Pymatuning State Park in Crawford County, Chapman State Park in Warren County and Cook Forest and Clear Creek state parks in Clarion and Jefferson counties are among 19 parks in the Pennsylvania system offering cut-rate camping to first-time campers.

The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and Gander Mountain are teaming up to offer gear and a reservation for two nights at a participating state park for just $20. The program runs from Memorial Day weekend through the summer.

“You can’t beat this offer as far as the cost; the opportunity to enjoy many other activities at our state parks such as hiking and fishing; and a park staffer will even help you set up camp,” DCNR secretary Richard Allan said.

Other participating parks are Black Moshannon, Centre County; Caledonia, Franklin County; Colonel Denning, Cumberland County; Gifford Pinchot, York County; Hills Creek, Tioga County; Keystone, Westmoreland County; Lackawanna, Lackawanna County; Laurel Hill, Somerset County; Little Pine, Lycoming County; Locust Lake, Schuylkill County; Ole Bull, Potter County; Parker Dam, Clearfield County; Promised Land, Pike County; R.B. Winter, Union County; Ryerson Station, Greene County; and Sinnemahoning, Cameron and Potter counties.

Make reservations by calling a park office directly.

The gear provided for use by Gander Mountain and DCNR is a four-person tent; rain tarp; four sleeping pads; four camp chairs; flashlight; lantern; camp stove; and four hot dog/marshmallow sticks. The gear must be returned upon departure.

Participants will need to bring their own food, cooking utensils and bedding. Suggested packing lists will be provided.

In 2011, the program’s first year, the DCNR said there were 180 reservations made, and more than half of those who took a survey saying they had never before visited a Pennsylvania state park.

What makes a good rope?

That’s probably not a question most people ponder, unless they really need some.

The answer has a lot to do with what you need it for, but generally you want rope that doesn’t stretch with age, that resists the effects of moisture and abrasion, that stores easily, is affordable and — most importantly — more than strong enough for the job you have it doing.

Rope — like bungee straps, outdoor extension cords and those plastic cinch-ties — is one of those classic items you should always have nearby.

And, if you’re into farming or the outdoors, you should have a lot of it.

That’s where new lines of rope from SecureLine comes in.

The company is offering two new collections at opposite ends of the visibility spectrum — Visiflect Reflective Rope and Digital Camo Poly Rope — for those who spend their time in the great wide open.

The Visiflect line features yellow- and orange-colored rope with a reflective pattern built into it. The pattern make the rope highly visible at a distance. The company is pitching it to those who might need to mark off construction areas and hazards, generally any place you’d use caution tape. The rope could also find use as a tie down on your car or truck. It might work well on your boat, too.

The camo line is more compelling, in part because there are more potential uses for it. There are three different color schemes — Woodland Hills, Snowy Mountain and Mossy Fields. The color schemes allow for the rope to blend in with a variety of environments — from hunting camps to duck blinds. One of the nice things about it, the rope floats.

A few weeks of testing in the field revealed these ropes to be strong, useful, and mostly durable. The only gripe is that the ends tended to fray if they weren’t tied in a knot or burned.

It was hard to tell in so little time how the ropes would retain their shape over time, if they would stretch after having been weathered.

But they didn’t stretch or break even when tested with more than each rope’s recommended weight.

The ropes come in several sizes — from 5/32nds of an inch in diameter to 5/16ths inch in diameter and indifferent lengths, from 25 feet to 75 feet.

The price ranges based on size and length. The camo rope sells for $5.99 to $14.99. The Visiflect sells for $8.99 to $14.99.

– Doug Oathout

Learn what it takes to be a Pennsylvania Game Commission deputy wildlife conservation officer during a recruitment open house June 9 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Jennings Environmental Education Center, 2951 Prospect Road, Slippery Rock.

Acting WCOs and deputy WCOs will be on hand to answer questions, and there will be a display and short video about the varied duties of the position.

Deputy applicants must be Pennsylvania residents at least 21, possess a valid Pennsylvania driver’s license and have earned a high school diploma or GED equivalent. Applicants must be in good physical condition, have a good knowledge of hunting, trapping and other outdoor activities and be able to maintain a good working relationship with fellow officers and the public. Applicants must accrue 20 hours of ride-along time with a wildlife conservation officer and have a through character investigation conducted before taking the entrance examination, on which a minimum score of 70 percent must be attained. After completing one full week (75 hours) of training and an extension course a certification examination is given on which a minimum score of 80 percent is required.

“We welcome anyone 21 years of age and older to consider becoming a deputy,” Northwest Region director Keith E. Harbaugh said. “We would especially note for those individuals age 40 to 50 that it is never to late to apply, as those seasoned individuals are often better able to handle the financial and time commitments necessary in becoming a deputy.”

The Northwest Region includes Erie, Crawford, Mercer, Venango, Forest, Warren, Butler, Clarion, Jefferson and Lawrence counties.

I’m not a backcountry camper, but I do enjoy spending time in the deeper wild, whether that’s in near-to-home locales such as the Allegheny National Forest or during vacations to national parks such as Yellowstone and Glacier.

