Friday, March 15, 2024

The "Really Upper" Millers - March 14, 2024

Heading out from the put-in
Usually, when I drive out to Royalston it is to paddle the whitewater section of the Millers River below the Birch Hill Dam known as the Upper Millers. This time we would be paddling the flatwater section above the Birch Hill Dam – maybe we should call it the "Really Upper" Millers.

The Millers River arises in Auburdale and flows 52-miles to join the Connecticut River in Millers Falls. There are lots of paddling options on the Millers including two sections that are popular for whitewater boating – the Upper Millers from Royalston to Athol (class II/III), and the Lower Millers from Erving to Millers Falls (class II/IV). In between from Athol to Orange is a quickwater section that is the site of the annual spring River Rat Race. Today, we would be paddling the flatwater section above the Birch Hill Dam from Winchendon to Royalston.

Earl finds some moving water
We met at 10:00 at the parking lot for the Birch Hill Dam off River Road in Royalston. Unfortunately, the gate on the road down to the canoe launch at the dam was closed, so we knew we would have to portage. We consolidated our boats and gear and headed up to the put-in at the Winchendon Canoe Launch (670 River Street, Winchendon).

For this trip we had four boats – all canoes, and Bob and Dan would be poling. The river was at a nice level with a slight current as we launched and headed downstream. For the first few miles the river twisted and turned though pine forests and swampland.

Lunch break at King Philip Rock
About 3-miles downstream we started to see the impact of the impound of the Birch Hill Dam. The pool behind the dam was 14-feet - normally it is 0. The river rose over its banks and started flowing through the trees. We were surprised to find the bridge at New Boston Road completely under water – Dan poled right over it.

We took a break for lunch a little further downstream at King Philip Rock, where Wampanoag sachem Metacomet held tribal councils during King Philip’s War. By now the river had completely disappeared and we were paddling through a large shallow lake filled with trees. From King Philip Rock we paddled through open water over to the beach at Lake Dennison, which is usually connected to the river by a small stream.

Portaging the Birch Hill Dam
As we continued downstream, we paddled past the remnants of an old trolly bridge, so we knew we were approaching the confluence with the Otter River. The Otter River arises in Templeton and flows north for 10-miles through the Otter River State Forest. We paddled a short distance up the Otter River before heading back downstream to the Birch Hill Dam.

The Birch Hill Dam is a part of a network of flood control dams on tributaries of the Connecticut River. Completed in 1941, Birch Hill Dam was one of the first dams the Army Corps of Engineers built in New England to prevent floods like those that devastated Athol and Orange in 1936 and 1938. At 14-feet, there was a large pool of water behind the dam, and the take-out at the base of the dam was flooded.

Paddling the final section to the take-out
We took a walk up to the top of the dam to take-in the view and assess our options. Then we loaded our boats on carts for the portage on River Road around the dam. Below the dam we were able to get back on the river for the short section down to the take-out. I got to sit by the river and watch the boats while the rest of the crew ran the shuttle back to the cars - a nice treat.

On the way home I decided to check out Doanes Falls on Lawrence Brook - a series of five waterfalls just above Tully Lake. When the Upper Millers is running the waterfalls at Doanes Falls are usually pretty spectacular, and they were. Lawrence Brook feeds into the Tully River, which joins the Millers River in Athol.

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Sunday, March 10, 2024

A “Twofer” in Newport – March 9, 2024

Put-in at the Corbin Covered Bridge
Not Newport, RI - Newport, NH. I joined the NHAMC Class III Step-up trip on the Sugar River and Croyden Brook. As usual, I was the only open boater paddling with 21 kayakers.

The Sugar River originates at Lake Sunapee and flows generally west for 27-miles to join the Connecticut River. Tributaries of the Sugar River include the South Branch and the North Branch. The North Branch, known as Croyden Brook on American Whitewater, originates in Grantham and flows south for 10-miles through the town of Croydon to join the Sugar River in Newport.

Running Sweet Tooth
The morning started with a run on a section of the Sugar River that I first paddled as a student in the NHAMC Whitewater School back in 2005 - Corbin Road to Route 103. The river was at a nice level – 4-feet, 1,500 cfs on the West Claremont gage.

