Rocky Narrows - November 28, 2021

I had three days off from work for Thanksgiving, but with the holiday, family stuff, Christmas decorations and yard work I didn’t get my canoe out once. On Sunday an early morning hike with the Papa Joe crew fit into my schedule better than a mid-day paddle, so I hiked instead.

The hike was at the Rocky Narrows Reservation. The site is named for the granite cliffs that rise up over the Charles River as it twists and turns between the Sherborn Town Forest in Sherborn and the Medfield State Forest in Dover. I have paddled beneath these cliffs many times, but had never been to the top.

In 1897 The Trustees acquired 21-acres on the Charles River known as Rocky Narrows, the “Gates of the Charles.” It became their first reservation. A forested site with granite cliffs that date back 650 million years, the reservation would grow to over 80-acres with later acquisitions.

We met at the trailhead at 100 Forest Street in Sherborn and headed north to Mount Misery. We then headed south past the Farm Pond and Canoe Landing before climbing the cliffs up to the overlooks – the Narrows Overlook and King Philip Overlook.

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Rocky Narrows

Charles - Lakes District - November 22, 2021

At the put-in

There was a time when you rarely saw a tandem canoe. Everyone wanted to captain their own ship and paddle their own boat. Now people are realizing the benefits of paddling tandem – especially on windy flatwater. With tandem paddlers the toughest part of organizing a trip can be figuring out who paddles with whom, and who brings the boat.

I was talking to Al last week at the Papa Joe hike, and we decided to paddle the “Lakes District” on the Charles. The Lakes District is formed by the backwater of the Moody Street Dam and runs for 5.8-miles from Washington Street in Wellsley to Moody Street in Waltham.

Sculptures on the banks

In it’s glory days, this section of the Charles was home to Norumbega Park in Newton, named for the Norumbega Tower just downstream, and the Riverside Recreation Grounds a little further upstream in Weston. Established in the 1890’s, these parks were located at the end of the Boston trolley lines and attracted hundreds of thousand of visitors each year. The Lakes District became the most heavily canoed river on earth with more than 5,000 canoes berthed at over a dozen clubs along its length.

Today, there are two put-ins on this section of the river - the Duck Feeding Area at the end of Norumbega Road in Weston (across from the Marriott Hotel) and 48 Woerd Avenue in Waltham. We decided to launch in Waltham. Conrad and I were going to paddle tandem, but I ended up bringing a solo boat for him instead.

Matching WildFires

We headed upstream past a home where the homeowner has placed statutes along the river – an elk, a bear, some deer and a life-sized bison and Native American. Shortly after we came to the dilapidated boat ramp at Norumbega Tower.

Nurumbega Tower is a stone tower erected in 1889 to mark the supposed location of Fort Norumbega, a legendary Viking fort at the confluence of Stony Brook and the Charles River. We hiked over to the tower and climbed to the top to check out the view.

Waltham Watch Company

Unfortunately we had a few problems getting back in the boats. First Georgie jumped out of the boat and landed in the water. Then, with an unstable boat, Julie tipped over at the dock. We got everyone back in the boats, and decided to head back downstream in case Goergie or Julie got a chill.

Julie and Georgie were fine, so we paddled past the put-in and down to the Waltham Watch Company. This huge mill was also known as the American Watch Company and produced over 40 million watches between 1850 and 1957. We continued down to the Moody Street Bridge (and dam) before turning around and calling it a day.

The crew at Norumbega Tower

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Charles River Watershed Association
Waltham Gage

RICKA Movie Night - November 16, 2021

Here is the video from the RICKA Movie Night.

Wachusett Meadow Wildlife Sanctuary - November 14, 2021

With all the rain this week there were plenty of opportunities to paddle this weekend, but none seemed to fit my schedule, so I decided to join Papa Joe’s hike at Wachusett Meadow Wildlife Sanctuary.

Wachusett Meadows is an old farm that has been converted into a 1,124-acre wildlife sanctuary with 12-miles of trails through woods, wetlands, and meadows. The trail system makes connections to the Midstate Trail and the Wachusett Mountain State Reservation. We set out from the Visitor Center and headed south down to the Quartz Boulder, then west on the Brook Trail, then north to Brown Hill – about 4.75-miles.

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Wachusett Meadows Wildlife Sanctuary
Trail Map

Turkey Paddle - Wallum Lake - November 6, 2021

After visiting my mother at rehab, I headed over to Wallum Lake for the Turkey Paddle with the RICKA Flatwater crew. 

Wallum is a 200-acre lake on the border of MA and RI. The northern section lies in the Douglas State Forest in MA. Much of the west shore in the southern half lies in the Buck Management Area in RI. It is about 2 miles long and ¼ to ½ mile wide.

We put-in at the boat ramp in Douglas (there is also a put-in in Burrillville that I have never used), and headed down the west side of the lake. The day was sunny and relatively warm, and the winds were light. After exploring some of the coves, we turned around and headed back to the put-in.

Most of the crew headed off for a turkey dinner.  I headed home for pot roast - just like in 2013.

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