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FOR OVER TWENTY YEARS

Our Mission: To inspire stewardship of Pennsylvania's state parks and forests

Hickory Run State Park
Photo by Kenneth Hankey

Love Kenneth's masthead shot with just that hint of the lovely winter to come. Admittedly, as you know, Bill and I won't be there to see it since we're now southerly located. However, we did get a bit of a taste of "white stuff" before we left. I was delighted; Bill not so much!

Pam Metzger,

Membership Coordinator

pmetzger@paparksandforests.org

814.233.5703

NEWS OF NOTE

An interesting article from Pittsburgh's NPR news station WESA outlines the efforts of the USDA and US Forest Service to help eradicate the hemlock woolly adelgid in the Allegheny National Forest. The mild winters even in Pennsylvania's northern reaches these last few years have allowed the adelgid to survive where it otherwise would not.

Introduction of three different predators are hoped will get the bad bugs under control while causing no additional harm.

Honoring the past is an important part of our philosophy at PPFF so it's always a special treat when something - or someone - with a connection to state park and forest heritage crops up. Wouldn't you know it, over the past couple of weeks we have had two instances of this?

A contribution to the Foundation was received in November from the granddaughter of Forrest Dutlinger, a member of the second class to graduate from the forestry school at Mont Alto and the namesake of the Forrest H. Dutlinger Natural Area of the Susquehannock State Forest. She shared that he always went by F.H. because he thought that being a forester named "Forrest" sounded "affected." But everyone called him "Dut."

Park Manager Brent at Nolde Forest shared that they have been able to connect with Francie Nolde and her family. Says Brent, "Francie is the youngest, and last living daughter of Hans Nolde and granddaughter of Jacob Nolde. She is 86 years-young and has become a true Friend of Nolde Forest, [visiting the park twice in the past year.]"

It is wonderful to have these connections to Pennsylvania's conservation past!

In follow up to the post from our last issue on ruffed grouse habitat restoration in the Bald Eagle State Forest, Marci paid a visit to the site on Wednesday with forester person and funder person.

A significant part of the project is managing the ground cover and trees for a successional forest that supports the grouse, such as these pitch pines.

Speaking of ongoing projects, the CCC-era Kintzer Building restoration at French Creek State Park is coming along very nicely indeed! The porch is on, lights are going in. Thanks to the hard work of the maintenance staff, the PA Outdoor Corps, private donors, and, of course, your support of sales of New Trail Brewing's special French Creek hazy IPA for keeping this project moving steadily along. We look forward to when it is completed and we can all celebrate this restoration and the services the building will provide—from education to a community gathering place!

With COP28 wrapping up in Dubai, this blog post from DCNR's Greg Czarnecki on the role we can each play in climate change mitigation is especially timely.

Bill and I caught the 2004 film "The Day After Tomorrow" on TV on our way south. Even nearly 20 years later it didn't terrify me any less than it did the first time I saw it. Exaggerated it may be, but I would really rather not muck about.

Crew members are now being hired for the 2024 Pennsylvania Outdoor Corps 9-month young adult crews across the state.

Complete conservation and recreation projects Pennsylvania state parks and forests and gain paid work experience, skills training, professional development, and environmental education opportunities.

Learn more and apply https://bit.ly/2FUPHdR.

Speaking of the POC, they were out on the William Penn State Forest's Rose Trail recently doing some needed stabilization and clearing work.

The Friends of the State Line Barrens, whose mission includes the Goat Hill Serpentine Barrens (where the Rose Trail is located), will be doing a habitat workday this coming Sunday, December 17. To join in, meet at 12:00 PM (noon) at the gravel parking lot on Red Pump Road. The group expects to be finished and out of the woods about 3:00 PM.

If you plan to attend, please contact the workday leader, Chris Hoess by email or phone at (267) 918-6803. That way, you can be informed if the workday is canceled due to weather or other circumstances. If you have not replied, you may still feel free to attend.

Volunteers will use loppers and brush cutters to clear overgrown segments of the Rose Trail, between grasslands 86 and 23 and between the Red Pump parking lot and the power line cut. Work boots or hiking boots suitable for rough terrain are recommended. You may also want to wear heavy pants and long sleeves for protection against greenbrier. Bring work gloves if you have them; the Friends will also have some available. Bring water. While it is getting cold, make sure to check for ticks when you get home.

The Friends report that the current forecast is for occasional showers and a high of 46 °F, so bring a jacket and otherwise dress appropriately. The fallback date in case of snow or other cancellation is January 7th.

