Scouts Project

The installation of 20 fishing rod holders at the Eastern Neck Narrows bridge on April 22 was a project of the Friends of Eastern Neck, aided by Boy Scout Troop 130 of Kent County. From left to right:  front row, Boy Scouts Jonah Vaughan, Andrew Buckel, and Nate Peregoy; back row, Scoutmaster Ed Pickering, FOEN Board of Directors member Bill Burton, and Assistant Scoutmaster Mark Buckel.

“This is a good community service for recreational fishermen, and was a cooperative effort among Fish and Wildlife, the Friends of Eastern Neck, and the Boy Scouts,” Burton said. “We’re going to have a sign indicating that the rod holders were installed by Troop 130 as part of a project created by the Friends. And, hopefully, some of those who use the bridge will see that and become more interested in finding out what we’re doing at the Refuge that they might also enjoy.”

The sturdy cast-aluminum rod holders will serve a number of functions. They will allow fishermen to watch their lines at leisure without draping rods across the pedestrian walkways on either side of the bridge roadway. Those who cast more than one rod will be able to tend them more easily.

From the bridge at Eastern Neck Narrows, the approximate divide between the Chesapeake Bay and the Chester River, fishermen are able to land a variety of species, including striped bass (rockfish), catfish, white perch, yellow perch, spot, sea trout, and croaker. The striped bass season opens for Chester River and tributaries on May 16.