Trashpaddler: Penobscot Thru the Narrows

Spent 4 days this week camping, paddling, and exploring the areas above and below the Penobscot River Narrows. I was always within a few miles of the impressive Penobscot Narrows Bridge and Observatory (built in 2006) in Prospect, ME (pictured above). One thing that brought me to this area was Samuel de Champlain's account of his passage to and thru the Penobscot Narrows back in 1604. He had sailed from St. Croix Island with a crew of 12 men and 2 Indian guides. They'd left St. Croix Island on September 2nd. Before reaching the narrows they brought aboard 2 more Indians familiar with the area who guided them into the Penobscot River and subsequently as far as Bangor. Upon reaching the narrows Champlain described it thus: "We proceeded to a place to which the savages guided us, where the river is not more than an eighth of a league broad, and at a distance of some two hundred paces from the western shore there is a rock on a level with the water of a dangerous character. From here to the Isle Haute, it is fifteen leagues. From this narrow place, where there is the least breadth that we had found, after sailing some seven or eight leagues, we came to a little river near which it was necessary to anchor..." I was curious to see the "narrow place" and its "rock of a dangerous character". To do some advance scouting of the waters of the "Narrows" I took advantage of the Observatory atop the Penobscot Narrows Bridge and rode the "fastest elevator in the State of Maine" some 400' up to the second floor. Two flights of stairs further up at elevation 420' was the observatory with its 360 degree view. It's touted as "The Tallest Public Bridge Observatory in the World". As I'm scouting the waters below, what should I run into but an image of the man himself, Samuel de Champlain who passed through the Narrows 420 years earlier...

Could Champlain ever have imagined such a unique structure that, at its tallest point, would house his map, portrait, and compass rose design? Strange that his actual gravesite is lost yet he lives on in so many maps, statues, and historical markers.

The view of Penobscot Narrows (looking downriver to Penobscot Bay) from the Observatory...

The strategic importance of the Penobscot Narrows is attested to by forts built both above and below the passage. Fort Pownall was built in 1759 at Fort Point (Native American name for the spot was "Wafaumkeag") in colonial times...

This kiosk explains some of the builders' goals which is somewhat disturbing for being more offensive than defensive in regards to Native Americans...

...the offensive part in my opinion...

An artist's drawing of what Fort Pownall looked like...

Fort Knox was built much later, between 1844 and 1869...

The fort's Parade Ground...

The fort is named for Henry Knox, the same man who in 1775/1776 hauled the cannons from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston, MA and forced the British to evacuate Boston. Before the building of Fort Knox, American Naval forces suffered their worst defeat prior to Pearl Harbor when a fleet of 10 British warships routed 43 American vessels over a 3 week period in 1789. The American vessels retreated up through the narrows and up the Penobscot River as far as Bangor where many of the ships were scuttled.

With my scouting done I set up my headquarters at the KOA Bucksport/Fort Knox in nearby Orland, ME. If you're a tent camper, like me, you owe it to yourself to try one of the KOA Deluxe Tent Sites...gravel tent pad, electricity, picnic table on a cement pad, and a small food prep area under a sloped roof. Ideal for car-camping.

For my paddling I utilized 3 boat launches: Verona Island Boat Launch at the island's north tip; Public Launch in Stockton Springs (Stockton Harbor); Frankfort Public Boat Launch near the confluence of the Penobscot and Marsh rivers. Helpful information on paddling in this area was found on the Penobscot Paddles blog and Paddletrips.net.

Looking at my maps there were 2 possible locations for Champlain's "rock on a level with the water of a dangerous character": Odom Ledge and Fort Point Ledge...

On Tuesday, after launching at Verona Island's north tip, I paddled past Odom Ledge...

...which is about 1,500' from the west shore.

The following day, launching from Stockton Harbor, I paddled past Fort Point Ledge...

...which is about 2,000 feet from the west shore. Champlain gave a distance of 200 paces from the west shore. Suppose it could have been either one. Both are definitely dangerous for a vessel such as his two-masted Patache. However ledges are great for harbor seals and gray seals, both of which were hangin' around.

Fort Point Light House stands on Cape Jellison's outer point at the river's entry...

...a little closer look at the light house...

...along with its muted bell...

The view upriver from Fort Point's beach (Narrows Bridge in distance)...

The view towards the Camden Hills from just outside Stockton Harbor...

Some photos from my paddling through the narrows area:

Fort Knox...

The tugboat "Fournier Girls" had just passed under the Narrows Bridge heading upriver...

...while I headed in a downriver direction...

It was strange to look up to the observatory from the water after having been up there the day before...

Had numerous encounters with wildlife especially while paddling around Verona Island:

Loons...

A bald eagle...

Another eagle with his catch in talons...

This good-sized nest...

Another tree-top nest...

Egret...

Great blue heron...

What I think is a Bonaparte's gull...

This fawn...

...and its mom...

Further along this buck...

Seals (believe it's a gray seal)...

...another seal keeping an eye on me...

...and what I think was a harbor porpoise...

This creature had a dorsal fin and was taking loud breaths each time it surfaced. It was in the same area as some seals. They were all enjoying whatever the incoming tide was bringing their way.

Lastly, this dragonfly enjoyed a respite on my hand...

Visited a few new-to-me islands:

Sears Island of 940 acres...

...which the Native Americans are said to call "Wassumkeag" meaning bright sand beach. It was a great spot for a break...

...with a beautiful meadow up from the beach...

In the river's Eastern Channel (east side of Verona Island) there was little Porcupine Island...

...where a break was taken nearby at the Penobscot River Paddling Trail Joost Preserve Campsite...

Earlier in the week I paddled in the Frankfort (Marsh River) and Winterport area (Penobscot River):

The tide being high allowed me to approach the small village of Frankfort and its Congregational Church...

...and up to the dam at the head of tide...

Things got a little loud as these 2 Canadian Pacific locomotives passed through the village...

...pulling a string of tank cars down to Searsport. Native American name for Marsh River is said to be "Kikimessewihtek" (Black duck stream). BTW, the granite for Fort Knox came from a quarry in present-day Frankfort and was loaded onto scows for the 5 mile trip downriver to the fort. The scows were loaded at a wharf which is today the Frankfort Public Boat Launch, where I'd launched from.