Spaghetti and Meatball Dinner

The Holy Name Society and Altar Society of Holy Family Church will sponsor a spaghetti and meatball dinner, February 19th in Holy Family Church’s Social Hall, 1200 Ligonier Street, Latrobe, from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dinner will include a meatball, salad, bread, dessert and beverage. Admission is $6 for adults and $3 for children. The public is invited.

-February 3, 2012

Murty Elected to State Council

Forbes Trail Chapter of Trout Unlimited’s president, Monty Murty, has recently been chosen as Pennsylvania Council’s elected representative to Trout Unlimited’s National Leadership Council.

This body is made up of more than 30 state councils plus one of America’s Indian nations, located in Oklahoma.

Murty is a resident of Laughlintown.

-January 29, 2012

History Reveals Loyalhanna FTTU Tie

When Hurricane Agnes swept through our region in 1973, it did more than cause havoc to our region. In damaging the Loyalhanna Creek, the bad storm caused interest in a group of fellows so much that they banded together for what is known today as Westmoreland’s Forbes Trail Chapter of Trout Unlimited. By the 80’s, it had restored trout fishing in the Loyalhanna and created a special area open year-round for anglers to enjoy.

This body of water remains Forbes Trail’s home water. It frequently holds meetings and fishes the creek at a public park the chapter helps maintain. Its location – Ligonier, within sight of America’s best restored French and Indian War fort. British General John Forbes blazed his trail there during the military campaign of 1758 that captured Fort Duquesne.

The south bank of the park, known as the Nicely farm, has been occupied since the 1700’s by generations of the same family. Ron Nicely, a Ligonier resident of the current generation, tells this story in his book, The Indian Capture of Jacob (Kneisle) Nicely.

As it went, “In July of 1775, Adam Kneisle was farming his fields while his wife was baking, their smaller children picking berries in the field. Jacob, aged 10, went to the cabin to get cakes when he was captured by Indians. The rescue attempt by the Westmoreland militia was unsuccessful,” he said.

“In 1828,” he went on to say, “his mother, 93, a trader in Ohio, identified Jacob who was living with the Seneca. Jacob’s brother, Adam, Jr., went west to find him, while their mother was still living.” Upon finding him, he tried to persuade Jacob to return. His attempt fell on deaf ears and he would not return to the old homestead, Nicely said.

He goes on by stating, “In 1974, while Mayo Wightcrow, Secretary of the Seneca-Cayuga Tribe of Oklahoma was researching tribal history, he discovered a Seneca named Crow. He learned that this individual was originally known as Jacob Knisley! Tribal history recorded that Jacob had been taken by Wyandots at Loyal Hanna, now Ligonier, and at Sandusky, Ohio, transferred to the Senecas. The tribe ceded their land in Ohio in 1832 and were removed.

In 2003, descendants of Crow traveled to Ligonier and met their Nicely cousins. That’s a long way to get to their family’s mountain trout stream!

Much water has gone down the Loyalyhanna Creek from Ligonier since the middle 1700’s. And certainly the banks of this great waterway in that region change yearly due to the trends of nature, FTTU makes sure it is in perfect shape as a great fishery, particularly the Delayed Harvest Area. But it can’t do so without public support.

On Saturday, March 3, FTTU will hold its 39th Annual Banquet and Raffle at the American Legion. Tickets are available at Ligonier Outfitters in Ligonier (724) 238-4900, and The Angler’s Room (724) 537-0683 on Route 217, one mile up from Kingston Dam on Route 217, Latrobe. Reservation forms are also availble on the chapter website.

A special raffle prize courtesy of Oklahoma’s Seneca-Cayuga Tribe will commemorate this native American connection.

-January 26, 2012

Big Walleyes Caught

Anglers interested in catching big walleye should set their sights on doing some night fishing in the Allegheny around the Kittanning area. Reports have been received that fishermen are catching walleye averaging 18 to 26 inches. The main bait that seems to be the ticket – minnows. One drawback. They are more expensive this year than years before for some reason. But if one is lining for walleye, minnows are the ticket.

-January 26, 2012

Overabundance of Shad in Keystone

Thanks to some unknown angler who thought he was doing a favor by stocking some gizzard shad in Keystone State Park Lake , New Alexandria, there are now an over abundance of these fish there, and the PFBC would like to thin its population if it can.