Even if I’m not overnighting in the open, I like to know that I’m at least minimally outfitted to do so if necessary. I always carry a first-aid kit, knife, water and most if not all of the 10 essentials for hiking and camping.

So I was particularly interested to test Coghlan’s Windproof/Waterproof Storm Matches.

The fact that the matches are NATO approved and were developed for use by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defense is kind of cool. So is the film-sized (remember film?) waterproof container, which has a striker on either end. And the impregnated match heads have the look of small candles, extending halfway down the stick.

All of which means nothing if the matches didn’t perform as promised.

I tried them in one of the stiff winds this past weekend, and they lighted without fail, even in the teeth of a gust. They burn for a full 10 seconds — long enough, one would hope, to be able to light prepared tinder under kindling.

Coghlan’s also promises that the matches will withstand immersion in water. I doused a match under the tap and struck it — and it lit. The striker surface has to be dry, however.

The 25-match containers, which go for $3.49 through Amazon, are a nice lightweight firestarting option, whether you plan a long backcountry trip or simply resolve to plan for the worst.

If you think you’d like to get in on something like this weekend’s Festival of the Birds at Presque Isle but don’t want to fork over for it, the free Pennsylvania Migration Count might be perfect.

It’s a one-day migratory bird population count that takes place May 12, which also is International Migratory Bird Day. Birders are invited to peruse their counties, counting all birds encountered and keeping track of miles traveled and time spent counting. The 24-hour counting period starts at 12:01 a.m.

Totals are sent to county compilers who will report to a state compiler. An annual report is published in Pennsylvania Birds, the journal of the Pennsylvania Society for Ornithology.

In 2011 there were 903 observers from 53 counties. They counted 199,120 birds of 238 different species in more than 2,932 field hours.

Collection forms and compiler addresses are available online. Results can be submitted by e-mail or snail mail.

Erie’s Kent Kessler was named snowmobiler of the year during the Pennsylvania State Snowmobile Association‘s spring membership meeting April 14 in Harrisburg.

Kessler was recognized for special contributions to the sport of snowmobiling: “Kessler is very active in the snowmobile community, belonging to the Wales Sno-Drifters Snowmobile Club, Erie-Crawford Snowmobile Alliance, Cherry Creek Snogoers as well as the New York State Snowmobile Association and PSSA. Kessler has also served in varying leadership capacities in the sport. Kessler is dedicated to the trails and was instrumental in completing the Allegheny National Forest Loop initiative when he served as the chairman of the ANF Trail Committee. Kent has also outfitted each trail segment of the Wales Sno-Drifters with a GPS track, property boundaries, trail signage of special trail conditions or restrictions and up-to-date property owner listing.”

The association also honored Janice Dennis, McKean Township supervisor, as forester/government official of the year for performance, cooperation and service in fostering safety and positive conditions for responsible snowmobiling.

Janice Dennis, McKean Township supervisor and Pennsylvania State Snowmobile Association forester/government official of the year. JANET B. KUMMERER/Erie Times-News file photo

The McKean Snowriders wrote, “Jan is truly an outstanding and cooperative government official to the snowmobiling community. Jan and McKean Township have been very supportive of snowmobiling, approving an additional 6.5 miles of snowmobile roads and three new roads, allowing a new trail to be developed on McKean Township property and working with clubs to find an alternative to a bridge closure that impacted the trail system. They have also worked with neighboring townships to enable snowmobile roads, raised the blade when plowing snowmobile designated roads and providing the McKean Snowriders with information on who to contact to expand their trail system onto resident’s private property. They have also assisted the McKean Snowriders by providing a letter of support to the McKean Snowriders in support for their groomer grant write-up.”

From largemouth bass to walleye, Pennsylvania anglers target and catch a grand variety of fish every year, and every year some of those anglers’ best catches end up on the list of Pennsylvania’s biggest fish.

Northwestern Pennsylvania, with its proximity to the great fishing in Lake Erie, Pymatuning, Shenango Lake and other prime waters, always is well represented on that list. That’s particularly true of the 2011 list that was recently published on the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission web site.

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Ed Lawrence, of Corry, caught a 23-inch, 5-pound 1-ounce rainbow trout April 29 from a French Creek tributary. The trout, which bit on a worm, had a girth of 14 1/2 inches. Lawrence’s biggest-ever trout qualifies for a Senior Angler Award. “It was bigger than some of the steelhead I’ve caught,” he said.

Don Collins shot a trophy spring gobbler with his 12-gauge May 9 at 6:30 a.m. in Erie County. The bird weighed 21 pounds and had a 10-inch beard.

Hunting hours will increase May 14 to one-half hour before sunrise to one-half hour after sunset through end of the Pennsylvania season May 31.

Wonder why birders crowd Presque Isle State Park one weekend each year for the now annual Festival of the Birds?

Whether they’re assembling day lists, adding to life lists or viewing species they can’t find elsewhere, birders take advantage of the peninsula’s location in the Atlantic Flyway. It’s the last stop before the jump over Lake Erie for migrating birds such as the warblers that are taking up short-term residence these days.

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