Next Tuesday, December 19 at 6PM (EST), Penn State Health will present a cancer educational webinar. This webinar will be in Spanish and is part of the "Vamos a educarnos contra el cáncer” webinar series. The title is: El manejo de ataques cerebrovasculares en pacientes con cáncer "The management of cerebrovascular attacks in cancer patients"

Dr. Rodríguez Colón will be talking about stroke, its symptoms, and its management in cancer patients.

To register, please visit:

https://psu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_zRTs2kifT8uPHKzpgjZ9MQ

This is the Zoom information for Tuesday:

Go to https://zoom.us/ and enter the Zoom meeting ID: 976 6638 6203

Previous cancer educational webinars in Spanish can be seen here: CAB website.

To register, please visit:

https://psu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_zRTs2kifT8uPHKzpgjZ9MQ

This is the Zoom information for Tuesday:

Go to https://zoom.us/ and enter the Zoom meeting ID: 976 6638 6203

If you missed any of our previous cancer educational webinars in Spanish you can watch them here: CAB website.

PHOTOS OF THE WEEK

My final feature focusing on the photos of the 2023 contest are my particular favorites among the entries in each category. Pennsylvania's state parks and forests are so lucky to have such talent keeping an eye on them.

Celebration

David Raymond
Pine Grove Furnace State Park

Adorable AND timely! Yes, David, I think these guys would be a lot of fun to celebrate with on an ugly sweater hike or just any time.

Conversation

Marla Burke
Nockamixon State Park

There were many delightful depictions of conversations in these entries - amazing how many were birds! And I loved them all. But in the end I had to agree with the Prez, this one is something special. I would SO like to see the resulting selfie!

Meditation

Christine Allen
Hyner View State Park

Honestly, I think this might have been the hardest category to judge. As with "Conversations," there were so many creative and personal forms of meditation depicted from kids to dogs to this wonderfully charming bug taking in the spectacular vista at Hyner View. Who can blame him? Her?

And, well, it has just the right amount of whimsy to force me to make it this week's jigsaw puzzle!

Mirror Images

Bill Sisson
Ricketts Glen State Park

Regular readers will know that I cannot resist a night sky shot and this one hit me right away. It is so intensely dark that it requires a click and some time to ponder.

What Parks & Forests Mean to Me

Linda Stager
Lyman Run State Park

Linda's spectacular eagle didn't even make the contest since her kingfishers in unison was a Judges' Choice pick and no one can win more than once in a contest. But this one's certainly a winner in my book!

I'm already lobbying for its inclusion in the 2025 state parks calendar.

Young Photographers

Luca Maffei
Boyd Big Tree Conservation Area

We always find it remarkable that the young photographers so often focus on the micro view.

This Week in Social Media ...

Tasha asked for favorite winter photos and this one by Kody Beer at Pymatuning shows a lure I find irresistible. Untouched snow! I'd love to be able to rappel down from a sky hook and put boot prints right in the center of that dock. Solar "flare" in the background is wonderful too.

In my eyes, it needed to be a second jigsaw puzzle for the week!

TAKE FIVE FOR TRIVIA

I am beyond grateful to those who helped us with a quick audit of the PPFF website with your search for the "Explore Near" publications we have available. Obviously, we have them hidden well - unintentionally so.

Publications of all sorts live for now under the About Us tab. Which, when I thought about it (and it was gently suggested), is NOT a particularly logical place to put them! Am thinking that under "Our Work" might make more sense since creation of those publications is a significant part of what we do but are they "education" or "recreation?" I don't really want to give them a top line tab of their own for fear it gets too crowded up top. Where did you go to look for the publications?

This week we have a meteor shower to light up our night sky, peaking 12/13 through 12/15. The Metzgers got skunked on the first two nights but aren't giving up. We have one more chance tonight and I did see a small one just before dawn this morning! The Fernweh Raybas shared this view from Raystown Lake from night one.

Which meteor shower are we currently enjoying then?

Enter each week to increase your chances of a fabulous prize at the end of the month when I'll draw one entry from all correct answers received during the month.

WHERE ARE WE THIS WEEK?

IN CLOSING

Quote: Angie Weiland Crosby, Instagram, 3/2/2019.

Photo: Ed Means, Sinnemahoning Sunset. Posted to the private Pennsylvania State Parks & Forests Book of Faces.

I didn't realize until I'd snagged the photo and added the copy to upload it here that I used an Ed Means photo in the last issue! Sir, you are on a roll!

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Pennsylvania Parks & Forests Foundation (PPFF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization - contributions to which are tax deductible to the fullest extent permitted by law. The official registration and financial information of PPFF may be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of State by calling, toll-free within Pennsylvania, to 800.732.0999. Registration does not imply endorsement.

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