Planning for Spring Camping - Baskaheagan Stream and Lake

There’s finally a camping trip in the works. I only did a couple of overnight trips last year, and work is making it tough again this year, but we now have a spring trip on the calendar - Baskaheagan Stream in Maine.

Jonathan described this trip as an undiscovered gem with numerous campsites that allow for an easy 3 or 4 night trip. It’s mostly flatwater and lakes, but very pretty and remote. The trip is dependent upon water levels and can typically be paddled from early May to early June, and in the fall when the water level is sufficient.

Based on Jonathan’s experience last year we can expect a somewhat boney run to the first campsite on the river. Then river/lake to the first island site. Then lake and quickwater to the second island site. After that there is a short carry around the dam in Danforth followed by some marginal class one/quick water to the takeout above a class three pitch.

Here is the plan:

• May 16th – we all gather at Jonathan’s in Wiscasset.
• May 17th – pack up for the drive up to the White Farm Road put-in in Topsfield. Run the shuttle, and then paddle down to the Upper Baskaheagan Campsite for the night - 1.5 miles.
• May 18th – continue down Baskaheagan Stream to Baskaheagan Lake. Camp at either the Long Island or Round Island Campsites – 9-miles not including any exploration of the lake.
• May 19th – continue across Baskaheagan Lake and renter Baskaheagan Stream. Camp at the Narrows Campsite near Crooked Brook Flowage – 12 miles.
• May 20th – continue down Baskaheagan Stream to the take-out at 2000 Road in Bancroft with a portage of the dam in Danforth – 10 miles. Pack up and drive back to Wiscasset for the night.
• May 21st – get up early and drive home.

So far the group is me, Jonathan, Conrad, Ellen, and Jules. Should be a lot of fun. Here's hoping for water, nice weather, and not too many bugs.

Upper Millers - March 22, 2024

Running the Mile Long Rapid

With 3-inches of rain earlier this week lots of rivers came up. I saw lots of trips posted, but it really wasn’t a good time for me to take time off from work. Fortunately, the water lasted until Saturday, and I was able get out on the Upper Millers.

The Millers River arises in north-central MA and flows west for 52 miles to join the Connecticut River at Millers Falls. There are two sections that are popular for whitewater boating – the Upper Millers from Royalston to Athol (class II/III), and the Lower Millers from Erving to Millers Falls (class II/IV).

The crew on Mile Long

I got an early start and dropped my boat at the put-in at Blossom Street in Royalston before heading down to the take-out at Crescent Street in Athol. We had 14 boats (4 canoes, 10 kayaks) with folks from 6 states - MA, CT, RI, NY, NH and VT. The river was running at around 1,100 cfs – my favorite level. The waves aren’t too big, the water isn’t too pushy, and there are tons of eddies to catch and waves to surf. 

The first rapid is First Trestle that starts just downstream of the put-in and continues down to the first railroad bridge – lots of waves and rocks to dodge. After some surfing and jet ferries below the railroad bridge we continued downstream. The next major rapid is Mile Long. As the name suggests, it is a long rock garden that ends at the shelter at the Bearsden Conservation Area. We worked our way down rock-hopping and catching waves.

Running the Gorge

After a break at the Buckman Brook Shelter, we continued downstream. There are a couple of class II rapids including the wave train below the lunch spot before you reach the last major rapid – the Gorge. I ran the big hole at the top of the Gorge to the left and made it through fine.

After a couple more class II rapids we were at the take-out. Work on the new canoe access is progressing nicely. There is now a road under construction down the river, and a parking lot about half-way up. It will be nice when it is done.

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Gages on the Upper Millers

"Getting to Know RICKA Night" at the Kayak Centre - March 20, 2025

We had a good turnout for our "Getting to Know RICKA Night" at the Kayak Centre – 34 in attendance plus the Kayak Centre staff. We had the leaders of each of the four RICKA practice groups – Flatwater, Sea Kayak, Whitewater and Wilderness – provide an overview of their groups. Then we raffled off 3 great gifts generously donated by the Kayak Centre. 

Links:
Getting to Know RICKA Presentation

Branch River Icebreaker – March 15, 2025

Below the Harrisville Dam

As a nod to all the years that RICKA ran the Branch River Race, we always try to run the Branch River on the traditional third weekend in March. We call it the "Branch River Icebreaker", but there hasn’t been any ice to break for the past few years. 

