Long Bridge on the Long River

Both Capt'n Dangerous (of Adirondack Pirate Paddlers) and I were struck by how long the covered bridge was at the start of our Connecticut River paddle yesterday.

We'd rendezvoused at Hoyt's Landing in Springfield, VT and then driven 17 miles north to Windsor where we drove across the bridge to Cornish, NH.  After entering the enclosed wooden structure it seemed strange to encounter vehicles going in the opposite direction (at the same time), as the structure struck me as a "one vehicle at a time" type.

Then this morning as I'm eating my porridge and glancing through the Boston Globe there's an article, "Granite State towns make comeback", written by Patricia Harris and David Lyon about the Claremont, NH area.  In the article they mention the Windsor-Cornish Bridge as being "the longest two-span wooden covered bridge in the world"...the same bridge we drove through and paddled under only yesterday.  According to the New Hampshire Dept. of Transportation, the 449 foot long, two-span bridge was originally built in 1866.  In the late 1970's, after being damaged by flooding, the bridge was closed to traffic until being rebuilt by the state in 1989 at a cost of more than 4 million dollars.  A look back from downstream...

I'd say it was money well spent.

With the covered bridge and nearby railroad bridge behind us, the Capt'n and I commenced exploring yet another section of the Connecticut River.  We started discovering the river back in 2007 by paddling the section which is part of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail (Bloomfield, VT down to Guildhall, VT).  After a gap of several years we resumed the project in 2012, and began using the Captain's copy of The Connecticut River Boating Guide: Source to Sea as a reference whenever planning exploits.  The guidebook is a product of the Connecticut River Watershed Association and writers John Sinton, Elizabeth Farnsworth, and Wendy Sinton.  It divides the 410 mile long river into 28 reaches and 4 geographic regions, and is a great resource for Connecticut River boaters. 
This trip brought our total reaches completed to 11.

Our starting point yesterday (just upriver of the Windsor-Cornish Bridge) is the approximate midway-point of the river. 

With yesterday being a weekday things were fairly quiet on the water.  This lone merganser enjoyed a reflective moment...

High up on sandbanks (New Hampshire side) are the nesting holes of swallows...

Just below the Route 12 bridge a short foray was made into the swift and shallow Sugar River before returning to the confluence.  The 3,150 foot Mount Ascutney looms to the NW...

The river had run pretty much straight in a north to south direction to this point and now began a long and scenic sweep around Barber Mountain...

 
Rustic cabins were nestled into the Vermont side while this cascading waterfall drew attention to the New Hampshire side...

This hawk or falcon flew ahead of us several times in this stretch...

Near the end of the sweep lies Jarvis Island where lunch was taken...

Back on the water below the island and just before the sharp bend at Ashley's Ferry, I thought how ideal this spot would be for an eagle...and there he was on the Vermont side...

In that regard the Connecticut River rarely disappoints these days.  We would see another further downriver.

Nearing the end of our journey the Cheshire Bridge seemed to appear at the last possible moment (photo from downstream side)...

The small amount of trash recovered (most from Jarvis Island) assembled hull-side at the well appointed Hoyt's Landing...

Following the post paddle shuttle, which included a second trip through the covered bridge, we each embarked on homeward journeys...he to the west and I to the east.  On my drive home on Route 12 near Keene, NH the sky commanded my attention with this sunset...

...perhaps one of the last good ones for this year's soon to end Daylight Savings Time.