Food fight has ducks walking on fish

LINESVILLE, Pa. -- Pigs don't fly, cows don't jump over the moon, and ducks don't walk on fish, right?
Well, not unless you happen to visit the Linesville Spillway on the shores of Pymatuning Lake in Crawford County, Pa.
Here, ducks (and geese) really do walk on the backs of fish.
You'll see it for yourself when you toss a slice of bread over the spillway railing and into the water where hundreds of hungry carp are gathered for a meal.
As the carp struggle for a bite of bread, ducks and geese scurry across their slippery, scaled backs and steal the bread for themselves.
It's quite a sight -- somewhat fascinating, somewhat disgusting -- as the hundreds of huge, slurping carp and dozens of hurrying ducks and honking geese all fight for a morsel.
But disgusting or not, kids will love it and think it's the coolest thing ever. Before you can count to 10, your squealing kids will have thrown an entire loaf of bread to fish and fowl and will be asking for more.
You can bring your own bread to the spillway, or you can buy bread on site at the souvenir stand. Otherwise, it costs nothing to feed the fish (and the ducks and geese).
The Spillway is located on Hartstown Road just outside the borough of Linesville and is open all year (except for when the lake ices over, of course).
Folks have been feeding the fish at the Linesville Spillway (or dam) since the 1930s when Pymatuning Lake was created by flooding 25,000 acres of marshlands.
Fish first gathered at the spillway to feast on the bugs and debris that washed over the dam, and it wasn't long before fishermen were tossing in bits of sandwiches to the plethora of hungry carp.
That's how it all got started. Now many of the hungry carp measure three feet or more, and when a piece of bread sails over the railing, huge masses of them surge toward it like something out or a weird sci-fi movie.
Folks travel from near and far to see this odd and interesting sight that has become Linesville's claim to fame.
Make sure to bring your camera and plenty of bread.
Learning center
Located a stone's throw from the Spillway, also on Hartstown Road, is the Pennsylvania Game Commission's Pymatuning Wildlife Learning Center.
Here, kids and adults can unwind in an air-conditioned facility that features nature exhibits and hands-on learning activities.
The center houses more than 300 mounted specimens of Pennsylvania birds and mammals, including numerous waterfowl and songbirds, foxes, bobcats, black bears, deer and coyotes.
Some of the animals are displayed in settings designed to mimic their natural habitats, and others are mounted in glass cases.
The rear room of the center will remind visitors of a science lab. Here, kids and adults can look through microscopes, listen to various bird calls and watch educational videos about Pennsylvania's forests and wildlife.
All of this information will come in handy when visitors hike on the center's outdoor nature trails.
Grab one of the center's tree trail identification guides, watch for the numbered trees along the trail and then ask your kids to identify the trees by the shape of their leaves and the texture of their bark.
Along the trail, hikers will find oak, maple, black cherry, white ash, dogwood and numerous other types of trees and shrubs.
After your hike, relax on the sloping grounds that surround the nature center and overlook Pymatuning Lake.
The grounds feature bird feeders, bluebird and purple martin houses and shady knolls perfect for a picnic. Bring your binoculars and check out the American bald eagle nest a short distance away.
The Pennsylvania Game Commission's Pymatuning Wildlife Learning Center is located at 12590 Hartstown Road, Linesville, Pa., and is open April through September. Call (814) 683-5545 for more information.
Linesville Fish Hatchery
About a quarter-mile down the road from the Pennsylvania Game Commission's Pymatuning Wildlife Learning Center is the Linesville Fish Hatchery.
Built in 1939, it is one of 15 hatcheries in the state and sits on 97 developed acres of land owned by the state and managed by the Fish and Boat Commission.
The grounds are a maze of earthen ponds, concrete raceways and tray egg incubators used to supplement natural fish reproduction and contribute to one of Pennsylvania's greatest economic boosters -- recreational fishing.
While touring the hatchery, visitors can learn more about methods for taking and fertilizing fish eggs, sorting fish from trap nets and determining the age of fish.
From July through September, hatchery workers raise paddlefish, musky, fathead minnows and steelhead.
At other times of the year, the hatchery is stocked with walleye, panfish, bass, salmon, crappie, perch, bluegill and catfish.
Some of the fish housed at the hatchery are smaller than your pinkie finger, while others are real whoppers -- the stuff fish stories are made of.
Tourists can see some of these trophy fish swimming around inside the hatchery's huge aquarium.
The Linesville Fish Hatchery is located at 13300 Hartstown Road and is open from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. seven days a week. For more information, call (814) 683-4451.