Joe Clemens of Irwin has a dangerous, practical hobby.
Clemens is a fourth-generation turtle noodling, a profession that involves catching snapping turtles with bare hands from underwater holes in the banks of freshwater rivers, streams and ponds.
“I’m pretty much one of the last ones left here in Western Pennsylvania, and I’m trying to teach others,” says Clemens, 52, a full-time forklift driver.
The method of fishing with noodles dates back to the 18th century, when Native American tribes caught catfish by hand in rivers.
Since then, the offer has been further developed and expanded to include making pasta with snapping turtles, and Clemens would like to share his passion for pasta making with the public.
In Pennsylvania, fishing is legal with a valid fishing license, which Clemens has.
“It died out because there used to be a lot of noodle makers who caught turtles to make soup from them,” Clemens explained. “It’s a lost art.”
Clemens learned to fish using the noodling method at the tender age of seven when he followed his late father, Alvin Clemens, also known as Big Al, into the water and honed his techniques, including probing the underwater banks for holes where snapper were resting.
Big Al was German and loved to cook hearty snapping turtle soup for the family.
Nowadays Clemens is practicing catch-and-release noodling.
“As soon as I catch one, I put it in a sack,” says Clemens about his catch-and-release method.
The day’s “catch” is collected to show and tell photo moments for his Facebook group “Pennsylvania Turtle Noodling,” which he founded last year to raise awareness of the art of noodling.
“I don’t hold the turtles for long and I don’t hurt them,” he said. “After that, they are released again.”
His Facebook group is full of videos showing Clemens and his colleagues catching turtles of all sizes.
“I founded the group to make people more curious about noodles. But I also encounter a lot of hate. I’m not a bad person. I’m just continuing the tradition that my father continued,” said Clemens.
Courtesy of Brandon Patz
Snapping turtle catchers Brandon Patz of Hollidaysburg (left) and Joe Clemens of Irwin pose with snapping turtles they caught with their bare hands. The turtles were all safely released back into the water.
Clemens wants to correct the harsh criticism he has received from some strangers on social media.
“I am passionate about catching turtles with my hands and teaching others how to do it. I film my adventures with turtles to show others what I have learned. People see a truck full of turtles and think I am wiping out the population,” Clemens wrote in a post on his Facebook group on Friday. “Not true, I keep two or three turtles a year to make my dad’s soup recipe and release the rest. I don’t keep female turtles, and I don’t keep really big ones either. I will continue to do what my dad taught me.”
Clemens noodles are available regionally in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York.
He keeps the locations of his pasta dishes secret and primarily makes pasta in Allegheny, Westmoreland and Armstrong counties.
“I don’t like to disclose my locations because some people put out turtle hooks to catch turtles,” he said.
The snapping turtle fishing season in Pennsylvania runs from July 1 to October 31.
A message to a representative of the Pennsylvania Fish & Boat Commission with further information on the snapping turtle catch was not immediately available Tuesday.
Clemens thought his father would approve of his continued attempts at making pasta.
“I feel so alive when I go to the same streams that I fished with my dad, and he always told me to definitely carry on the tradition,” Clemens said. “When I was a kid, my dad always took us fishing. He was the cool dad.”
Courtesy of Joe Clemens
Turtle noodle maker Joe Clemens of Irwin.
Clemens’ noodling techniques involve navigating a one-mile stretch of river. He does not noodle alone and does not accept money for noodling lessons, although it is offered to him.
Next week, a man from South Carolina is traveling to try cooking pasta with Clemens, and a mother from Apollo recently contacted Clemens because her 12-year-old son wants to cook pasta.
Snapper Stories
Clemens’ turtle scars prove that he has been doing this for over 30 years.
He was bitten more than 20 times on his hands, back and legs, but none of the turtle bites required stitches.
“A turtle can do quite a bit of damage. They have a lower and an upper hook and once they bite, they don’t let go,” said Clemens.
Snappers like to feed at night and sleep during the day.
The muddier the stream the better, and snapping turtles prefer warmer water temperatures.
Clemens looks for overhanging root banks or structures like logs to find snapper by putting his hand in a hole and feeling for a tail.
“The trick is to hold on and push in and out. They are so strong and when you push in, their feet release,” Clemens said.
Most day trips to noodle last six to eight hours.
His largest noodle catch weighed 37 pounds.
“He was an old guy, over 30 years old. I never keep the old ones,” said Clemens.
Snappers will eat virtually anything, including crayfish, geese and ducklings.
In Pennsylvania, there are no regulations regarding the size of turtles caught during noodling, but there is a limit of 15 per day, with no more than 30 turtles per person allowed to own.
Clemens finds the whole process relaxing.
“For me, it’s quiet. It’s very peaceful and I see wildlife like bald eagles and deer,” he said.
His noodle clothes always consist of old jeans and boots or tennis shoes.
Brandon Patz of Hollidaysburg, Blair County, has worked with Clemens for 18 years.
Patz grew up in the world of pasta making and finds the hobby entertaining and adventurous.
“It’s Joe’s family tradition and my grandfather knew Big Al,” said Patz, 23. “He said he could smell them before he found them,” Patz said of the musty smell that snapping turtles give off.
Three weeks ago, Patz went out for pasta in Fayette County.
“I reached into the first hole and missed. Joe said there was a turtle in there and he found it. It was such a big turtle it took me 40 minutes to get it out,” Patz said.
Joe’s wife Cindy tried noodling a few times during their relationship and noticed that her husband initially showed her the turtle shape.
“He was my ticket to noodling. It was fun, but I’m not as brave anymore,” Cindy said of her short-lived noodling career.
To “impress” Joe during their relationship, she caught a few turtles on her own.
“We went to the Juniata River and he guided me, but I reached in and caught my own turtle,” Cindy recalled. “I’m so proud of Joe and what he does. He’s so proud to carry on his father’s legacy. But in July and August, there are no plans on a Saturday because he’ll be in the water.”
Courtesy of Brandon Patz
Snapping turtle noodler Brandon Patz of Hollidaysburg, Blair County, holds a large snapping turtle he caught with his bare hands.
“When I first started, I was terrified. Now I just reach in. I’ve been bitten a few times. We just have to get through it,” Patz said of the associated risk of injury.
Patz praised the Facebook noodle group for spreading accurate information about the hobby.
“People don’t know that something like this exists. It’s meant to educate people about the noodles and the turtles,” he said.
On a typical snorkeling trip, 13 to 30 turtles are caught.
“The turtle population is very healthy. The biggest one I caught was about 28 pounds. You struggle and don’t know how big it is until you start pulling it out,” Patz said.
Joyce Hanz is a Charleston, South Carolina-based reporter covering the Pittsburgh region. She studied media arts and graduated from the University of South Carolina. She can be reached at [email protected]
