Assabet River - Russell's Bridge to Whitman's Crossing in Stow

 This afternoon's trash patrol on the Assabet River in Stow was a tad on the blustery side.  We finally got a taste of what other parts of the country have been experiencing this past week.  After launching at Russell's Bridge on the Maynard/Stow townline, I hugged the shore to find some refuge from the wind.  The closer one is to the shore, the more trash one will see.  I think Confucius said that.  The trash du jour was beer cans by the plenty.
It was nice to finally reach Whitman's Crossing, where after turning around, I had both the wind and current at my back.
On the trip downriver I encountered 2 mute swan couples and then this guy who was the 'odd man out'...

 I felt kinda sorry for him after seeing him driven away by the others.
Other wildlife seen today were cormorants, a blue heron, another northern harrier (I think), and then this mysterious hawk...

 I'm pretty sure he's not a red-tailed hawk, as he appeared to be just a little smaller and was missing the red tail.
As I approached Russell's Bridge and was exposed to more fetch for the wind to use, my boat and I were buffeted about enough that some paddle bracing was required.  It was all I could do to hold onto the paddle and not lose my hat.  On the downstream side of the bridge we all took shelter and everyone lined up for roll-call...

The recovered refugees numbered 60 and consisted of 48 recyclable containers (34 redeemable) and 12 pieces of miscellaneous rubbish such as an old traffic cone, some styrofoam chunks, and a few nip bottles.  My YTD total stands at 5621.  With such a high percentage of redeemable containers, I sense a trip seeking redemption in the not too distant future!

Sudbury River - River Rd. to Heard Pond Outlet & Return

My calls for an encore were heard...summer returned and provided one beautiful day that will be savored for a while.  Of course, I am very fortunate to be able to get an early start on my workday and occasionally finish up by mid-morning.  Today, that allowed me to be out in my boat on the Sudbury River before 11 am.  Did I say it was warm?  Real warm!
After passing under Route 20 and the old Central Mass railroad trestle, I stopped to admire the very well built beaver lodge, seen at left.  The beaver that built this lodge is a master builder as evidenced by the very water tight dam he'd constructed nearby.
I paddled upriver enjoying the occasional refreshing breeze out of the southwest.    Past Wayland H.S. the river's current became noticeably stronger.  Pushing past Indian Point and the Heard Pond outlet, I soon found my upriver passage blocked by a blowdown.  I'll have to remember my hand-saw for the next trip.   After turning about and heading back downriver, I stopped in a shady, shallow stretch with a nice rocky bottom where, after some transloading, a little snack break was enjoyed.  Once back onboard I resumed my return trip and almost immediately came upon an automobile tire standing upright on the riverbank.  It looked like a big doughnut sitting up there so I decided to pull it down and secure it to my aft topdeck.
Several times today I saw a hawk with a pronounced white rump between tail and wings.  I kept trying to get a better look but wasn't able to.  Then, a little upstream of the Sandy Burr Country Club, I saw this guy perched in a tree...

 His call confirmed his identity as an osprey, but he was not the hawk I'd been seeing.  After the osprey took flight...

 I saw the other bird in the distance.  Later, downstream of Route 20, I would get a good look at the hawk with my binoculars and believe it was a northern harrier or marsh hawk.  It flew low over the marsh area and its underside was a copperish color indicating it may be an immature harrier.  Just a short while after that I found myself back at River Road and unloaded my day's catch...

The total was 93 pieces of trash.  Of these 46 were recyclable (15 redeemable) and 47 were miscellaneous rubbish such as plastic bags, styrofoam cups/bait tubs, 6 lead weights used in fishing, cardboard packaging, the auto tire, etc.  Fully 35 pieces were found alongside River Road, the most egregious being a bag left by someone who'd changed his oil and installed a set of new plugs and wires.  This person put all the used stuff in a plastic bag and left it alongside the river.  How thoughtful!     My YTD total stands at 5561.
Amazingly, no other boats were seen on this section of the river today.  A father and son were fishing from the shore at the River Road launch site.

After posting about my trip to the Dead River back in September, Chris Gill commented and recommended the book Arundel by Kenneth Roberts. I just finished it and found it to be a great read. I had not been aware that such a tough and long mission had been undertaken that first autumn after the outbreak of the Revolutionary War.  Roberts wrote the book in 1930 and crafted quite an interesting story around the first-hand accounts of participants.  His understanding of, and portrayal of the Abenaki involvement was most interesting to me.  It reminded me of how well John Fennimore Cooper understood the Native Americans that lived in his area.  The book also shows how great a man Benedict Arnold was before he changed sides.
If anyone is looking for a good book to read this winter, this could be it.

