Kay Halfacre and her husband Boo enjoy the sunny afternoon on the banks of the Anacostia River, on Emancipation day, April 2012. The day before, their family caught a 60-lb catfish in the same spot. Everyone was still excited from the epic catch.

A community member helps clear invasive species from Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens on a workday sponsored by the Washington Nationals.

Canada Geese travel upstream near Langston Golf Course. The grass provides the perfect place for the birds to graze. Though they should migrate, many of the geese stay in D.C. year round.

D.C. school children canoe the Anacostia through a non-profit called Wilderness Inquiry, which helps create opportunities for urban kids to spend time in nature in October, 2012.

Alphonzo Wright prepares to pull in a catfish from the Anacostia River, near the CSX railroad bridge. Since catfish are bottom dwellers, there is worry that they accumulate more toxins, heavy metals, and pcbs, in their fat as they age. These toxins can accumulate in humans that consume the fish over an extended period of time. So even if one does not become immediately sick from consuming fish, it can have long term health effects.

Alphonzo Wright fishes off of the CSX railroad bridge. He is a regular fisher on the Anacostia. Although today, he said he was giving his catch away to a friend, a common occurrence.

A radio hangs on a branch in the “learning tree,” which sits on the bank of the Anacostia. Fishermen gave the tree its name because that’s where people learn how to fish.

A group of girls take part in a trash clean up in a creek outside Town Hall Education Arts Recreation Campus in southeast D.C.

Linda and Ed catch catfish under the John Philip Sousa bridge in Washington, D.C. on a Friday night in June, 2012.

A Boy Scout troop works in Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens as part of a group work day sponsored by the Washington Nationals.

Metro's Blue and Orange lines cross directly over the Anacostia River. For many, the river is less of a destination and more of something to cross.

An abandoned couch sits under the Frederick Douglass bridge, east of the river, just across the water from Nationals Stadium. There is a growing gap between development and neglected space in many parts of southeast.

Two women bird watch in Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens on July 18th, during a community clean up of the gardens. Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens is the only National Park site devoted to growing and showing aquatic plants.

Friday Night Fishing, a free event where kids learn how to catch and release fish, from the pier by Nationals Stadium in Diamond Teague Park.

A.J., a member of Seafarers Yacht Club, the first Historically Black Yacht Club in the District, fires up the grill to cook a recently caught catfish.

Greg Drenter, the commodore of the Eastern Power Boat Club, which is situated on the Anacostia River, rides in the parade of lights, an annual boat decorating competition.

Oliver, a recovering alcoholic 100 days sober, fishes from Hains Point, the convergence point of the Anacostia and Potomac Rivers in Washington, D.C.

Rains often bring a great deal of trash to the surface of the river, here, what looks like a pristine funeral wreath is surrounded by washed up bottles and sticks.

The Seafarers Yacht Club was organized in 1945 and was the first black yacht club on the east coast. An active club, they started the annual Anacostia River clean up day, and they frequently hold fish fries and other parties.

AJ Hall, fishes from his boat, The Raven, which is docked at Seafarers Yacht Club on the Anacostia. The tide was too low to go out on the water, and he did not catch a fish until it came in.

A woman baits a hook for fishing at the boat ramp in Anacostia Park. She and her family were fishing recreationally. There are many who do not consume the fish because they are aware of the conditions of the water.

Bones has been fishing from the Anacostia for 38 years. He learned everything he knows about fishing from his grandfather, including the birdcalls he is doing here.

A boy rides on a recreational boat with his family, stopping by a pier in Anacostia Park.

A group of friends spends time hanging out, listening to music, and playing dominos, near the Sousa bridge on the west side of the Anacostia River.

Ron under the “learning tree” in Anacostia Park.

Ed fishes under the John Philip Sousa bridge on a Friday night in June, 2012.

Elijah holds a caught fish just south of the John Philip Sousa Bridge on a Sunday afternoon in April. He was fascinated by the fish that his dad and his friends caught.

"Bones" breeds fish in his apartment to sell to pet stores. His connection to the river is intertwined with his love of all things outdoor. A true urban outdoorsman, he fishes, hunts, breeds fish, and even has a turtle. December, 2012

A class from Capitol City Public Charter School lines up to release American shad fry into the Anacostia River in May of 2017 as part of the shad restoration program called “Schools in Schools” put on by the Anacostia Watershed Society. American shad are Washington, D.C.’s official fish.

Wink, pictured here, and his best friend Earl routinely fish under this tree in Anacostia Park. Etched in the tree, D'Jaun is one of Wink's nine children, six of whom have their names carved here.

A man holds a tackle box as he fishes from the east bank of the Anacostia with his nephew. The two men didn’t plan to keep their catch for themselves, but to share it with friends in need.

Phil Yunger, a member of Eastern Power Boat Club, the oldest power boat club in the United States, spends time on his boat on a blustery January afternoon. Yunger has a long relationship with the river-- he lived on his troller on the Anacostia for ten years and he is now married to the former Riverkeeper, Dottie Yunger.

Wilderness Inquiry, a program that takes urban youth into nature, went canoeing with elementary school children just outside of Kenwilworth Aquatic Gardens in October of 2012.

James Hopkins holds a carp he caught in the Anacostia on a November day in 2012. He attempts to catch carp exclusively. As a member of the Carp Anglers Group he is dedicated to catch and release fishing. “Fishing for me, is my therapy. It’s for my head, it’s for my heart, and you get fresh air,” he says.

A framed photo of Kojak at the river, taken years earlier. For many, fishing at the river has been a part of their lives for decades.

Gail Halfacre sits with her husband Kojak while he fished for blue cats from the Anacostia in August 2012.

Kenilworth Park is one of the last segments of the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail to be completed. The trail has brought many new visitors and more attention to the river in recent years.