We had a good time yesterday paddling the 5.5 mile section
of the Assabet River from Gleasondale in Stow (Gleasondale Road, Rt. 62 near
Rockbottom Road - 42.404478,-71.526532) to the Ben Smith Dam in Maynard (Maynard
DPW yard entrance near intersection of Winter Street and Boeske Avenue - 42.425389,-71.467738). We did it as a down-river run, but there is also an intermediate
put-in off Sudbury Road (42.41156,-71.508508). Sudbury Road is just about in the middle so you can
easily section paddle in either direction.
After running the shuttle (which always takes longer than
expected), we launched from below the Gleasondale Dam. With yesterday’s rain, we got a little
bump in the water level – 2 feet on the Maynard gage. The river quickly enters pretty marshland and meanders through it for much of the trip. About a mile
downstream we took a side trip (river right) through a square culvert and up to
a huge beaver dam on Fort Meadow Brook.
About a mile further downstream (also river right) is an outflow stream
from Lake Boon. According to Al, the best place to access Lake Boon is from
the state launch site on Sudbury Road. While you can paddle up the outflow fairly close to
Barton Road, there is no easy way to get up to the roadway.
We took a short break at Crow Island and watched a small
plane practice take-offs and landings before heading downstream. The trip took us about three hours and would make a nice RICKA flatwater
trip.
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| Paddling on the Assabet River with Frank, Paul, Jim, Al and Paul |
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