As we start the New Year, arctic cold has transformed the Susquehanna outside our Zimmerman Center for Heritage into an icy winter wonderland. We are thankful to be inside looking out, warm with the layers of history that inhabit this 18th century stone sentinel of a building on what was once America’s frontier. It’s a great time to reflect on another successful year advancing our vision for the river as a national destination for outdoor fun and cultural discovery.

In 2017 we launched year-round weekend hours and programs at the Zimmerman Center, doubled annual visitors to almost 5,000, and welcomed over 400 local school children to learn about history, nature, and art through the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail. At Columbia Crossing River Trails Center we launched new exhibits and programs, hosted the Canoemobile event for hundreds of 5th graders, and helped 23,000 visitors find their place on the river. We saw our National Heritage Area bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives and celebrated with many generous friends of the river at our Annual River Experience event in Wrightsville and our first-ever Extraordinary River Party in Columbia.

More is on the way for 2018. With the National Park Service and other partners, we’ll complete important planning efforts for the John Smith Chesapeake Trail, design accessibility improvements at the Zimmerman Center, and prepare for new land and water shuttle service linking both sides of the river. We’ll continue to lead tourism development for the Susquehanna Riverlands, publish maps, websites, and social media, and improve visitor readiness. All of these efforts will enhance quality of life for residents and bring economic vitality to our communities through tourism.

This is all possible through strong, sustaining funding partnerships with the PA Department of Conservation & Natural Resources, National Park Service, Lancaster and York Counties, Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority, York County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Columbia Borough, the Ralph H. Goodno Riverlands Fund managed by Lancaster County Conservancy, and our many generous individual and corporate donors. Thank you all so much. We’ll see you along the river – whatever the season!

Mark Platts, President

We need your support to win 2018 River of the Year!

Vote for Lower Susquehanna/Susquehanna Riverlands for River of the Year!

Susquehanna Heritage & Lancaster County Conservancy recently worked to complete an application for River of the Year. Our organizations work together on the Susquehanna Riverlands Conservation Landscape Initiative, a project funded and created by PA Department of Conservation & Natural Resources.

The Susquehanna Riverlands has grown in the last ten years,  preserving hundreds of acres; expanding river access; developing parks and trails; and supporting the local economy through tourism. The Susquehanna Riverlands features three major lakes created by hydroelectric dams, three nationally recognized recreation trails (Susquehanna River Trail, Kelly’s Run Pinnacle Trail, and the Mason-Dixon Trail), as well as the 14 mile Northwest River Trail, and the Turkey Hill section of the 29 mile Enola Low Grade Rail Trail.  It provides opportunities to explore the rich historical and cultural history of the Lower Susquehanna Region including significant American Indian cultural landscapes, ecologically sensitive bird habitat such as the Conejohela flats and more than 2,000 acres of protected publicly accessible land, in 29 municipalities in Lancaster and York Counties.

Our organizations recognize that the River of the Year award would push forward the Susquehanna Riverlands brand. Plus the award includes funding to create and improve special events in the Susquehanna Riverlands. Events that you can be a part of! So help us to create some amazing river adventures by voting for Lower Susquehanna/Susquehanna Riverlands! We’re up against some tough competition so encourage your family and friends to vote too!

VOTE NOW

The Pennsylvania Organization for Watersheds and Rivers, or POWR, administers the River of the Year program for PA DCNR. This recognition is done to raise awareness of the important recreational, ecological, and historical resources associated with the state’s rivers and streams. Local organizations like ours submit nominations.

 

Susquehanna Heritage takes part in Chesapeake Bay Commission flyover of the Lower Susquehanna River

 

Susquehanna Heritage President Mark Platts joined leaders of the Chesapeake Bay Commission yesterday as the guide for a flyover of the Susquehanna River from Harrisburg to the Chesapeake Bay and back. Commission members were particularly interested in the numerous power generation facilities in this 60 mile stretch of the river, the many parks and preserves that help protect the Susquehanna watershed, and the evolving network of river heritage and recreation attractions we’ve helped develop with local, state, and national partners.

The Chesapeake Bay Commission sponsored the trip as part of its quarterly meeting in Harrisburg. Participants taking part in the flyover included: Ann Swanson, Executive Director of the Chesapeake Bay Commission; PA Representative Garth Everett, Chair of the Commission; MD Delegate Tawanna Gaines, Commission Member; MD Delegate Barbara Frush, Commission Member; and Shannon Lyons, SouthWings Chesapeake Program Director.