Efforts have already been made by introducing walleye and catfish to the lake, but they do not fare well in that body of water. Thus, it had to seek out another predator that would do the trick. Recently, 250 fingerling musky were introduced to that body of water in hopes that they would eat the smaller shad, thus eliminating the problem.

A question was raised whether these “implants” would eat the trout that were stocked periodically. Lorson stated that “The musky will not both the trout in the lake.”

Since I had him on the line, I asked him as to the pike presence in the lake. “Is the story true that a good number of pike were dumped into Keystone Lake by fishermen who brought them over from Beaver Run Dam?”
“No,” he said, “There is no truth to that story.” One interesting fact he did conclude with was, “There are a few pike in there, but I have no knowledge how they got there.”

-January 9, 2012

Local WCO Receives Radio From K.V.S.

Imagine being a Wildlife Conservation Officer, alone, out in the field without a way to summons help or get back-up in a dangerous situation. That may have been the way it was, but for one WCO, a change has taken place, thanks to monies raised by the Kingston Veterans Sportsman’s Club of Latrobe.
It all came about before the club’s yearly Youth Pheasant Hunt when WCO Brian Singer, assigned to eastern Westmoreland County, was talking about communications with Skip Shawley, president of K.V.S. Singer told Shawley that he wished he could get a grant to purchase high-band portable radios so conservation officers could be in direct contact with 911 and other local emergency personnel.

That was all that it took to spark an idea within the club’s leader. “I felt this was definitely a special project,” he said. Shawley took the idea to Ben Horner, vice president, who spearheaded a successful fundraising gun bash just prior to their discussion. Shawley then contacted Singer, inviting him to come to the club’s monthly meeting and present the idea behind the use of the radios to the members in attendance.
Within minutes, the club put it to a vote and decided that nearly half of the funds raised would go toward the purchase of a high-frequency radio for WCO Singer’s use in the field. The other half of the funds would go toward the Thinking of Nikki Foundation, established to help families during pediatric cancer battles.

As a direct result of the perseverance of K.V.S, WCO Singer now has one such radio that he can use to summons and/or render assistance to other local agencies. This advancement, in communication for conservation officers, also allows for the building of relationships with other emergency personnel. In the past, only game officers could contact other fellow patrolmen using low frequency radios.
Tom Fazi, information and education supervisor remarked, “It is really nice what the guys are doing for us, because it’s a good club.”

One may recall that back in November, 2010, Adams County WCO David L. Grove was shot and killed in the line of duty, while arresting poachers who had taken wildlife unlawfully. He had communications with the county 911 and was able to summons back-up shortly before he was fatally shot. Local officers converged on the scene and apprehended the suspected killer.
Singer is making a strong case for the advancement in communications. Within the first few days of using the radio, “We were able to apprehend several violators for poaching three deer all because township police were able to contact me directly when time was of the essence,” he said. “It’s a great feeling knowing the club supports its local Wildlife Conservation Officers. It makes us want to work even harder to apprehend wildlife violators and protect our natural resources.”

Shawley stated, “We are not finished here. There are still other officers who don’t have a radio. I would like to challenge the other clubs in the area to match our donation so all WCOs and Deputy WCOs have the communications we feel they need. The men who do this job are our family, friends and neighbors. We should support them any way we can. They put their lives on the line to protect something we sportsmen and women feel very passionate about.

Westmoreland County Wildlife Conservation Officer Brian Singer, right, recently received a high-frequency band radio for his use as a result of monies raised by the Kingston Veterans Sportsman’s Club. The organization, headed by Skip Shawley, left, used half of its proceeds from a gun bash, spearheaded by Ben Horner (center), vice president, to purchase this instrument that will enable Singer to contact 911 for help or back up andrender assistance to other local agencie. Shawley has challenged other area organizations to match KVS’s donation so all WCOs and Deputy WCOs will have the communication units they need.

-December 15, 2011 (Photo by Paul J. Volkmann)

Ten-Year Old Harvests 10-Pointer

Ten-year old Kara Shafron of Ligonier recently harvested a 10-point whitetail deer with a 17 1/4-inch spread. This is the second buck she has taken with a crossbow, the first she got when she was nine. The deer was harvested in Jim's Hollow, Fish Creek, Kara's favorite place to hunt. She had tracked the buck at night, harvesting it it at 10:30 p.m. Kara is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John Shafron of Ligonier.

-November 25, 2011 (Photo by Paul J. Volkmann)