Category Archives: Announcements

General news announcements from DATC.

SRTA’s Season Opening Celebration

Our friends at the Susquehanna River Trails Association (SRTA) promote sustainable use of the Susquehanna and they would like to invite you to their 5th annual Season Opening Celebration for a festive buffet dinner celebrating their friends and supporters at the Ranch House Restaurant. Stop by on Thursday, March 27th from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. to learn more about this organization and enjoy a top quality buffet dinner.

The buffet costs $15 if you’re not an SRTA member, $8 if you’re a member, or it’s free if you’re an Island Steward (Limited to two steward representatives per campsite). The price includes:

Buffet dinner with the Ranch House’s legendary desserts.
Remarks by Brook Lenker, President, SRTA.
Presentation by Erin Pierce, Program Coordinator, Susquehanna Greenway, celebrating the greenway and sharing images from their annual photo contest.
Island steward recognition.

Please RSVP by March 14th to susquehannarivertrail@gmail.com to secure your reservations. Payment will be taken at the door.

Duncannon Outdoor Club Hike March 15th

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On Saturday, March 15th hike an average paced loop hike for 1.73 miles over easy terrain at the Joseph Ibberson Conservation Area. This is an easy hike for the whole family, ages 6 and older. Learn about the importance of vernal ponds and the migration of the Jefferson Salamander. Meet at the Duncannon Family Health Center at 51 Campus Business Way in Duncannon. Meeting time is 9:00 am. Call 834-9216 or email dtakach@duncannonatc.org to register. The conservation area is about 25 minutes from Duncannon .

Berry Mountain Hike Rescheduled

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The Berry Mountain Hike has been rescheduled for Sunday, March 2nd at 12:30 pm.

Hike up and down Berry Mountain (located locally) for a total of 3.6 miles on easy terrain at an average pace. Enjoy the view of the Susquehanna River and surrounding mountains. Learn about hypothermia and how to treat it. Meet at the Duncannon Family Health Center at 51 Campus Business Way in Duncannon. Call 834-9216 or email dtakach@duncannonatc.org to regester. Bring water and a snack. Wear orange.

DOC January Hike – The Great Horned Owl

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For the January DOC hike we went out onto the Takach property in search of a Great Horned Owl’s nest. (In February the owls are in the nest and will protect their nesting sites aggressively.) The hike leader had found an area where there were promising signs of an owl’s nest. Owl droppings on an old snag used for a lookout were evident as were droppings on a large hemlock with a nest at the top. Feathers were also found at the bottom of the trees. Unfortunately, it snowed the day after finding the site so the group was unable to reach the site due to hazardous footing on a very steep hill. We went looking elsewhere without success. We did create a nesting site by using white paint for the droppings; on the ground, on a snag (dead tree – the lookout) and another tree close by with a nest in it. Scattered pellets and various feathers around the trees put on the final touch.

All was not lost, we learned about the great owl and had the opportunity to dissect owl pellets at the Takach’s. Moles and voles seemed to be the prevalent prey ingested by the owls. Surprisingly, we found a bird skull and a snake skull, and yes, in answer to everyone’s question and observation of the skull, snakes do have tiny little teeth to help ingest prey. Continue reading →

Duncannon Outdoor Club February Hike

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On Feb. 15th hike 3.60 miles up and down Berry Mountain (located locally) on easy terrain at an average pace. Enjoy the view of the Susquehanna River and surrounding landscape. Learn about hypothermia and how to treat it. Meet at the Dunncannon Family Health Center at 51 Business Campus Way in Duncannon. Meeting time is 9:00 am. Call 834-9216 or email dtakach@duncannonatc.com to register. Bring water and a snack. Wear orange due to the hunting season. Hope to see you there!

Duncannon Outdoor Club December Hike

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: The Trackers!

: The Tracks

: The Trackers Making Tracks.

The DOC had great weather for a great day. It was warm but not so warm that the snow melted. Consequently, we got to learn about and identify a number of different animal tracks.

Prior to our start a hunter warned us to keep an eye out for a mother bear with two cubs. Apparently, momma bear was not happy with him and approached him earlier in the week. We found no bear tracks, but then we did make a lot of noise as we sang Jingle Bells while climbing the mountain.

