Dutchess Watershed Awareness Month

Share your Watershed Moments with Us!

This year, the Dutchess Watershed Coalition is asking residents to share their stories with the theme: Watershed Moments. This year’s theme encourages participants to share the moments they have been inspired by the land and water resources of Dutchess County — the critical moment in time when they became in awe of the landscape around them, or the turning point when they realized how the land and water come together to create their natural environment. Maybe it was the first time you saw the Hudson River from the Walkway over the Hudson. Or perhaps it was the first sounds of spring peepers in March, reminding you that warmer weather really is on the way. Was it your favorite childhood swimming hole, or a scenic vista on the Appalachian Trail, or just view of your backyard from out the kitchen window?

There are several ways to share your moment.

• Share your story by commenting on this page
• Attend any of the Watershed Awareness Month events and make an audio recording sharing your moment
• Email your story or a photo to Carolyn or Elizabeth

Below we will share some of the photos, audio recordings and stories as you share them with us. Enjoy!

“Early last year I moved to the City of Poughkeepsie, and in the spring began gardening at the newly formed Fallkill Partnership Community Garden, which is located at the Family Partnership Center on North Hamilton Street. My walk to the community garden takes me over the creek crossing on Mansion Street. One day last year when I passed the crossing on Mansion Street, I glanced down at the stream and noticed a fish about 6 inches long, hovering near what looked like a nest — a small, circular area dug out of the sand at the bottom of the stream. My guess was that it was probably a bluegill sunfish, a hardy species and a spring spawner. Nevertheless, it was a surprise to see it. Just a bit of upstream there was a discarded television or computer monitor. I took my sighting of this fish in this very urbanized section of the Fallkill as a sign of its resilience, and that of other urban streams I’ve peered into over the years where life has persisted or returned. “
- Neil, City of Poughkeepsie resident

” My first ‘watershed moment’ came when I participated in a citizen science monitoring program in Connecticut.  Taking samples of a local stream for coliform bacteria, and learning how to present my findings, really showed me how watersheds connect the land with the water – and how we play a part in the environment in our own backyards. “
- Emily, City of Poughkeepsie resident
To read more about Emily’s watershed moment click here.