Another Piece of the Connecticut

Drove down to Connecticut on Friday morning and rendezvoused with my friend Capt'n Dangerous who'd ventured down from the Adirondack region of the Empire State.  Our plan was to explore the section of the Connecticut River between the East Haddam Swing Bridge (at left) and the mouth of North Cove in Essex.

While leaving a vehicle at our intended takeout, Bushnell Park, in Essex we encountered a fellow who'd just completed a 25-day, approximately 370-mile canoe trip down the Connecticut starting from Canaan, VT on the US/Canada border.  Matt, who hails from Poultney, VT, reported having great weather for his journey with only one rainy night.  He also described having dealt with several long and difficult portages around the many dams on the river.  I believe he said the toughest was the portage at Turners Falls where assistance from the power company failed to materialize.  Here's Matt with his canoe and storage system of numbered and watertight 5-gallon pails...

Congratulations Matt.

Interestingly, all of us were using the same guidebook The Connecticut River Boating Guide Source to Sea put together by the Connecticut River Watershed Council.


Following our vehicle shuttle, the Captain and I launched about 10 miles upriver from a sandy shore off Lumber Yard Road in East Haddam and traveled down the river's east side.   Along the way we checked out the shallow Chapman Pond...

 ...where the first of many osprey were seen...

Back on the river, below the hulking Gillette Castle...

the Chester-Hadlyme Ferry was busy carrying folks and cars across Rt. 148...

...where a ferry has operated continuously since 1768.

In this same area the Becky Thatcher Riverboat was plowing its way upriver...

It operates out of Deep River on the Connecticut's west side.  Also heard operating on that side of the river was the whistling and chugging of the Essex Valley Railroad's steam locomotive.

In Whalebone Creek this blue heron just landed a good-sized meal...

Near Selden Neck, the Connecticut's largest island, we saw the water ahead boiling with baitfish leaping from their pursuer's mouths...

Some were reduced to bits and pieces...

Seeing this activity, some fly-fishermen motored in...

In following Selden Creek down the east side of Selden Neck, several dead fish such as this one were seen...

Not sure what type of fish.  Possibly menhaden?

At any rate the osprey, herons, and great egrets seemed to be in heaven.

This section of the river has no shortage of sandy spots for taking a break...

Before reaching our takeout, we passed under these cliffs...

...and ventured about half a mile up the scenic Eightmile River...

The only trash I encountered on this stretch was one empty water bottle on Selden Neck and one empty aluminum can at the takeout.

After reaching the takeout at Bushnell Park and following the shuttle back to East Haddam we started the planning process for another section.  The captain then headed to New York while I elected  to camp at Markham Meadows Campground in nearby East Hampton.  My plans for Saturday following a good night's rest included dropping my boat into the Massachusetts lake bearing the longest Native American name I've ever seen.