Schuylkill County Conservancy to maintain 1.5-mile section of Schuylkill River Trail

The Schuylkill County Conservancy will take over maintenance of a section of the Schuylkill River Trail near Auburn, the organization announced Friday.

The Conservancy and the Schuylkill River Greenways Association, the Pottstown nonprofit that oversees the trail, have agreed to partner with the upkeep of a section of the John B. Bartram Trail.

The section of the trail starts at the new bridge crossing the Schuylkill River and runs for 1.5 miles to the Stony Creek State Game Land parking lot.

The Bartram section is part of a larger portion of the trail that runs from Landingville to Port Clinton.

“It is a peaceful, quiet, well forested trail,” said Frank Snyder, retired state forester and conservancy activist. “It offers scenic views of the Schuylkill River and, in some places, you may be serenaded by the flute-like calls of a wood thrush.”

The conservancy agreed to routinely police the 1.5-mile section, removing branches and sticks from the trail, Snyder said. It will also dispose of garbage and monitor the growth of invasive plants.

The conservancy will host a spring cleanup at 9:30 a.m. June 8 on the trail. The event is expected to last around 2 hours.

The focus of the cleanup will be on removing invasive plants and trimming back brush on both sides of the trail. Volunteers should bring gloves, a garden trowel or pruning devices.

Good footwear and a long-sleeve shirt would also be a good idea, organizers say.

The group will meet at the trail parking lot on Route 895, near the bridge crossing the Schuylkill River, east of Auburn.

The conservancy will shuttle participants to the trail. For more information, contact Mike Sausser at 570-739-4803.