Speaking of winter and the approaching year's end, have you given any thought to what kind of calendar will grace your wall next year?  I've recently put together my "Trashpaddling 2011" calendar and you can check it out by going to this link.

Assabet River - Egg Rock to Concord Jct. & Back

This afternoon's trash patrol of the Assabet River in Concord provided a preview of the kind of weather we can look forward to in November.
A passing cold front brought along some ominous looking clouds and a blustery wind.  The picture at left was taken on the trip downriver after the front had passed through.
Aside from two fishermen, the only other boater encountered today was Jeff, paddling his Czech built Zastera racing kayak.  His boat's colors compliment the fall foliage...   

There were quite a few Muscovy ducks on this stretch of the Assabet.  These 3 had claimed this fallen tree and had no intention of giving it up...

They could not be more different from the many skittish wood ducks that launched into flight as soon as I neared. 
Blue herons and a single belted kingfisher were also seen today.
At Concord Junction a tree has blown down between Nashoba Brook and the commuter rail bridge.  It reaches almost to the river's opposite shore.  I turned around behind Concord Park and started the trip back to Lowell Road.
I reached the takeout location just before sunset and unloaded my catch...

Today's total was 38 pieces of trash.  Of these 19 were recyclable containers (2 redeemable) and 19 were miscellaneous rubbish such as plastic bags, a block of styrofoam flotation, and an automotive wheel cover.  YTD total stands at 5468.
As I loaded up my car the Hunter's Moon rose in the eastern sky...

Concord River - Egg Rock to Buttricks Hill & Back

I awoke this morning to discover that my immune system had emerged victorious from battling some kind of bug that had plagued me for almost a week.  Not content with just having won the day, the immuno crew were having a full-fledged victory celebration, leaving me to feel like I could conquer the world, if I so desired.  As a result, I bounded out of my house before daybreak and handled all of my work related chores at 2 different clients with ease.  Soon, I was gliding down Rt. 128 as if it were no more than a country road and found myself launching my boat into the Concord River in the river's namesake town.  

I paddled downriver from Lowell Road passing some remaining fall-foliage at the Old North Bridge.  Trash was there for the picking and by the time I reached Flint's Bridge, I had 19 assorted plastic bottles, beer cans, and styrofoam bait tubs.
About a quarter mile past Buttricks Hill, I turned around and noticed that the cloudy skies were showing hints of a late-day clearing.  Heading back upriver, I watched a fox work his way down a grassy slope.   Blue herons, belted kingfishers, and a few wood ducks were also in attendance.  Upstream of Great Meadows Landing a mink raced along the river's edge just ahead of me.  Then the sun put on this brief show before retiring...

It was a fitting way to end such a day! 

Back at Lowell Road, my car's headlights provided illumination for the day's trash haul...

The total catch was 44 pieces of trash and it brokedown as follows:  27 recyclable containers (10 redeemable) and 17 pieces of miscellaneous rubbish such as plastic bags, styrofoam bait tubs, fishing bobbers, etc.  YTD total stands at 5430.

Assabet River - Hudson to Berlin & Back

For today's trash patrol I decided to paddle a stretch of the Assabet River that I'd never been on before.  It turned out to be a very nice section of river and also relatively trash free.  After launching behind the Fire Station/Public Library in Hudson I headed up river into a breeze that was getting busier as the day progressed.  Skies were sunny and mostly cloud free when I passed under the Riverside Park footbridge and turned around to take the photo at left. 

The other big feature of today was fall foliage such as this...

Before reaching Rt. 495 (near Rt. 290) I was confronted with some obstacles at Rimkus Rd.  There were 3 options for upriver passage.  The 2 on river left involved getting up over a beaver dam while the third required passing up through what appeared to be a manmade stone structure.  The manmade option was selected and my boat was pulled up through the narrow slot of fast moving water by a line attached to the bow.  On the return trip, my boat and I slid down this narrow opening in the beaver's handiwork...

Once past this point (going upriver) I was able to pass under Rt. 495 and enter Marlborough.  This is how the highway looks from the river (facing downstream)...

Proceeding further, I approached some power lines that crossed high above the river.  Oddly, there was a traffic-type barrel suspended in a tree just before the power lines and another barrel just after.  This photo shows the barrel downstream of the lines...

There must be a logical explanation, though, I can't imagine what it might be.
Reaching Bridge Road in Berlin (?), the river was getting very shallow so I turned around and began the trip back.  I believe the Solomon Pond Mall was just a little further upriver.  Pictured below is the bridge where I turned around...

