There were rubber duckies everywhere – August 14th

Not the bath toys, but the inflatable kayaks. Crab Apple Whitewater was in the process of launching a huge group of duckies just as we were getting on the water yesterday. In hindsight, it was a good sign since it meant our timing was probably good.

We had 12 boats (3 canoes, 9 kayaks) running the section of the Deerfield River just below the Zoar Gap. The water in this section is controlled by the Fife Brook Dam, and timing is everything with this trip. Launch too early and you will out run the water. Launch too late and the water will out run you. Either way, you will end up high and dry. We launched 3 hours after the scheduled release and hit it just right.

We put in at the Zoar Picnic Area around 3:00 - much later than any of us wanted due to the late release. This section of the Deerfield pretty much has it all. There is a little flatwater so you can take in the scenery, a lot of quickwater to keep you moving, and a couple of easy class I/II rapids to make it interesting.

The rapids come early in the trip with three easy rapids in quick succession just downstream from the put in. After that, its mostly quickwater with an occasional riffle. It took us three hours to reach the take out about 7 miles downstream near the Charlemont Academy on Rt. 2. Great day with a great group of paddlers.


Deerfield River from Erik Eckilson on Vimeo.