Charles - Medfield to Dover - September 4, 2023

Into the marshland

With family plans this weekend, I decided to get the "early morning crew" together for Labor Day run on the Charles River. Back in the COVID days, the "early morning crew" were my primary paddling partners, doing up-and-back trips and bike shuttles in the early morning to avoid the crowds. We actually did this trip as a bike shuttle back on July 4, 2020.

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. There are a lots of great flatwater trips on the Charles including the Bays Region from Natick to Wellesley, the Lakes District from Weston to Waltham and the Dedham Loop.

South End Pond

We would be running the section from Dover Road in Medfield to Bridge Street in Dover - about 5-miles. You can easily extend this trip another 3.5-miles down to the South Natick Dam, but I was looking to finish up before lunch.

We met at 8:00 to run the shuttle and were on the river by 8:45. Most of this trip runs through a large marshland, so it can be hot and exposed in the summer. The river was at a nice level - 1-foot, 250 cfs on the Dover gage. About a mile downstream we took a side trip up Bagastow Brook up to South End Pond. Once back on the Charles we paddled through the section that runs through Rocky Narrows, and took a break at the picnic area. From there it is a quick trip down to the take out. I was on my way home by noon.

It was surprising that the leaves were already starting to turn. Fall is coming. We also saw a few patches of water chestnut on the river. Hopefully a clogged up river isn't coming as well.

Leaves turning at the takeout

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Al's post on the Trash Paddler

Charles River Gage - Dover

Charles – Medfield to Dover – July 4, 2020

At the put-in

The "early morning crew" did a bike shuttle today on the Charles River from Bridge Street in Dover (5 Bridge St, Dover, MA 02030) to West Street in Medfield (101 West St, Medfield, MA 02052) - about 4-miles. For me, this was the third weekend in a row for a bike shuttle, and I'm starting to realize that it has advantages - great exercise, get's rid of boring "up-and-back" trips, and gives me options for trips even when I am alone. I'm liking it.

Today's trip was on a pretty section of Charles that runs through the Rocky Narrows. The original plan was to go all the way down to the Natick Dam (South Natick Dam Park, 9 Pleasant St, South Natick, MA 01760 - 7-miles) but we scaled it back - probably just as well for a bunch of old guys. As usual, put-in was empty when we met at 8:00, but was mobbed by the time we got back to the cars around 11:30.

Started off cloudy, but the sun came out later

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Rocky Narrows