The Branch River Race/Rhode Island Whitewater Championship was established by RICKA in 1980 and was always run on the third weekend in March. It was the first race of the year on calendar of the NECKRA Downriver Series. The race continued for 25 years, but was eventually discontinued due to the high cost of insurance and problems with river access.

Running Whipple Drop

For this year's Icebreaker we had eight paddlers in seven boats – three poling, three paddling solo and two paddling tandem. Mike H. joined us with his Royalex Wildfire, so I brought my Yellowstone Solo. With the low water it would have been easier to pole, but the Yellowstone was better for the portages.

We met at the put-in at the Stillwater Mill at 10:00 to run the shuttle. Since the usual take out is still posted “No Trespassing”, we were fortunate to be able to take out at Mike’s house. The river was low at 2.5 feet, 100 cfs – a good poling level, but not a great paddling level. Not the lowest that we have done, but pretty close.

Poling the Glendale Rapid

The first half of this trip is actually on the Clear River. There were a couple of good-size blowdowns in this section that we needed to carry over. I looked at Whipple Drop and took a pass. Everyone else ran it down the center and did fine. We continued downstream to Oakland, where the Branch is formed at the confluence of the Clear and Chepachet Rivers.

We took a break for lunch at the Oakland Dam before heading down to Glendale. With construction at the Victory Highway Bridge, we had to portage around a work platform floating in the river. The Glendale Rapid was shallow and very boney. Only Chuck was brave enough to run it – poling no less. The rest of us waded down the left side.

Running the Atlas Pallet Rapid

The quickwater section from Glendale to Atlas Pallet was very low. The polers did OK, but the paddlers bounced off rocks and struggled to find deep water. If you picked the wrong line you had to get out and drag your boat to deeper water. 

The Atlas Pallet Rapid looked OK, but it was also very shallow. I went first, took my usual left of center line, and got hung up on the rocks. I eventually worked myself free and made it down. The rest of the crew found deeper water on the right and had better luck.

Below the Nasonville Dam

It was easy paddling below Atlas Pallet as we got into the deadwater behind the Nasonville Dam. After portaging the dam, we were back in shallow water bouncing off rocks. Once we got past the Douglas Turnpike Bridge the water got deeper with the deadwater from the Slatersville Reservoir.

The take-out at Mike's house was a little muddy, but worked out fine. We dragged out boats up the path along the mill trench, loaded our boats and were on our way after another great trip.

The crew at the Oakland Dam

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My Pictures

Branch River Gage

River description from American Whitewater

Rhode Island Lighthouses

I'd like to get a picture of all of them from the water - I have a long way to go.

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My Pictures

Noon Hill - March 2, 20205

From the top of Noon Hill

It was another chilly morning with no paddling trips that I could see, so I decided to join Papa Joe for his trip at Noon Hill in Medfield, MA.

Noon Hill is a prominent summit and scenic vista surrounded by 204-acres of open space. It offers 4.5 miles of hiking trails and is part of a larger network of open space that includes the Shattuck Reservation located to the northwest along the Charles River. A system of trails spans the two properties, some of which are part of the Bay Circuit Trail.

Along Holt Pond

We headed out from the parking lot at 158 Noon Hill Road in Medfield. At 370-feet, Noon Hill rises gently above the surrounding landscape giving great views to the southeast of neighboring Walpole and Norfolk.

Icy conditions along with rocks and roots that could snag on micospikes made the trails a little treacherous. We followed the trail over to the Shattuck Reservation, and then around Holt Pond to return to the cars. Distance was 4.1-miles.

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River Church - Alton to Bradford - February 23, 2025

Below the Alton Dam

After a long cold snap, the forecast was for warming weather on Sunday. We put-out the word, and got a group together for a trip down the Wood-Pawcatuck from Alton to Bradford – three boats, four paddlers, all canoes. It would be like "River Church".

The Wood-Pawcatuck watershed is one of the prettiest in RI. In 2019 it became part of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System – the only river in RI to receive this prestigious designation. Included in the Wood-Pawcatuck designation are sections of seven rivers including the Beaver, Chipuxet, Green Fall-Ashaway, Pawcatuck, Queen - Usquepaugh, Shunock, and Wood.