We put-in at the covered bridge, divided in groups and headed downstream. The river starts off with easy class I/II rapids until you reach Sweet Tooth – the largest rapid on this section of the river

Heading down Croyden Brook
Sweet Tooth is a jumble of large and small rocks. The rapid takes its name from two large boulders just left of center. Smaller boulders block the left side, so the usual route is just to the right of the large “Sweet Tooth” rocks. You can eddy out behind “the tooth”, or ride the standing waves downstream.

From Sweet Tooth to the take-out is pretty much continuous class II. We took a break for lunch before the second half of our trip – Croyden Brook. I have signed up for the trip on Croyden Brook several times with Joe O’Neil, but it always gets cancelled due to lack of water.

The big drop on Croyden Brook
The whitewater section of the Croyden Brook is 3 miles north of Newport on Route 10. We consolidated our boats and shuttled up to the take-out where Route 10 crosses the river. After leaving some cars we headed up to the put-in 1.7-miles up the road across from Glidden Road at an abandoned bridge.

Croyden Brook is narrow and creek-like with wave trains and lots of rock to dodge. It reminded me of the Shepaug or the Jeremy in CT, or the Mighty Quin in MA. The largest rapid on the river can be seen from the road just upstream of the take-out. The river takes a sharp right turn and through a series of ledges. The line is to the right. I actually walked this drop so I could get some pictures of the rest of the crew going through. 

Running Sweet Tooth on the Sugar River

Sunday, March 3, 2024

Quinebaug River - Danielson to Plainfield - March 3, 2024

Running the Dyer Dam
I needed to paddle a little later today, so when I got an email from Paul looking to paddle the Q2 at 1:00, it worked out perfect. 

The Q2 is the section of the Quinebaug below Danielson, CT. On this trip we did the 5-mile section down to Plainfield. You can also do another 5-miles down to Canterbury. I met Paul at 1:00 at Wayne R. LaFreniere Memorial Field (39 Wauregan Road, Danielson) for the shuttle down to the Fish Hatchery (145 Trout Hatchery Road, Plainfield). When I arrived I was surprised to see Mike there as well. The temps were in the low 60's, and we had a great level - 5 feet, 1,500 cfs.

Running the Wauregen Dam Rapid
The river starts off with quickwater until you reach the first rapid - the broken Dyer Dam about 2-miles downstream. There is rebar on river right, so the best line is center, or to the left. More quickwater follows until 5-miles downstream when you reach the Wauregan Dam Rapid above the Wauregen Road Bridge. The waves at the top right were big, but I stayed right anyway. We got a few pictures, but the video of Paul's run didn't come out.

The trip took us about 2 hours. Fun run, and I also got to pick Mike's brain on the Moosup River.


The crew - Erik, Mike, Paul
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Scouting the Moosup River – March 3, 2024

Put-in at Brunswick Avne
Before paddling the Quinebaug with Paul and Mike, I decided to scout out the Moosup River. This was a popular whitewater river back in the early RICKA days, but I haven’t heard of anyone paddling it in years. I grabbed my 1980 edition of Canoeing Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut by Ken Webber and headed out.

The Moosup River arises at Clark Pond in Foster, RI and flows generally south and then west for 23-miles to its convergence with the Quinebaug River in Plainfield, CT.  There are two sections of the Moosup that were pretty regularly paddled in the past – the “wilderness” section in RI, and the “whitewater” section in CT,

Upstream from Barber Hill Road
The only person that I ever knew to paddle the “wilderness” section was Mike B. It twists and turns from Foster, through Coventry and into Sterling, CT. In the past it was kept clear of blowdowns by the boy scouts for their spring trips, but is now overgrown.  

The “whitewater” section was a pretty popular beginner run back in the old RICKA whitewater days.  I haven’t heard of anyone paddling this section for years. I couldn’t find a gage for the Moosup, but it was flowing nice today, so a good rain or snow melt will bring it up. The Quinebaug gage in Putnam (upstream) was 5.2-feet, 1,500 cfs. and in Jewett City (downstream) was 10.6-feet, 4,500 cfs

Upstream from Pond Street Bridge
The put-in is at an abandoned bridge on Brunswick Avenue off Goshen Street. The take-out is at an abandoned bridge on the School Street Extension off Black Hill Road. Mike said that in the past the locals could be a bit of a pain about parking and access at the take out – I don’t know if that is still true. Route 14 runs along the river and connects the put-in to the take-out.