SouthWings coordinated this trip with volunteer pilots and plane.

 

Aerial view south from Conowingo Dam to the mouth of the Susquehanna River at the Chesapeake Bay.

 

Aerial view south from Holtwood over Conowingo Pond.

 

Participants prepare to board with the Southwings volunteer flight team at Harrisburg International Airport (MDT).

 

Participants taking part in the flyover included (left to right): PA Representative Garth Everett, Chair of the Commission; MD Delegate Barbara Frush, Commission Member; Shannon Lyons, SouthWings Chesapeake Program Director; Ann Swanson, Executive Director of the Chesapeake Bay Commission; and MD Delegate Tawanna Gaines, Commission Member.

We had a great time hosting Canoemobile at Columbia Crossing and River Park on October 16th and 17th. Fifth graders from Columbia School District, Eastern York, and home school groups participated in this day of adventure and learning on land and water. So inspiring to see so many kids discover the Susquehanna up close on a beautiful fall day – for many their first time in a canoe or on the river!

Our mission is to connect people to the river and its history and there’s no better way than getting on the water. Susquehanna Heritage worked with Wilderness Inquiry, National Parks Conservation Association and National Park Service Chesapeake Bay to coordinate and create an amazing experience for students. Thank you especially to National Parks Conservation Association for funding the bussing and programming. The partners plus Pennsylvania State Parks‘ Educator Curtis Sherwood also joined the Susquehanna Heritage team to offer land stations that directly tied the on-water experience with our local history, environment, and watershed.

 

Explore the images and videos below to see how this great program impacted students.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Action Alert: Please contact your PA House members today and ask them to stop the pending raid on state funding committed to conservation, recreation, and preservation projects across Pennsylvania, including important projects right here in the Susquehanna Riverlands. Click here to find contact info for your House member: goo.gl/j3gBHz

We fully support the statement below from the PA Growing Greener Coalition and have joined the sign-in letter to our legislators with the same message:

Susquehanna Heritage is proud to host the work of local Columbia artist Diana Thomas at Columbia Crossing this September. The exhibit, titled Current Color: A Year on the River  chronicles Thomas’s year long journey creating an acrylic painting per week.  “Making art can be a healing experience.  I’ve always known that but not until last year did I know it to the depths I do now.” explains Columbia artist, Diana Thomas.  “After all that happened I still marvel that I was able to paint fifty-two paintings of the lower Susquehanna River, one painting a week for a year.”

Though the paintings are the most visible part of her unique project, ‘Current Color – A Year on the River’, there is more to this presentation.  Thomas decided to keep a weekly journal entry that portrays a strong current of life lessons flowing through her body of work.  She writes of the River’s beauty and peaceful healing presence when her life was touched by tragedy.

Thomas initially began the project in December 2015,  to practice allowing herself the time to create art on a more regular basis than she had been doing.   “I wanted to create a challenge that would stretch me but one that was also realistic enough to complete,” she explained.  “I set up an album for each quarter of the year for all the photos I would take several times a week.  It seemed fitting to keep a written record of the progress, the process of making the art, and any particulars about the river itself.”  She started to work just before Christmas, 2015.

“As the body of work began to grow I had a strong sense that the paintings had a message of some kind and were telling it in a way that a single painting or two could not.  It seemed as if they were becoming something like a visual choir.  By the time I had finished the first quarter I knew the pieces would need to remain together as a group to share their message.”

Three quarters of the way through the project, on September 14th, 2016, Diana’s 41 year old daughter died tragically, losing her long battle with substance overuse.  Less than a month later the same tragedy befell her daughter’s mate of ten years, leaving behind their then 8 year old son.  “I don’t really have any words to express what our family went through in the first weeks and months after that but I felt compelled to try to ‘say’ something to my daughter or for her through painting.  Our daughter was an artist and singer, and I knew she would have wanted me to keep going with the project.  I created a piece called ‘River of Tears’.  I also created a painting in honor of our son-in-law called “Even the Moon Cried.”  Though both pieces are included in the ‘Current Color’ presentation, Thomas at first did not think she would show these two paintings.  “But by then ‘Current Color’ had taken on a life of its own and this sad time needed to be part of the whole”, she said.

