Lackawaxen River
Threshman's to the Delaware River
by Fred Cohane

May 30, 2003

There were eight Hackensack paddlers and four from Mohawk Canoe Club on our third lower Lackawaxen trip this year. The weather cooperated and it was a sunny, breezy day.

The Pennsylvania Power and Light Company's Lake Wallenpaupack Hydroelectric Station releases have been starting and finishing earlier this year so we met at 10:45 at the Zane Grey Museum then shuttled up to Threshman River Rides where we could park our vehicles and have an easy access to the river. The release level was higher than usual given the recent rain but dropped about 8 inches after a mile or two to a more enjoyable level with some nice waves and rapids.

Everyone agreed this was our best run of the year. I believe Lee described the river level as "Faaaaaaaaaaantastic". At the higher levels the river runs faster but also washes out many of our "practice spots". There were still plenty of fun sections including some nice rapids which everyone successfully negotiated.

On this trip we only spotted one bald eagle but there were numerous songbirds as well as several great blues herons along the river. Hope to see you on one of the upcoming trips.

Fred