below the Westover bridge to the lock and dam, it's a lot more peaceful.

An example, pretty good sized cruiser passed me while I was at the Greer fleet at a pretty good clip. He had a jet-ski zooming along behind him.  So, I was curious about what would happen when he went around the bend and encountered the no wake buoy.

It was perfect.  The jet ski did a couple of doughnuts and they both came about and headed back down the river.  Now, just imagine if that buoy and no wake zone were not there.  The guy fishing in the kayak and the family fishing along the west bank would have been pounded by the wake of the cruiser and jet ski.  I think everyone was well served by our new no wake zone.

Oh, I also watched a heron.  These birds seem to pose for me: I came up to one along the west bank across from Ruby McQuain Park and watched it spread its great wings and fly to a branch further upriver. Then, it posed, its long neck and legs, dagger-like beak and top crest, gray and back-lit against the green trees. Then, it flew off again, posing in the air, swooping just above the water, reflecting in the river, to another branch, where, of course, it posed again as my boat overtook it. Herons along the Mon River do this; flying as you approach, then posing, then flying, posing, flying, as your boat get closer again and again.

The folks in fast boats, bouncing everyone around as they pass, don't get to see this.  Too bad, I guess.

Hey, maybe I'll see you down at the river!

Anyone lose a pickup bed liner?

We wondered how something like this bed liner came to be in the Monongahela River. No good answers. It's among the largest items we've pulled out; probably second to the car bumper from a couple years ago. (Click photo to enlarge.)

Anyway, we had a good day of "fishing" for litter on the Mon and really got the Morgantown harbor area looking good.  In this photo you see the liner and our other ''catch" with crew members Carol on the left and Hannah on the right.

Thanks, Carol and Hannah. They worked hard, as you can see in this photo, left. Each bottle, Bud Lite can, etc., must be picked up individually. There's no other way. So this is labor intensive, and it takes a real commitment to the environment and the Earth and the Monongahela River, to get this job done.

Below, the crew cleaning up the decks of the Monongahela Monitor back at the dock after our Saturday morning effort.

Litter cleanup this weekend (July 14)

I've been out of town for a couple weeks, so haven't been able to get out and clean the river. But this Saturday we'll be out.  Interested in joining in?  Be at the marina at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, July 14.  Give me a call and let me know you are coming.  304 292-5087.  There may be rain, so I'll need you on the list in case we must cancel.

No wake zone is observed

On Sunday the river was crowded with bass boats, and I witnessed an amazing sight. During the afternoon the Morgantown Lock gates opened and between 8-10 bass boats emerged, coming down river from fishing in the next pool. They all passed through Morgantown harbor at a slow speed!  They were here for a tournament and must have all agreed to observe the no wake zone law.

Thanks to all boaters on the river who are abiding by the new law and no-wake zone!  Our river is much safer now - this 3/4 mile section, and we do appreciate those boaters who are helping.

River cleanup before triathlon

Wow! It's triathlon time in Morgantown, just about.

I've done a river cleanup every year, so let's pull out the calendar and put a big CLEANUP on next Friday, June 22. That's two days before the event on June 24.

The reason for doing this is simple: there will be a lot of visitors to our town all along the river, and I want it to look good.

So, if you are interested in joining the crew of the Monongahela Monitor, our 28 foot riverboat, on Friday, let me know. Send and email to me at info@monriver.org.  We will go out for about 3 hours that evening around 5.  Back by dark anyway.

Want to help with a donation?  You can do that!  We have a bunch of costs, including boat maintenance, gas, etc. You can donate here: : http://www.causes.com/cleanmonriver

No wake zone sign is up!

Here it is, the no wake zone!  As we were painting this Wednesday evening a rower went by and shouted, "I love it!"

There are people who are going to complain about this 3/4 mile part of a 127-mile-long river, but, in my opinion, we may have saved that young lady, or another, or a swimmer or kayaker, from death or serious injury by getting this designation through. I've seen a lot of close calls down there on the river. So, let's cool it a little in this area folks.  Thanks.

It is state law.  Title 58, Series 27, 3.1.6.  Just in time for the Arts Alive festival this weekend.


Thanks to Chris Wilson and Biao Qiu (on left) for the help. Also thanks to Mark Wise at BOPARC.

Second kiosk is finished, at last....

With a grant from the Longview power plant, we have been installing kiosks along the river with historical information and an anti-litter message.  We installed one at the mouth of Deckers Creek where there is a beautiful little "peninsula" that often draws people who fish, but who also leave litter behind. 

We installed a kiosk there with a litter barrel in late 2010.  It works!  We emptied the barrel on Memorial Day.  It was quite full. People are using it instead of leaving litter on the ground near the river.

Now we have our second at Walnut Street where the boat launch ramp is.  We used a high quality outdoor bulletin board for this one, and it looks great. Click the photo to see close up.  You can even see the message about how plastic in the river may contribute to the deaths of albatross in the ocean and the photo of the Sunday school group at the Presbyterian church with a banner that says, "Keep Our River Clean; Use the Litter Barrel."

Thanks to Chris Wilson and Biao Qiu, a WVU volunteer from China in the College of Engineering and Mineral Resources.  We did some very hard digging to sink the post for this one, unlike the Deckers Creek kiosk, which was in soft sand.

Our next kiosk will be installed soon at the Star City park, right next to the boat ramp.