Saturday, May 9, 2015

Another Nibble of the Nashua

In June of 2012 I tried paddling downstream on the Nashua River through the Bolton Flats section, but was stopped after only one mile by a fallen tree which spanned the river from bank to bank.  So, this morning, equipped with a hand saw, I decided to tackle the same stretch of river starting instead from downstream and working my way up.
 
After launching at Still River Depot Road in Harvard, MA  my little adventure began under cloudy skies.  Things were peaceful and quiet...until a freight train was heard approaching from the north. I'd passed under the RR bridge (opening photo) just a short time before, so I turned about and made it back just in time to watch two CSX locomotives slowly pull a long train across the river on one of the last active sections of the Boston and Maine Railroad's former Worcester, Nashua, and Portland division...

 
 
Trains on this line move at only about 10 mph.  Once the train had disappeared, a pickup truck adapted for riding the rails followed in hot pursuit.
 
With quiet restored I resumed my trip and encountered these wood ducks in a slough...
 
Believe I heard wood thrushes for the first time this year in this same vicinity.
 
Passage upriver was allowed, thanks to the tree cutting work of others, until I reached this obstacle approx. 1.5 miles above Still River Depot Rd....
 
Thanks to the current being manageable my saw and I were able to prevail...
 
This spot is at a bend in the river and has become a repository for flotsam of all kinds...
 
 
There's enough trash here to fill several boats.
 
About 3 miles above the boat launch, and sure that I'd passed my 2012 ghost,  I turned about and headed back downriver under much improved skies.
 
Around this bend at a high bank...
...a blue heron enjoyed the view from up on high...
 
 
 
Sporadic bursts of gunfire erupted from the west side of the river...probably related to the Fort Devens military facility.
 
This small stone structure was nestled in the woods on the river's east side...
 
 
Trash and recyclables that went on to a better place...
 
 
 

 

2 comments:

George said...

I've been hearing the wood thrushes behind my house. So beautiful.

Al said...

Hi George, Before we knew what they were, my wife always called them "music box birds".