Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - July/August 2020 - 27

NOTES from theStreams
at the other side of display and said
to me, "This brand is better than the
shovels you are looking at now." I
asked, "Why is that?"
His response was, "They have a
lifetime warranty, and they make
good snake shovels."
I was intrigued by his answer, so
I asked him to elaborate. He started
to tell me about the snakes that he
killed in his yard or garden over
the years with this brand of shovel.
I did not identify myself as a WCO
but advised him that snakes are
beneficial for eating insects and
small rodents. Most importantly,
though, the majority of snakes in
Pennsylvania are protected under
the law, either from possessing or
killing them.
At that point, the sales associate
became speechless.-WCO Thomas
J. McMann, Elk County.

Paper trail

One day during the course of
my preseason trout fishing patrol,
I noticed a vehicle that was parked
somewhat near the area of a Stocked
Trout Water that was closed to
fishing. It was not uncommon to
see vehicles parked in this area since
people parked there to carpool,
hike, and sometimes fish the nearby
creek. I did not see anyone near the
vehicle or in the immediate area of
the stream, and there was no fishing
equipment in the vehicle. However,
much to my surprise, the owner of
the vehicle left a note on the vehicle's
dash indicating and admitting that
he was fishing in the creek. He also
provided his cell phone number. It
was unusual for someone to leave a
paper trail like this behind and admit
that they were fishing before the
season. My initial thought was to call
the angler and inform him that there
was a problem, but I decided not to
as it would be more interesting to
meet him along the stream.
After walking the stream and
past a number of posters indicating
that the stream was a Stocked
Trout Water and closed to fishing,
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I located the angler fly fishing.
Upon announcing my presence, the
angler became somewhat startled
and quickly stated that he was not
catching any trout but that he had
seen a lot of trout where he was
fishing. Upon informing him that the
stream was closed to fishing
and that he was in violation for
fishing in a closed Stocked Trout
Water, he quickly informed me
that he was not from the area, but
he did know the name of the stream
that he was fishing.
With the stream being posted
and with a little checking and
reading of the posters and checking
the Pennsylvania Fishing Summary
online, there should be no reason for
him to be fishing in closed waters.
Upon escorting the angler back to
his vehicle, I pointed out the posters
on the trees. He commented that
he did not see the posters as he was
walking to the stream. Upon issuing
him the citation, he told me that he
fished the stream many times during
the years and that he drives past the
stream on a regular basis.
With all the posted posters, I
wondered if people ever read the
signs. But, I am willing to bet that
if the signs were not posted, they
would probably say posters were not
displayed.-WCO Scott J. Christman,
Southern Carbon and Southwestern
Monroe counties.

Mama knows best

While on lunch break from
teaching a boating safety class, I went
to a local store to get a sandwich.
When getting back into my patrol
vehicle, a car stopped beside me.
The driver rolled the window down
and said, "I am going to make your
day." Not knowing how to take the
statement, I asked how. The woman
went on to explain that I gave her
son, who was in the passenger
seat, a ticket in the past. At this
point, I thought I knew where
the conversation was going, and I
awaited an ear beating. However,

she just wanted to thank me for
issuing that ticket, because she
always tells him that he needs to
take a life jacket with him to be safe,
and he did not listen. I guess she
really did know best on this one.-
WCO Daniel Wilson, Southern
Westmoreland County.

Making the front page

During the preseason stocking
of Bens Creek, Somerset County, a
volunteer told me he grew up along
the stream and was reminiscing
about fishing the waterway. At the
last stop on the stream, he pulled
out the 2020 Pennsylvania Fishing
Summary and pointed to a child
on the cover. He told me that this
was his 5-year-old grandson, who
was holding a beautiful 19½-inch
Smallmouth Bass that he caught.
This was the best fishing story I have
heard in a long time.-WCO Patrick
W. Ferko, Northern Somerset County.

Lucky

The Northeast Region had
WCO vacancies due to retirements,
promotions, and officer transfers.
Therefore, the remaining officers
and supervisors have to pull together
to get the streams and lakes stocked
with trout for the much anticipated
opening day.
WCO T. Curt Tereschak and
I decided to stay ahead of the
curve and travel along the scenic
Lackawaxen River, familiarizing
ourselves with each of the stocking
points along the river. During our
patrol and familiarization of the
river, we encountered two bald eagles
and one golden eagle. This is one of
the many reasons why I am so lucky
to have this job.-Sergeant Walter A.
Buckman, Northeast Region.

Pennsylvania Angler & Boater * July/August 2020

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Pennsylvania Angler & Boater - July/August 2020

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