Please use this page to post news of impending trips; discussions of recent trips and comments or notes about things happening on local rivers.
Boat Registration: you do not need to “register” your boat with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission unless you have a motor on it! Instead of a registration you can get a launch permit if you are using a Fish Commission access point or are boating on a Fish Commission controlled lake or State Park lake. Launch permits can be obtained at State Parks, at local sites or at the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission’s online site. But to confuse the issue, you can get an unpowered boat registration that is the same price as a launch permit. The sticker is the same size (but green instead of yellow). Not sure if there is an advantage of one over the other.
Also, you do not need a permit to boat on either the Middle Yough or the Lower Yough. You do need a reservation to launch a private boat on the Lower Yough. See the following from the DCNR website:
Private Trips: Go online to www.visitPAparks.com or call 888-PA-PARKS to schedule a launch time. Equipment rentals are available in the town of Ohiopyle. There is a fee to launch boats on weekends and holidays on the Lower Yough. During the week, boaters must sign-in at the launch area. Shuttle tokens, available at the launch area, must be purchased 7 days a week during the summer season.
Inexperienced boaters should not attempt the Youghiogheny River without qualified guides.
Make a reservation for camping at a state park.
River Trails
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission has a page that shows all of the River Trails in Pennsylvania.
