Schuylkill Acts and Impacts trip to Crow’s Nest

By Daniel Barringer, Preserve Manager

Fifteen high school students from communities throughout the Schuylkill River watershed are engaged on a week long journey down the river exploring water quality issues.

They camped overnight at Crow’s Nest Preserve on Tuesday night, and yes, they were out in these tents during the thunderstorm at 3 am. Some took shelter in the barn; all survived the deluge.

We held a campfire discussion about Natural Lands Trust’s conservation work, careers in conservation, and the challenges we face in land stewardship. (Good land stewardship is a necessary part of protecting stream quality.)

The group got an opportunity to bottle-feed our young calves (who will grow up to help us with habitat restoration), had s’mores around the campfire, and in the morning had scrambled eggs from our free-range chickens. Then we went on a hike in light rain to explore some of the preserve.

These kids were as engaged and intense in their questioning as any group we have hosted. It was great fun to have them visit.

Schuylkill Acts and Impacts is a project of the Schuylkill Headwaters Association.