We did see a lot of tracks: turkey, fox, deer, squirrel, raccoon, and voles ( We scooped the snow off the top of the vole tunnels to see their tracks.). We also saw a number of tracking clues such as scats , digs, debarking, trails, and hair. The debarking was more likely caused by a porcupine since it was high up in the tree, higher than if a rabbit had done it. The deer hair and snow markings were indicative of a hunter who was dragging out his or her kill.

Three out of the four basic animal tracking gaits were observed: Straight Walker, Hopper, and Waddler. We did not see any Bounders. Straight Walker is the most common gait for Continue reading →

New Appalachian Trail Parking Lot

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The Mountain Club of Maryland proposes to build a new parking lot near the Appalachian Trail in Duncannon, PA. This section of the trail is very popular due to the views at Hawk Rock. Currently hikers using the AT south of Duncannon have no official parking choices. Many people park at the borough recycling center and use an unofficial trail to access the AT. Others park near a bar (Tubby’s) a short distance from the proposed lot. The proposed lot will be located along Inn Road where the trail enters the woods and will accommodate 8 cars.

The proposed lot will be 75 feet long by 18 feet deep and it will accommodate approximately 8 cars, using straight in parking. Per ABA (Architectural Barriers Act) guidelines, one spot will be compliant with Accessibility standards. The surfacing material will be crushed stone. A barrier fence will be placed around the edges to prevent unwanted expansion and to prevent cars from going down the slope beyond the proposed parking area. In addition to the fence, all the material resulting from construction will be located around it. Vegetation adjacent to the site includes maple and locust trees, special attention will be paid to minimizing damage to existing vegetation. Drainage will be similar to existing conditions; native plants may be added to minimize the risk of erosion, with plant selection done in consultation with ATC (Appalachian Trail Conservancy) and/or NPS (National Park Service). An information kiosk will also be installed.

January 8th, 2014 DATC Meeting

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The Duncannon Appalachian Trail Community Advisory Committee will hold its next meeting on Wednesday, January 8th at 6:30 PM in the Duncannon Christ Lutheran Church located at 115 Church Street. RSVP is not required but it’s greatly appreciated. Our agenda will focus on next year’s 2014 Duncannon A.T. Community Festival, the progress that our volunteers have made and further increasing meeting attendance among Duncannon residents.

THERE WILL BE FREE PIZZA AND SODA! Send in your RSVP to help us determine how much pizza we should buy. Special thanks to everyone who chipped in to help pay for this month’s pizza! In the past, the pizza was paid for by Trisha Sanders, Dennis Hurley, the DATC, Neal Brofee and Patrick Collins. Contact datc@duncannonatc.org if you or your group would like to contribute to the DATC Meeting Pizza Fund.

The church where we’re holding our meeting accepts any unwanted used clothes that are still in good shape. If you’ve been looking for a place to donate your old clothes that no longer fit after losing weight while hiking the trails, then this is a great opportunity to help the Duncannon community. All clothes are first offered to Duncannon residents and what is not claimed goes to Community Aid which is a reputable non profit organization.

Anyone who would like to be involved with the DATC, offer guidance or influence its policies is welcome to attend our meetings. You also might find a volunteer opportunity that suits you in any number of fields such as: planning our next 2014 DATC Festival, fundraising, supporting the Duncannon Outdoors Club, learning about Appalachian Trail maintenance and inspiring people to enjoy outdoor activities in the Duncannon area.
We look forward to seeing you there Sean.

Duncannon Outdoor Club January Hike

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On Jan. 18^th join the DOC and learn about the Great Horned Owl. Bushwhack the Takach property for signs of the great bird. Afterwards, try your hand at dissecting STERILIZED owl pellets at the Cornerstone Christian Church. It is an average paced 2 mile hike on moderate terrain. Bring water and a snack. Dress accordingly and wear orange. Meet at 9:00 am. at the Duncannon Family Health Center. This hike is limited to 16 hikers and the cost is 6 dollars to cover the cost of the pellets. Call 834-9216 or email dtakach@duncannonatc.org to register.