Saturday, August 30, 2014

A Bit of the Dedham Water Trail

This morning I joined with Warren and Riley, L.L. Bean Outdoor Discovery School's kayak guides, in trash patrolling a section of the Charles River on the Dedham Water Trail.  It was a pre-work patrol for all three of us and we got started shortly after 8 am.  Conditions were ideal.
Amanda Popp of L.L. Bean organized the event which originated from the Dolan Recreation Park located on Common Street in Dedham.

This map of the Dedham Water Trail greets paddlers at the launch site...
We first paddled downriver through Motley Pond and later paddled a bit upstream of the Dolan launch.

Warren was glad to retrieve a tire he'd frequently seen when guiding kayakers through Motley Pond...
...and also a piece of corrugated drainage pipe.

Riley recovered this pool skimmer along with other assorted trash...


At one blowdown on our way downriver, Warren removed a fair amount of trash.  Later on our return trip at the same spot, we got to share this fisherman's joy in landing a 4.4 pound largemouth bass...

There were quite a few pink hibiscus in bloom, but only one or two of these giant white blossoms...

At the conclusion of our 2 hour patrol, Riley and Warren crouched by our collective haul...
In addition to the tire, pool skimmer, drainage pipe, milk crate, and a construction worker's hard hat were approximately 75 plastic bottles and aluminum cans.  It made for a productive way to start the day.

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