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| Put-in behind Franklin High School |
Our original plan was a low level run on the Lower Winni. Joe said that its good down to 350 cfs, but it dropped below 300 cfs. After that, there was talk of a Pemi Woodstock run, but that's a long drive for me and it also dropped down into the boney range at around 800 cfs. In the end, we decided on the quickwater section of the Merrimack River from Franklin to Boscawen.
The Merrimack River arises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee Rivers in Franklin and flows south and then east for a 117-miles to before emptying into the Gulf of Maine at Newburyport. Its watershed is one of the largest in New England with major tributaries that include Pemigewasset, Winnipesaukee, Contoocook, Nashua and the SUASCO (Sudbury, Assabet and Concord) Rivers.
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| Joe |
Some say that the Industrial Revolution started on the banks of the Merrimack River in Lowell, and other major industrial cities like Concord, Manchester, Lawrence, and Haverhill grew up along its banks. In honor of its industrial past, several U.S. naval ships have been named USS Merrimack, including the hull that would be raised by the Confederates to build their ironclad. The changes on the river were also detailed in the early American literary classic A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers by Henry David Thoreau.
We decided to do the 6.5-mile section from Franklin to Boscawen. I met Joe at the take-out at the Boscawen Boat Launch for the shuttle up to the put-in behind the Franklin High School. Patty was waiting at the put-in when we arrived. The river was at a nice level - 7.5 feet, 5300 cfs on Franklin Junction Gage. The day was beautiful – sunny and warm.
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| Patty |
The Merrimack starts out big and wide, and only gets bigger as it heads downstream. This section includes a series of easy riffles interspersed with quickwater. The usual lunch spot was occupied by a group of sunbathers, so we stopped at a hay field a little further downstream. I pulled my boat into the shade, and Patty and I sat in the boat to avoid the ticks.
It took about 3 hours for the run at a leisurely pace. Below Boscawen, the river flattens out and there are more sand bars – it was busy with tubers.
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| Erik |
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