Monday, May 23, 2022
Providence – May 22, 2022
I was up early and out the door to paddle a trip that I will be leading this summer for RICKA – the Providence River on July 4th. Cheryl had mentioned that parking might be limited due to construction. When I arrived parking was limited, but due to a large number of boat trailers rather than construction. If we had to, we could drop boats and park on the street in front of Tockwotton on Waterfront Drive.
Saturday, May 21, 2022
River Bend Farm - May 21, 2022
My first thought was to paddle Tville with Paul, but they were starting a little late. My second thought was the Upper Wood River with RICKA, but even that would take most of the afternoon. I had some family stuff to do this afternoon, so I decided to do a local run at River Bend Farm.
The level was 2.8 on the Northbridge gage – a low but fluid level. This is a tricky little run with lots of twist and turns. In many places, the current pushes you into trees hanging into the water on the outside of bends. I am supposed to lead a BVPC trip here in June, but if the level is much lower we will probably stay off the river.
The level was 2.8 on the Northbridge gage – a low but fluid level. This is a tricky little run with lots of twist and turns. In many places, the current pushes you into trees hanging into the water on the outside of bends. I am supposed to lead a BVPC trip here in June, but if the level is much lower we will probably stay off the river.
Unfortunately, I forgot my camera, so no pictures.
Wednesday, May 11, 2022
NHAMC Class III Step-up Paddles
I made it to 6 of 7 different rivers - missed the Swift but it was great to run the Ammo, Took and Lower Winni.
NHAMC Class III Step-up Paddles from Erik Eckilson on Vimeo.
As our leader Frank said “whitewater is a great teacher - it shows us how to be humble on the river, how to work with the current and not fight it, and it provides a place where people of all types can rely on one another in friendship.” So true.
Saturday, April 30, 2022
Lower Winni – April 30 2022
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Surf wave below the put-in |
The Winnipesaukee River (also known as the Winni) is a 10-mile river that that runs from Lake Winnipesaukee to Franklin where it joins with the Pemigewasset River to form the Merrimack. There are two whitewater runs on the Winnipesaukee.
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Running Coliseum |
The Lower Winni from the Cross Mill Road Bridge in Northfield to Trestle View Park in Franklin is a class III(+) run from 1,000 cfs to 1,500 cfs. Above 1,500 cfs some of the rapids become class IV. I ran it in a shredder at 1,100 cfs on New Year’s Day several years ago. The level on this run was 3.6 ft, 725 cfs (class II+/III) - a good beginner and open boat level.
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Above Railroad |
The first major rapid is known as Coliseum. At higher water levels this can be a very dangerous rapid since about a third of the river channels into the foundation of an old mill building on the right – the “Room of Doom”. I took the left line catching the eddy at the top, and then running down the left side avoiding the wall on the left and the rocks in the center.
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Approaching Zippy's |
There were more rocks and waves as we ran through Sulphite to the last rapid - Zippy's Final Plunge. Unfortunately, there was wood in the usual lines through Zippy’s, so we took out above. One run was enough for me - I made it down fine and considered myself lucky. I did walk up the Winnipesaukee River Trail to get some pictures of the crew going through Railroad on their second run.
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Sunday, April 24, 2022
Contoocook - April 23, 2022
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Getting organized |
The Contoocook River arises at Contoocook Lake on the Jaffrey/Rindge line and flows generally north for 71-miles to Penacook where it empties into the Merrimack River. There are two sections of the Contoocook that are popular for whitewater boating – the class III “Freight Train” section from Hillsboro to Henniker, and class II section from the twin bridges to the Ramsdell Bridge in Henniker.
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Heading out |
We had 20 paddlers that were divided into 3 pods. I was in the first pod with Frank. I saw one other open boat on the river – Charlie Sweet who was running a trip for Boston/AMC. We headed downstream and worked our way through the various rapids. At this level, most were class II+. I ran class III S-Turn without a problem – it was actually shorter than I expected.
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Happy face below Freight Train |
Most of the group called it quits after the class III section, but a few of us decide to continue downstream through the class II section. The last time I ran this section was in 2005 on the first day of the NHAMC Whitewater School. At this level the top was flatwater, but the Broken Dam Rapid at the Ramsdell Bridge was fun.
Sunday, April 10, 2022
Pemi - Woodstock – April 9, 2022
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Running the Ledges |
The Pemigewasset River, also known as the “Pemi”, arises at Profile Lake at the base of Cannon Mountain in the Franconia Notch. It flows south for 65-miles to Franklin where it joins the Winnipesaukee River to form the Merrimack River. There are a couple of other sections of the Pemi that I have paddled including the quickwater section from Woodstock/Thornton to Campton and the whitewater section in Bristol. The class II section in Woodstock is one of my favorites.
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The gallery at the Ledges |
We divided into two groups of 7 for the run downstream. The two most difficult rapids are at the beginning and at the end. Right at the put-in is a 2-foot drop that is run in the center. After that, the river is mostly quiclkwater with couple of class II rapids – Woodstock Squeeze, Gravel Pit and Powerline. The biggest rapid is the Ledges at the end. It is class II+/III depending on water level. We all did a couple of laps at the Ledges trying different lines.
The Ledges from Erik Eckilson on Vimeo.
Saturday, April 2, 2022
Ammonoosuc - Twin Mountain to Pierce Bridge - April 2, 2022
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One in every crowd |
After missing the last two weeks, I was looking forward to this week’s Class III Step-up trip. A couple of inches of rain on Friday brought all the rivers up, so there were lots of options. The decision was made to run the Ammonoosuc from Twin Mountain to Pierce Bridge, which includes the Boat Breaker Rapid.
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The Twins - Twin Mountain |
It's a 3-hour drive up to Twin Mountain, so I got an early start. The sky was blue, but clouds hung low over the mountains as I approached the Franconia Notch. White snow on the mountain tops was a reminder of how cold the water would be. We met at St. Patrick's Church in Twin Mountain, geared up, and ran the shuttle down to Pierce Bridge. We had 14 paddlers - 13 kayaks and one canoe (guess who).
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Boat Breaker |
By the time we finished the clouds had cleared and we had an amazing view of Mount Washington covered in a fresh layer of snow on the way back to the put-in. I should have stopped and snapped a picture.
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The crew at the put-in |
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