New Kayak and Canoe Launches Give Boaters Better Access to Ten
Mile Creek
Washington PA Observer-Reporter
16 March 2016
By Bob Niedbala
Area streams and creeks have begun to rise with the spring rains,
making it the ideal time, in between downpours of course, to canoe
or kayak down the South Fork of Ten Mile Creek in Greene County.
This year, those who wish to engage in the sport will be able to
take advantage of two kayak and canoe launches that have recently
been built along the stream. One is off of Route 188 in Franklin
Township, just west of the soccer fields, and the other along
Beagle Club Road in Morgan Township.
People have begun to take an interest in kayaking the Ten Mile,
which is being developed as a waterway trail stretching 23 miles
from Waynesburg to the confluence with the Monongahela River. “We
finished the launch in August or September,” Morgan Township
Supervisor Shirl Barnhart said of the new launch on Beagle Club
Road. ”The day we were finished up, there were a couple people who
had kayaks in the water.”
Though some sections of Ten Mile Creek may make for rough travel
during low flow in late summer, spring is probably the best time
to boat on the creek. The level and flow of water on the creek
Wednesday as a result of this week’s rain is a good example.
“You probably wouldn’t even need oars,” Barnhart said. “If you put
in at Route 188, you would be down at the Mon River before you
knew it.”
Franklin Township finished constructing its launch about a month
ago though it still has a little work to complete, including
putting up a sign and a picnic table for people to use, Franklin
Supervisor Reed Kiger said.
“It’s all done, itself. It’s handicap-accessible, the whole deal.
It’s very nice,” he said.
Kiger said he believes there has been more interest in kayaking
and canoeing in the last few years.
“I just hope people use it (the new launch),” he said.
Kiger, who kayaked the creek from Waynesburg down to the Mon a
couple of years ago, said it was a good experience, though the
water was a little shallow in spots.
“It was very nice and there were a lot of good views along the
creek,” he said.
The two launches were funded with grants from the state Department
of Conservation and Natural Resources. Municipalities
participating in the plan have used their employees to build them.
EQT also made a contribution to the Morgan Township launch,
Barnhart said.
Jefferson Township also is constructing a launch at a park it is
developing on Route 1011 near Clarksville.
That launch is about halfway completed, said engineer Michael
Dufalla, who has spearheaded the waterway trail project and
prepared the grant applications.
The idea to develop the trail was conceived about eight years ago,
Dufalla said. Though people recognized the creek as a potential
recreational resource, its use suffered from a lack of access and
the awareness it is a good place to boat, he said.
“April through June is probably the best flow (on the creek),”
Dufalla said, adding that the flow drops off in August and
September. “You can still use it (during the low-flow months). You
may not be able to go from Waynesburg to Millsboro, but there are
segments of it that can be used.”
The lower part of the Ten Mile from Clarksville downstream to the
Mon is always good in regard to adequate flow, Dufalla said. The
creek also has a nice long pool that can be used year around from
the Beagle Club Road launch upstream toward Waynesburg, he said.
Plans for the waterway trail also include future launches at the
Crawford Field in Franklin Township, at the Greene Cove Yacht Club
and along a stretch of stream in the area of Pollocks Mill,
Dufalla said.