Friday, May 6, 2011

Assabet River - Egg Rock to Damondale & Return

Shortly after launching my boat at Lowell Road in Concord, this morning, I reached the point of decision pictured at left.  My boat is straddling the waters of 3 rivers: Sudbury, Assabet, and Concord.  I decided to take the river less traveled and began ascending the Assabet River enroute to Damondale.
Weather conditions were just about perfect for such a trip.
Wildlife seen were mallards, wood ducks, a hawk, a blue heron, many cardinals, turtles, and Canada geese that seemed to be hiding in the grass.
Just before reaching Pine Street, a foul odor was detected and I discovered the source to be this macabre looking carcass of a very young deer...
From this point on the river becomes a little more challenging due to blowdowns that block a good portion of the channel.  However, the area near Westvale was more open than when I last passed through.
The current became stronger and the water became shallower as I neared Damondale.  Just upstream of the Route 62 bridge, a small eddy allowed the opportunity to snap a photo of the Damon Mill...
This became my turnaround point and after doing so, I quickly snapped this photo looking downriver from under Route 62...
The mill's raceway can be seen entering the rive on the left.

Thanks to the aforementioned swift current and the southwest breeze, I was soon back at Egg Rock and allowing my haul of 116 pieces of trash to stretch their legs at the Calf Pasture...
It brokedown as follows: 40 recyclable containers (4 redeemable) and 76 pieces of miscellaneous rubbish that ran the gamut from a fire extinguisher to a Jolly Ball and the usual stuff in between; styrofoam, plastic bags, nip bottles, birthday balloons, and a milk crate.  My YTD total stands at 2546.

While my boat and I were landing at Lowell Road, a neighbor and his friend were launching a beautiful hand-built traditional rowing craft.  It was being launched into the Concord River for what may have been its maiden voyage.  I recall being told it was built from a Chesapeake Light Craft (CLC) kit, and while I'm not certain as to the model, it looked similar to CLC's Chester Yawl design.  The Concord River must have been pleased to host such a guest.

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