The Tulpehocken Creek, affectionately known as the “Tully,” is one of southeastern PA’s best trout waters, attracting anglers far and wide. But when walking the creek-side Union Canal Towpath, Jim and Janet Colflesh encountered the tragic aftermath of this popular pastime: face-down in the creek and drowned, a great-horned owl hopelessly tangled in monofilament fishing line.
The grim discovery was not an isolated incident on the Tully. Earlier that week a second great-horned owl, also caught up in fishing line, was admitted to the Red Creek Wildlife Center where the bird was later euthanized due to the traumatic nature of their injuries.
As an avid birdwatcher, the owls’ deaths lit a spark in Jim Colflesh. He set about the ambitious task of cleaning up the Tully before the 2025 trout season. But he couldn’t do it alone, so Jim sought out the Tulpehocken Creek Watershed Association (TCWA) for help.
Several years ago, Steve Tricarico, a member of the TCWA, had given a presentation about the TCWA to the Berk Township Supervisors, which Jim had attended. Having left a lasting impression, Jim contacted the TCWA for assistance addressing the Tully’s entanglement problem.
Catch Fish, Not Birds: Tips for Anglers
When snagged fishing line can be removed, anglers should pack it out with them or dispose of it in one of the many white, PVC pipes stationed along the Tulpehocken Creek’s banks. If the fishing line can’t be retrieved, notify Blue Marsh Lake or Berks County Parks and Recreation, who have the appropriate gear for removing fishing line safely.
Steve himself kayaks the Tully frequently and takes great joy in seeing osprey, bald eagles, and herons on these paddles, birds that had just 40 years prior faced extirpation; poisoned by pesticides like the infamous DDT.
These birds’ recoveries have been rightfully touted as one of our nation’s great conservation victories. But now that they’re back, and in light of the Tully’s recent tragedies, coexistence with our watersheds’ wild neighbors has yet to be attained.
The TCWA’s full membership expressed support for the cleanup, including Kevin Harbster, a life-long resident and experienced angler. Kevin employed his own experiences fishing the Tully to guide the TCWA’S multiple scouting efforts, pointing out the most heavily fished reaches and noting which waters were wadable and which would require boat access.
The area targeted for cleaning extended along the Tully from its outflow at the Blue Marsh Lake Stilling Basin to its confluence with the Schuylkill River, a daunting distance of six miles. Many hands make light work, as the saying goes; for extra help, the TCWA to contact the Keystone Canoe Club and the Schuylkill River Greenways, two local organizations with experienced kayakers and boaters.
The TCWA also met with the Berks County Parks and Recreation Department and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACE), the primary landowners along this stretch of river, to request access and to encourage their participation.
Together, this collaborative of government officials, outdoor recreation organizations, and community volunteers created a unified strategy in which everyone agreed to invest personnel and equipment to remove discarded fishing line from the Tully’s currents and shoreline.
In March, ACE and Berks County Parks and Recreation staff joined members from the TCWA, Keystone Canoe Club, Take it Outdoors, and the Schuylkill River Greenways to clean the waters and shores of the Tully.
For two days in March and April, ACE and Berks County Parks and Recreation staff joined members from the TCWA, Keystone Canoe Club, Take it Outdoors, and the Schuylkill River Greenways to complete the six-mile cleanup.
During this time, ACE temporarily reduced the Blue Marsh Dam’s outflow to lower the Tully’s water level, providing safer access via wading and watercraft. While some volunteers scoured the Tully’s shores for tangles of fishing line, others manned boats and donned waders to clean the chilly channel, whose temperatures never rose above 50°F.
From the first cleanup alone, the Reading Eagle reported that volunteers collected over 50 lures and three trash bags of fishing line and trash from the Tully and its banks.
The clean-up was both a satisfying experience and potent reminder that environmental stewardship in our modern world takes a village.
Only with this team of local government, conservation organizations, and community volunteers could the Tulpehocken Creek be freed from its tangled web of fishing line.
But you can’t participate in such collaborations if no one knows about your organization, warns Steve, who wants to see more volunteer-based groups like the TCWA make themselves known in their communities.
As we continue to celebrate the recovery of once threatened wildlife, those who recreate outdoors need to make a conscious effort towards coexistence. For the anglers of the Tulpehocken Creek, this means actively removing and properly disposing of discarded fishing line, whether it be caught in the channel or tangled in overhanging tree branches, so that the Tully’s denizens – from the fish of its currents to the birds of its banks – can thrive in these waters.