Lake project, Water

Stewardship in Bald Eagle State Park with the “Lake Guys”

Because of your support and help with stream work across the region, the Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy is now also working with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission’s “Lake Guys.”

Back in March 2025 the Lake Guys stabilized a section of eroding shoreline at F.J. Sayers Reservoir in Bald Eagle State Park. Using large rocks, the crew built sawtooth and stone framed deflectors along the shoreline. The stone deflectors will help rebuild the shoreline, and also help prevent the lakeshore from continuing to wash away.

Before: Eroding shoreline at F.J. Sayers Reservoir
After: Stone framed deflectors help stabilize the shoreline and prevent further erosion.

You may be wondering what causes erosion at a lake.

Good question.

The wave action from power boats and wind can be enough over time to wash away stretches of the shoreline.  This adds nutrient and sediment into the watershed, degrades terrestrial and aquatic habitat, and leads to poor shoreline access.  The deflectors improve these items and create fishing hotspots where family’s and other groups can gather and catch lots of fish

The Lake Guys spent several weeks working on the project. Later this spring or fall, trees will be planted. Over time the tree roots will add to the stabilization at the site.

The “Lake Guys” at PFBC studied F.J. Sayers Reservoir in cooperation with its partners and developed the plan to stabilize erosion in various areas and add habitat structures for fish.

NPC’s members helped by applying for funding, administering the grant, and working on some coordination. Thanks to Beyond the Pond and Bass Pro for their financial support of the project!!

Other funding and technical assistance came from Bald Eagle State Park, Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, and the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers (they operate and maintain the dam for flood control purposes).

This is the second location on F.J. Sayers Reservoir where NPC and our partners have worked together to restore the shoreline. Last summer, we collaborated to restore a section near the Hunters Run Access, and we’ll continue working together to secure funding and build on this progress.

Lake project, On the Blog, Water

NPC Helping to Restore the Shoreline at F. J. Sayers Reservoir

Bald Eagle State Park in Centre County features the F. J. Sayers Reservoir, a man-made lake owned by the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). While the USACE manages water levels, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Bureau of State Parks (DCNR) oversees public access for fishing and boating at the park.

Several areas of lakeshore have erosion issues. There are two main factors leading to the erosion, a steep shoreline and wave action from the motorized boats traveling the lake.

Because of the Northcentral Pennsylvania Conservancy’s (NPC) partnership with the stream habitat section of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC), the lake habitat section reached out for help.

The PFBC lake crew studied F. J. Sayers Reservoir in cooperation with its partners and developed a plan to stabilize erosion in various areas and add some habitat structures for fish. They needed an additional partner, however, to help pull the funding together, manage the grants, and order some of the materials. An email and a phone call later and NPC was working to submit for grant funding.  NPC gave them the ability to be more efficient and go after funding that they previously weren’t able to go after.


Recently the Pennsylvania Lake Management Society (PALMS) awarded NPC a grant for one of the more popular areas at Sayers Reservoir/Bald Eagle State Park, Hunters Run Access.  The shoreline work will happen in late May or early June. The area first needed to be prepped for the shoreline event.  Offshore submerged habitat work was also designed for when the lake was naturally drawn down for its annual water elevation operation schedule.  The project prep and submerged offshore habitat work happened on a cold and blustery March day.

The PFBC lake crew worked to place reef balls on the lake bottom. These reef balls are made of concrete which are more or less a hollow gumdrop with holes in them. The holes on the sides allow fish to easily swim in and out for cover.

They were placed to improve the local habitat, providing better fishing for the shoreline anglers and boaters.  The reef balls can be used as a standalone structure or become more complex with felled trees. Despite the necessity to remove shoreline trees during the area’s reshaping, plans are in place to establish a new and improved riparian buffer once the project progresses further. Those felled trees, however, did not go to waste and were used to make additional excellent fish habitat! The trees, with their roots and limbs intact, will serve as a mini food web for macroinvertebrates, which intern is food for the small and young of the year fish located in the lake.  These areas then will become a perfect location for the larger sized fish that everyone enjoys catching since the area has both excellent habitat and food for them.

The next phase of the project will be in late May or early June. This project will focus on placing shoreline stone framed deflectors.  These will not only improve fish habitat and water quality but will also improve angler access.  Stay tuned for more updates!