Charles River - Medfield to Natick - July 5, 2025

Through the marsh

It has been a while since I led a trip on the Charles River from Medfield down to Natick. It was the first section of the Charles River that I did with RICKA when I started paddling around 2005, and is still one of my favorites.

The Charles River arises at Echo Lake in Hopkinton, and flows generally east for 85-miles, zig-zagging through 22 cities and towns in eastern MA before emptying into Boston Harbor. We met at the Medfield boat launch at 10:00 and ran the shuttle down to the South Natick Dam. Unfortunately, the parking spots on the street at the take-out were all full, so we left the cars across the street at the Hunnewell Baseball Fields.

Under Sargent's Bridge

We had 13 paddlers in 11 boats - 8 kayaks and 3 canoes. The river was low, but still at a nice level – 75 cfs, 1 foot on the Dover gage. Temps were in the mid-80’s, but we had some clouds and an occasional breeze to keep things comfortable.

This section starts off in marshland before entering into woodlands at the Rocky Narrows Reservation (hikes) and the Mass Audubon Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary (hikes). We stopped for lunch at the picnic site at Rocky Narrows. The trip ends at the So. Natick Dam after passing by the Praying Girl statue and under Sergeant’s Bridge.

The crew at the Rocky Narrows Picnic Area

Links:
My Pictures
Dover Gage