Interestingly, three of the dams noted in Ken Weber's 1980 description of the run have now been removed. Moosup Dam #1 above the Norwich Road Bridge was removed in 2014. The Griswold Rubber Dam, described in Ken Weber's book as the “broken dam”, was removed in 2015.  And the  Brunswick Mill #1 Dam located just downstream of the put-in was removed in 2017. That leaves one dam remaining that needs to be portaged – below River Street after the railroad bridge.

Upstream from Norwich Road
(Route 12) Bridge
I found the put-in at Brunswick Avenue and it looked like access would still be possible. I checked out the river from several of the bridges over the river. It was at a nice level with the recent rain, and seemed clear of blow downs from what I could see. Its about a 4-mile run, and at least according to Ken Webber's book, the best rapids are after I-395.

Mike showed me the take-out at the School Street Extension off the Black Hill Road (Route 14). If you miss this take out, its 6-miles of flatwater to the next take-out at Canterbury on the Quinebaug.

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Sunday, February 25, 2024

Surfing at the Martin Street Bridge - February 25, 2024

My original plan was to paddle the canal/river loop from Lonsdale to Ashton. I got down to the put-in and had a surprise – the canal was frozen. Well, it is still winter after all. Instead, I ended up surfing at the broken dam below the Martin Street Bridge. The level was great, and it is always fun to surf in my Yellowstone Sole.  Here is about an hour of paddling in about two and a half minutes.


Martin Street Bridge from Erik Eckilson on Vimeo.

Sunday, February 11, 2024

Plummers Landing - February 11, 2024

At the put-in at Plummers Landing
I needed to stay local again this weekend. When I saw a post from José on the RICKA Flatwater message board, I decided to join her for a run on the Blackstone River from Plummers Landing. While I was scouting the take-out at the Stanley Woolen Mill, I saw Bob and Ozzie who would be poling upstream.

I met Jos̩ at the Plummers Landing put-in on Church Street, and we decided to do the run down to the Tri-River Medical Center at River Bend Farm. The river was at a nice level Р4.2-feet on the Northbridge gage.

Running the twists and turns
This section of the Blackstone is in a considerable state of flux with the river constantly eroding its banks and creating new channels. About a mile downstream, the river has breached the old Blackstone Canal on the right, and much of the water now flows down the old canal trench - stay left to remain in the river. From there the river twists and turns, and it is a challenge to maneuver around the s-turns and through the strainers.There was one strainer that we needed to portage.

Eventually, we entered the calm water of Rice City Pond and paddled over to check out the Goat Hill Lock from the old Blackstone Canal. We meandered our way through Rice City Pond and over to the take-out at the Hartford Avenue Bridge. Jos̩ wants to paddle River Bend Farm next Рsounds good to me. I never did see Bob and Ozzie again.

In the Goat Hill Lock on the Blackstone Canal
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Sunday, February 4, 2024

Hunt River - February 4, 2024

At the put-in
I had things to do yesterday, and I needed to stay local today, so I joined Chuck, Frank, Steve and Earl for an up-and-back trip on the Hunt River in North Kingstown.

The Hunt River arises in East Greenwich at Scrabbletown Brook and flows generally northeast for 11-miles into Potowomut Pond. After Potowomut Pond, the river emerges as the Potowomut River and flows east for 2.5-miles forming the southern shore of Potowomut Neck in Warwick before emptying into Narragansett Bay just south of Greenwich Bay.

Heading upstream
We put-in off Davisville Road in North Kingstown near parking for the Davis Memorial Wildlife Refuge, and just above a stone dam that once powered an old textile mill. There was plenty of water in the river with the gage at 1.5 feet, 100 cfs. The river twists and turns through acres of wetlands that make up this 94-acre Audubon property - surprisingly, no ice.

We paddle upstream until the river was clogged and full of brush before turning around. On the way back we stopped for a break at the Hunt River Preserve of the East Greenwich Land Trust. The group shot had TW asking "Midst the burly, squirrely, grizzly ole men, how dost thee, Erik, keep such a clean chin?"  I'm still going for the baby-faced look.

The crew - Chuck, Erik, Steve, Frank and Earl
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