Now, with an assist from both current and wind, it wasn't long before I found myself approaching my takeout site in downtown Hudson...

Today's trash haul was only 63 pieces of trash in a 3.5 mile stretch of river.  Those 63 took shelter from the wind behind my boat...

There were 33 recyclable containers (4 redeemable) and 30 pieces of miscellaneous rubbish such as plastic bags, styrofoam cups/flotation, and 2 left sneakers (found together).  Weird!  YTD total stands at 5386.

While I'm not sure how water levels are on this section of the Assabet, I did notice a gauge in Riverside Park that showed the water level being at 4.20 feet?   For my purposes, it was ideal. 

Sudbury River - Little Farms Rd. to Power Lines & Back

This mid-morning, while the sun was still shining, I launched my boat into the  Sudbury River at Little Farms Rd. in Framingham and headed downriver.   Before I reached the old stone bridge, the clouds had begun moving in and by the time I took the photo at left, the sky had darkened considerably.  It was a quick transition!
Trash was plentiful in the one-mile section of river I patrolled. A little ways past the Allen H. Morgan Avian Study area I turned around and while paddling upstream this osprey flew overhead...

A small group of wood ducks kept moving downstream each time I approached them.
By the time I returned to Little Farms Road, a good haul of trash had accumulated both topside and below deck...

Then the catch of 127 pieces was spread out alongside my boat...

This pile consisted of 67 recyclable containers (21 redeemable) and 60 pieces of miscellaneous rubbish such as 2 inflatable rafts, a boogie board, large block of styrofoam flotation, nip bottles, plastic bags, etc.  YTD total stands at 5323.

Assabet River - Pompositticut Deja Vu

Early this morning, I re-enacted a recent trash patrol on the Assabet River in Pompositticut in hopes of finding the same plethora of wildlife I encountered on 10/2.  I drove over the top of the same hill on the way and looking to the east saw a preview of a nearly identical sunrise. At Whitman's Crossing, I launched my boat in pre-dawn darkness and began paddling upriver.  Reaching the enchanted zone was much easier this time as there was clear passage where a raft of matted grass hindered passage last time.  The photo at left shows my arrival just as the sunlight began climbing down the trees.  A mute swan flew overhead with its loud wingbeating as I entered the area and shortly thereafter I approached this group of great egrets...

Looking around for the river otters, I finally saw one in the distance as it swam across the river. Upon reaching the shore he launched himself like a torpedo into the cattails and vanished.  After waiting awhile and seeing no further activity, I resumed patrolling upriver.  About a half-mile later, after rounding a sharp bend, my patrol came face to face with a small squadron of otters patrolling in the opposite direction...

A parley was called for and their leader approached so we could hammer out proper rules of engagement...

It was agreed that both patrols would not engage but rather both proceed in their intended directions post-haste, and that was safely accomplished.
Soon I was passing through this narrow throat in the river...

Don't know if this spot has a name, but I think of it as the 'fish spearing spot'.  I can easily imagine Native Americans standing on those rocks to the right with long spears poised for the throw at a salmon or shad.
Reaching Gleasondale, I found the mill's chimney sporting some new steel?-work at its top...

Just below the Route 62 bridge I turned around and allowed the current to help me return downriver to Whitman's Crossing.  Along the way, I saw an osprey and a red-tailed hawk.  Passing the Honey Pot Hill Orchards I saw and heard wagonloads of happy apple pickers being towed by tractors towards the fruit laden trees. 
Approaching my takeout location the only other boats of the day were encountered.  Both were small power boats being used by fishermen heading slowly upriver.  Both reported excellent bass fishing. 
It was one of those mornings that was just about perfect for anything!  Throw in some music by the likes of Gordon Lightfoot, Leonard Cohen, Jimmy Buffet, Enya, Mark Knopfler, Pat Metheny, Fred Neil, and the Academy of St. Martin in the Field and it just can't get any better than that, at least for me!
At Whitman's my trash haul spilled forth...

Today's catch consisted of 39 pieces of trash: 19 recyclable containers (7 redeemable) and 20 pieces of miscellaneous rubbish such as the tire inner tube, plastic bags, and a styrofoam bait tub.  YTD total stands at 5196.
In keeping with this being a deja vu experience, Mrs. Trashpaddler and I re-enacted our pedalling of the Nashua River Rail Trail and scooped up these 10 plastic/aluminum containers along the trail between Ayer and East Pepperell...

They were split evenly with 5 redeemable and 5 not.