Segloch Run, Lancaster County, 3/23/2014

[Alnitak]

I had a few free hours this afternoon and my nephew texted me to see where we were going fishing...so we settled on Segloch Run. We started at the bridge up in the Game Lands and worked upstream first. I started out with a chub, and my nephew caught a small wild brown. The fish were skittish and the water clear, so we had to sneak up on the pools. With the storms this winter there is a lot of debris in the stream, so nymphing is a challenge.

I managed one very nice brookie that was about 9" long, and my nephew hooked into a big brown that cut under some roots, so he lost it. It was definitely more than a foot long.

After that, we headed downstream, but someone had fished through that section. We saw a car parked at the first Game Lands lot when we came in, and there were fresh tracks by all of the pools. The fish were spooked, and we only managed one trout between us--my nephew got a little 8" wild brown--the one in the photo attached.

We were very upset at all of the trash back there. Its an isolated area, but there were lots of cars back there today. We saw two stoners smoking some weed at one stop and trash everywhere along the road. The worst was a huge plastic tank that had been filled with pesticide and then later with asphalt of some kind. Someone had pulled up and just dumped it, and it rolled down and into the stream. I'm posting a separate thread about that in the general forum; I'm hoping that the labels could be used to determine who got the shipment and then presumably dumped it in the stream. :-(

Jeff

 

[salmonoid]

With the proximity to a road, yet being a bit off the beaten path, that stream does take a trash beating. I believe Squatch has a hole that is dubbed the crapper hole, because it has a toilet in it. I fished the stream last year and the water was clear. As I worked my way upstream, the water suddenly turned Triassic mudstone red and I could not figure out what was causing the mud, as it was a clear day. At times, I have come upon mud sources, where a saturated hillside is seeping out water and a mudslide occurs (the amount I have seen, presumably shortly after the bank gives way, half makes me wonder when one is going to engulf me). A minute or so later, two mud covered trucks roared down the road and a few moments later, I reached the source of the mud. The stream was filled with deep ruts, where the trucks had been able to get off the road and I guess they were trying to cross the stream to do some four-wheeling or to impress their buddies. Will definitely have to take a garbage bag the next time I am there, although I think I will leave the tote.

 

[The_Sasquatch]

Yep the Toilet Hole. Good hole though!

That was me today, by the way. I started lower than where I parked, and fished my way up to just above where I parked. I only had 2 hours to really fish, so if you would have fished upstream about 200 yards of where I parked, you would have been fine!

No browns for me today, at least landed, but I did manage about a half dozen brookies.

 

[Alnitak]

Squatch, too bad we didn't see you! We fished down until we saw your footprints. There was also someone who had hiked through and let their dog walk through some of those pools. I had a few bites but only one good one, the brookie on a poody caddis imitation. My nephew caught all of the browns on a variation of a Prince nymph that's got a bunch of gray marabou and yellow goose biots. It's been working well for wild browns in the last few outings.

 

[The_Sasquatch]

Last time I was there I had the most action on a prince nymph. It's really a nymph I don't fish much. I think I only had one in the box, and I lost it at some point. My PT was producing somewhat, but not what I like, Gonna have to tie up more prince nymphs I guess.

I did get a few risers on my wulff, though. Spring is definitely coming!

There's always dog tracks on that stream.

 

[Swattie87]

Yeah, the landowners there walk their dogs along the road and they run into the stream on occasion. I had a Samoyed come all the way into the stream to say hi to me once.

For how relatively remote it is, there’s always cars passing through that road…for a variety of purposes I would presume.

 

[Mike]

It has been a local dumping ground from the time that I first saw the stream (1980 or thereabouts) and I would bet that it was a dumping ground before that. Most of what I have seen in the past has been yard waste of various types.

 

[The_Sasquatch]

Saw a deer carcass there once. The smell was terrible.

 

[boychick]

Saw a deer carcass there once. The smell was terrible.

I am sure it was.

 

[Night_Stalker]

Nice looking fish Jeff.

I am not real familiar with the large plastic tank / pesticide. I see them a lot on trucks...so I assume they are generic containers. Is this something that is in anyway trackable? A call to DEP might be in order either way.

 

[dc410]

The generic term for the container is a "tote". They can hold between 275-300 gallons of various assorted chemicals. Some not so bad....... others really bad. I am not sure what kind of identifying information would be on an individual container to be able to track it to a source.

Night_Stalker wrote:
Nice looking fish Jeff.

I am not real familiar with the large plastic tank / pesticide. I see them a lot on trucks...so I assume they are generic containers. Is this something that is in anyway trackable? A call to DEP might be in order either way.

 

[Alnitak]

The_Sasquatch wrote:
Saw a deer carcass there once. The smell was terrible.

Yesterday we smelled and then found a dead house cat.

 

[Alnitak]

Night_Stalker wrote:
Nice looking fish Jeff.

I am not real familiar with the large plastic tank / pesticide. I see them a lot on trucks...so I assume they are generic containers. Is this something that is in anyway trackable? A call to DEP might be in order either way.

It had a label that included batch and lot information--it might be possible to track it to the distributor via that information. I'm not sure, but I got a photo of the label. It had been used to hold asphalt after that--probably roofing tar. The original pesticide was DOW Durango DMA, which is designed to be used with GMO corn and soybeans that are resistant to glyphosphate herbicides.

http://www.dowagro.com/usag/prod/012.htm

My plan is to contact DEP and let them know what's up. Not sure if anything will happen or not.

Jeff

 

[salmonoid]

Hopefully this story ends up like the WCO Field Notes I used to read when I was a kid, where the WCO would find bags of trash that folks dumped on back roads. He would go through the garbage, find a piece of junk mail or magazine with the perps address on it, and then track them down and write them a ticket. Unfortunately, since this tote was reused for asphalt, there are probably multiple parties involved in it's use over time, so tracking down who it was originally sold to probably only starts the puzzle, but doesn't solve who dumped it.

 

[SmellyTroutHole]

Good stuff and nice fish! Segloch is a beautiful stream but unfortunately the area its in with proximity to Middle Creek and the areas notoriety by hikers, hunters, families, kids, sketchballs, etc - there will always be trash there. If you really want to do something about it then I would suggest joining the underground collective effort of dun dun dun... picking it up! I pulled out two propane tanks and an old kerosene heater out of there a few weeks ago. Usually a daypacks full of bottles when i wade it. Actions speak louder than words on an internet forum, and finding out who dumped what there is not the issue. The fact that it is there and shouldn't be, and needs to be removed, is. I live right up the road and would be more than willing to bring the tractor back to remove the tank you pictured.

 

[salvelinusfontinalis]

I'm game for helping remove the tank. I'm available after 3pm or so all week. If you bring the tractor, I'll bring my arms. Anyone else?

 

[foxtrapper1972]

I can help. Most afternoons after 4. Message me. Perhaps a cleanup of the creek could be organized?

 

[The_Sasquatch]

I saw the tank yesterday. It is freaking huge! Any ideas on how to remove it?

 

[The_Sasquatch]

And I wouldn't mind being involved in a stream-wide clean up if you guys are down for it. Maybe a couple of us take the section below the stone bridge and a few take above the stone bridge. We could probably all fill a few bags, mark the spots of larger items like tires, TV screens (found one of those on Saturday), etc., and then come back as a crew and lug those suckers out.

 

[Swattie87]

I fish it as much as anyone probably, so I'd like to be a part of it too if this materializes. I volunteer the services of my truck for removal/disposal...only a 5' bed though.