Rainy Lackawanna RiverFest 2023 reigns in Scranton

Sep. 23—SCRANTON — Rain dampened the air and grounds of RiverFest 2023 on Saturday but not the spirit of the annual event that celebrates the Lackawanna River and its watershed.

On Friday, forecasts called for rain Saturday through Sunday night in the region from the remnants of Tropical Storm Ophelia. The National Weather Service issued a "Hazardous Weather Outlook" for Northeast Pennsylvania and central New York, with a possibility of isolated flash flooding through Sunday night.

With the heaviest rain forecast for Sunday, the Lackawanna River Conservation Association decided to hold RiverFest as scheduled on Saturday.

Despite gray skies and intermittent light rain, several hundred people turned out to Sweeney's Beach in Pine Brook for the festival. Outdoor enthusiasts who tend to take inclement weather in stride are generally not the sort to let a little rain ruin their fun, said LRCA Executive Director Bernie McGurl.

"We're fighting a tropical depression and bringing some smiles, if not sunshine, to Sweeney's Beach," McGurl said. He was hoping to see skies clear up a bit and the sun poke through, but added, "Even if there isn't sunshine, at least it's not a steady torrential downpour. That's going to come tomorrow (Sunday)."

RiverFest's roots date to a Canoe-A-Thon in 1973. The festival grew and evolved over the years into an annual spring celebration that drew crowds of over 2,000.

RiverFest in each of 2020 and 2021 was moved from spring to fall because of the COVID-19 pandemic. It remained a late September event kicking off autumn last year and this year.

The Lackawanna River gets fed from its 350-square-mile watershed, which generally encompasses a swath from Union Dale and Forest City to Pittston and includes Scranton, Clarks Summit, the Abingtons and North Pocono communities.

A watershed is akin to a basin where rain, snowmelt and groundwater all flow into streams and tributaries feeding a common water source, such as a river. Watersheds come in all shapes and sizes and also may be composed of smaller component watersheds of tributaries feeding the main waterway.

RiverFest highlights the Lackawanna and its rebound in recent decades from polluted waterway to prized fishery and recreational water resource.

Previously badly impaired by effects of antiquated wastewater systems, the anthracite coal industry and other pollutants, the river owes much of its turnaround to modernized wastewater systems and remediation efforts by the LRCA and other environmental advocates and stewards.

Now, the river boasts large trout and macroinvertebrates that both need cold, clean water to thrive. The Lackawanna also was named Pennsylvania's River of the Year for 2020.

The LRCA also holds an annual ShiverFest in winter.

Attending her first RiverFest on Saturday, Debbie Gartelmann of Lake Ariel also brought her dog, Huxley, for some rover-romping in the river. She tossed small stones in the water for Huxley to try hunting down, sinking his snout under the surface and popping back up again for air.

The dog-friendly event also attracted Gartelmann by having one of her favorite local bands performing live, Dave Brown & the Dishonest Fiddlers.

Alaina Ortiz of Dunmore attended RiverFest last year for the first time as a visitor. This year, she returned as a vendor — in her first attempt at vending — selling items from her A.O Studio Handmade Creations. She also took the opportunity to collect some small pieces of "river glass" from the waterway.

"I'll repurpose it and use it for something different," Ortiz said of the water-smoothed glass. "I'm probably going to make a wind chime or something with it. Drill little holes in them and hang them."

While visitors and vendors seemed prepared to handle rainy weather, the LRCA also set up an additional large tent on the grounds for some extra overhead cover for the crowd.

"We want to keep everyone dry and happy, and I think we're doing it," McGurl said.

emailto:Contact the writer: jlockwood@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5185; @jlockwoodTT on Twitter.