Heading down the Wood River

We would be putting-in on the Wood River in Alton and paddling down the Pawcatuck River to Bradford. The Wood River arises near Sterling, CT and flows south for 25-miles to merge with the Pawcatuck River below Alton. There are two other sections of the Wood River that are popular with paddlers – the upper Wood River from Route 165 in Exeter to the Wyoming Dam with a portage at the Barberville Dam, and the lower Wood River from Switch Road to Alton with a portage at the Woodville Dam.

We met at the Alton Dam at 10:00 to unload our boats and run the shuttle down to Bradford. The river was at a nice level – 200 cfs, 2.75-feet on the Wood River Junction gage. We were concerned about ice on the river, but last weekend’s rain and snowmelt raised the river about a foot and cleared out any ice. The short section of the Wood River downstream of the Alton Dam twists and turns through a pretty forest. There were a couple of blow-downs to paddle around, but we made it through fine.

On to the Pawcatuck River

There are some differences of opinion on the name of river above the convergence with the Wood. Many guidebooks refer to Worden Pond as the source of the Pawcatuck River. In other guidebooks, the outflow from Worden Pond is a continuation of the Chipuxet River, which becomes the Charles River when it merges with the Queen - Usquepaugh just above Biscuit City, and becomes the Pawcatuck when it merges with the Wood River.

Whatever it is called, from its source at Worden Pond the river twists and turns for 34-miles to Westerly where it flows into Little Narragansett Bay. Some of the best paddling in RI is along the Pawcatuck including Great Swamp from Taylor's Landing to Biscuit City Landing, Shannock to Richmond, Richmond to Bradford, Bradford to Potter Hill, and Potter Hill to Westerly.

Running the broken dam
at Burdickville

Perhaps nowhere in Rhode Island has dam removal and river restoration been more active than along the Pawcatuck River. In 2010, the Lower Shannock Falls Dam was removed and replaced with a short rapid. In 2013, the Kenon Dam was replaced with fish weirs. In 2016, the White Rock Dam was removed and the riverbed restored. In 2017, the Bradford Dam was also replaced with fish weirs. Combined with fish ladders at Potter Hill and Upper Shannock Falls, the removal and modification of these dams has opened up the 34-miles of the Pawcatuck River to migratory fish, reduced portages, and created some fun rapids.

We took a quick break to check out the "boot-leg" site located at the convergence of the Wood and Pawcatuck Rivers. We are fortunate to have a several very nice campsites on the Pawcatuck including Stoney Point on Worden Pond, the Carolina Canoe Campsite just upstream from the Richmond Landing, this "bootleg" site at the confluence of the Wood River downstream from Alton Landing, and of course, the Burlingame Canoe Campsites upstream from Bradford Landing in the Burlingame Management Area.

Enjoying the fire at the
Burlingame Canoe Campsites

The Burlingame Wildlife Management Area extends north from Watchaug Pond in the Burlingame State Park to include a large woodland along the Pawcatuck River. The land is managed for both wildlife protection and recreation with hunting, trails for hikers and mountain bikers, and the Burlingame Canoe Campsites. These campsites are accessible from the river or by hiking in from the parking lot on Buckeye Brook Road or from the North South Trailhead on Burdickville Road.

The river opened up and was flowing well as we continued downstream. About a mile downstream is the broken dam at Brudickville. The dam can be portaged on the left, or run on the right. There was plenty of water flowing over the dam, so we decided to run it on the right. Everyone made it through fine. From there it is a short paddle down to the Burlingame Canoe Campsites where we stopped for lunch.

Heading down to Bradford

At the Burlingame Canoe Campsites there is an open field and five wooded sites. We hauled our gear up to the field and got a fire going in the large fire pit. We didn’t have time to cook on the fire, but we brought chairs to sit around the fire and backpacking stoves to heat up a hot meal. As one of our group said, “every trip is better if you can sit around the fire”.

From there, it is a short paddle down to Bradford Landing. We packed up our gear and sad our good-byes after another great trip.

The crew - Jeff, Chuck, Bill and Erik

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Wood River Junction Gage