Sunday, April 30, 2017

Paddling Out April

Spent the last week of April paddling bits of the Assabet, close to home, and the Connecticut River, up in the North Country of New Hampshire and Vermont.

The Assabet on Wednesday had this hawk showing he's fearless...
...by standing on one leg and scratchin' an itch about 80 feet up...

While closer to the ground this woodchuck watched me paddle by...

Wednesday's trash from above Chapin Rd on the Assabet...

Friday's trash from the Assabet above Sudbury Rd...

On Saturday I drove to White River Junction, VT and launched from Kilowatt Boat Launch...
The landing takes its name from the electrical power generating facility at Wilder Dam...

I enjoyed a late day paddle up to Ledyard Bridge and back noting some strong currents around Gilman Island.  A pair of mergansers near the bridge...


Encountered very little trash along the Connecticut here...

While in the area I paid a visit to the historic railroad junction where the depot still stands...
...and sports this appropriate weathervane...

A nod to the junction's past is this static display of some old Boston and Maine equipment...
A closer look at the wooden caboose reveals a long ago logo from the Boston and Maine Railroad that is familiar to those who've paddled under the Concord River's Old North Bridge...


On Sunday I met up with my friend Paul (aka Captain Dangerous) to notch another section of the Connecticut River on our paddles.  We launched from Woodsville, NH...
...into a swift and swirling flow between where the Upper Amonoosuc and Wells Rivers enter the Connecticut.  We'd spotted a car downriver at Bedell Bridge and were surprised when my boat's gps showed it being only 8.6 miles away (as the crow flies).  However, following the winding route of the river around two oxbows resulted in our covering 13 miles to get there.

The morning sun soon gave way to clouds and temperatures stayed on the cool side...

The summer-like feel of Saturday was now a fading memory and in its place was a raw early spring-like day... glad I'd brought my wet suit.

The scenery was great in all directions ...

Again, little trash was encountered...
Adios April!

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