In April all the paintings were seen for the first time at a brief showing at Historic Mount Bethel Cemetery in Columbia, PA and the response surprised Thomas.  So many people who love the Susquehanna were telling her their own life stories about places represented by many of the scenes.  She also told how touching it was that many people wanted to see ‘River of Tears’ and say how sorry they were and that they too were familiar with that kind of tragedy.  “Of course I had no way to know what was in store when the year began but I can truly say painting through it was a blessing in disguise.  I pray it will also have a healing effect on others.”

“The Susquehanna River has brought me peace many times through the sad events our family has faced in the recent months. I’m grateful for the experience of observing her and painting her.”

Enjoy this compelling exhibit at Columbia Crossing River Trails Center during September. Exhibit hours are 10 am to 5 pm Tuesdays through Thursdays and 9 am to 6 pm Fridays through Sundays. Handmade greeting cards featuring these beautiful works are also available from the artist with a portion of the proceeds benefiting Susquehanna Heritage.

Funding for PA Conservation, Outdoor Recreation & Farmland Preservation in Jeopardy Once Again!

 

With negotiations still going on in Harrisburg about a Fiscal Code bill to pay for the state budget approved earlier this month, there are new efforts underway this weekend to divert funding away from three major dedicated conservation funds that are critical to the quality of life and economic wellbeing of people and communities across Pennsylvania – the Environmental Stewardship Fund, the Keystone Recreation, Park and Conservation Fund, and the Farmland Preservation Fund.

These special funds help support everything from greenways, trails, community parks, water cleanup, and wildlife habitat protection to historic sites, libraries, and farmland conservation easements. It’s possible that up to $100 million could be diverted from these programs!

It is important that our state House and Senate members know that even in tough budget times these special, dedicated funds must be protected. We encourage our friends to contact your representatives today and ask them to leave these funds intact and not divert them to make up for other budget shortfalls.  Please use this link to find your legislators and contact them today: http://conservationadvocate.org/2017/07/08/call-now-to-save-conservation/

Thank you!

Susquehanna Heritage

The 2017 Susquehanna Heritage Flatwater Challenge Canoe & Kayak Event will be held on Saturday July 15th at East Donegal Riverfront Park, along the Northwest Lancaster County River Trail. 

 

This fun canoe and kayak event on the Susquehanna River is for paddlers of all ages and abilities. The event features a 1-mile course for youth and novices, a 4-mile course for great family fun, and an 8-mile course that is a USCA & PACK qualifying course. Check-in and/or registration begins at 8:30 a.m.

The National Park Service Chesapeake Bay Office’s Roving Ranger will also be making an appearance at the event. The Roving Ranger is the new mobile visitor center for the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail that will be on hand to entertain and educate the public at the event.

 

Click here to find out more about the Susquehanna Heritage Flatwater Challenge and to register for the event.

Download the Susquehanna Heritage Flatwater Challenge brochure here.

 

We look forward to seeing you on the river July 15th for the Susquehanna Heritage Flatwater Challenge!

 

 

Bringing National Heritage Area Designation to our Region

 

Susquehanna Heritage is pleased to announce that Congressman Lloyd Smucker, with Congressman Scott Perry and Congressman Pat Meehan have introduced H.R. 2991 to establish the Susquehanna National Heritage Area Act. This new legislation is a companion to Senator Casey’s bill (S.400) which was introduced earlier this year.

 

Here’s a link to a press release from Congressman Smucker:

http://www.susquehannaheritage.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Smucker-Press-Release.pdf

 

And here’s the link that can be used to track the legislation:  

https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/house-bill/2991?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22Susquehanna+national+heritage+area%22%5D%7D&r=1If

 

The introduction of H.R. 2991 is a big step forward in our effort to achieve national designation!

 

To learn more about our National Heritage Area effort follow this link:

http://www.susquehannaheritage.org/about-us/our-work/national-heritage-area-designation/

 

Susquehanna Heritage’s Current Requests For Proposal

 

Interpretive Master Plan

http://www.susquehannaheritage.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/RFP_SH-CAJO-Interpretive-Master-Plan-6-17.pdf

 

Land & Water Connections Study

http://www.susquehannaheritage.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/RFP_SH-CAJO-Land-Water-Shuttle-Study-6-17.pdf