Quinebaug - Danielson to Canterbury

Heading downstream

Paul has put this trip on the RICKA flatwater calendar for the past couple of years, but it always got cancelled due to low water. With the rain last week, the level was holding at around 4-feet, 800 cfs, so this year the trip was on. It was a little low for Paul’s liking, but I thought it was fine.

The Quinebaug River arises above East Brimfield Lake in Sturbridge and flows generally southeast for 60 miles through MA and CT to Norwich where it joins the Willimantic to form the Shetucket. We would be running the 10-mile section from Danielson to Canterbury. You can also shorten this trip to 5.3 miles by taking out at the CT DEEP Fish Hatchery.

running the broken Dam

This is one of the longer, more challenging sections of the Quinebaug with flatwater, lots of quickwater, and two class II rapids at the broken Dyer Dam (2-miles downstream, rebar river right - run center or left) and the old Wauregan Dam above the Wauregen Road Bridge (5-miles downstream).

I met the crew at 10:30 at Wayne R. LaFreniere Memorial Field at 39 Wauregan Road in Danielson for the shuttle down to Robert Manship Park at 50 Lovell Lane in Canterbury. It was cloudy and rainy, which would continue throughout the trip.

Running the Wauregan Dam

The current was moving fast as we launched at around 11:00 and headed downstream. We had 8 paddlers in seven boats (4 canoes and 3 kayaks). Everyone's confidence seemed to build as we ran the first couple of quickwater rapids.

The first real challenge was the class II drop at the broken Dyer Dam. The easiest line was through the center – a large tongue terminated in a small reaction wave. Everyone bounced down and made it through fine. With a little more confidence, we continued through more quickwater to the next class II rapid – the old Wauregan Dam. 

Approaching the take out

The Wauregan Dam is is a much longer rapid with rocks and holes at the top and standing waves down through the center. The line starts right and them moves to the center. Everyone made it through fine and looked like they enjoyed the run.

We stopped for lunch at the Fish Hatchery before continuing on the second half of the trip, which is mostly flatwater with a couple of quickwater sections. The trip took about 3-hours. Good time had by all in spite of the rain.

The crew at the lunch break

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Quinebaug Gage - Putnam

Quinebaug - Danielson to Plainfield - May 19, 2024

Heading out

I was going to paddle Great Swamp with Chuck today, but it got cancelled due to high water. I thought about going out to paddle the Covered Bridge section of the Housatonic with Paul D, but it is a really long drive. Instead, sent an email to Paul L looking to paddle the Branch. He wasn’t interested in that, so we were back on the Q2 – second time this year.

The Quinebaug River arises above East Brimfield Lake in Sturbridge and flows generally southeast for 60 miles through MA and CT to Norwich where it joins the Willimantic to form the Shetucket. The Q2 (as Paul calls it) is the section from Danielson to Plainfield.

Crew at the take-out

I met Paul at 10:00, and Ben showed up a little later. The river was at a nice level – 4.5-feet, 1,100 cfs. The river starts off with quickwater until you reach the first rapid - the Dyer Dam about 2-miles downstream. I ran center left, Paul and Ben went right.

More quickwater follows until 5-miles downstream when you reach the Wauregan Dam above the Wauregen Road Bridge. The waves at the top right were big, but we  stayed right anyway. The trip took us about 2 hours.

Quinebaug from Erik Eckilson on Vimeo.

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Quinebaug Gage - Putnam

Quinebaug River - Danielson to Plainfield - March 3, 2024

Running the Dyer Dam

I needed to paddle a little later today, so when I got an email from Paul looking to paddle the Q2 at 1:00, it worked out perfect. 

The Q2 is the section of the Quinebaug below Danielson, CT. On this trip we did the 5-mile section down to Plainfield. You can also do another 5-miles down to Canterbury. I met Paul at 1:00 at Wayne R. LaFreniere Memorial Field (39 Wauregan Road, Danielson) for the shuttle down to the Fish Hatchery (145 Trout Hatchery Road, Plainfield). When I arrived I was surprised to see Mike there as well. The temps were in the low 60's, and we had a great level - 5 feet, 1,500 cfs.

Running the Wauregen Dam Rapid

The river starts off with quickwater until you reach the first rapid - the broken Dyer Dam about 2-miles downstream. There is rebar on river right, so the best line is center, or to the left. More quickwater follows until 5-miles downstream when you reach the Wauregan Dam Rapid above the Wauregen Road Bridge. The waves at the top right were big, but I stayed right anyway. We got a few pictures, but the video of Paul's run didn't come out.

The trip took us about 2 hours. Fun run, and I also got to pick Mike's brain on the Moosup River.

The crew - Erik, Mike, Paul

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Day-after-Christmas Paddle - Quinebaug - Danielson to Plainfield - December 26, 2022

At the put-in

It was just me and Paul for my last trip of the year - a day-after-Christmas trip on the Quinebaug. We ran the 5-mile section from Danielson to Plainville. We usually go another 5-miles down to Canterbury, but with the cold temperatures we decided to cut the run short. 

I met Paul at noon at Wayne R. LaFreniere Memorial Field (39 Wauregan Road, Danielson) for the shuttle down to the Fish Hatchery (145 Trout Hatchery Road, Plainfield). The temperature was 30° when we launched and icicles lined the banks, but the river was at great level - 5.8 feet, 2,000 cfs.

Running the broken Dyer Dam

The river starts off with quickwater until you hit the first rapid - the broken Dyer Dam about 2-miles downstream. There is rebar on river right, so the best line is center, or to the left. More quickwater follows until 5-miles downstream when you hit the broken Wauregan Dam Rapid at the Wauregen Road Bridge. The waves at the top right were huge, but the line just left of center was easy.  

The trip took up about 1.5 hours. By the time we got to the fish hatchery I was cold and my knee was sore. I was glad that we didn’t have to paddle the rest of the way down to Canterbury. Thanks to Paul for a warm-up cup of coffee at Dunkin' on the shuttle back.

Running the Wauregen Dam Rapid

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Quinebaug - Danielson to Canterbury - February 23, 2022

Erik

The forecast was for temperatures in the mid-60’s (it actually hit 70 in Hartford), so I decided to take the afternoon off to paddle the Q2 (Quinebaug, not Quinapoxet) with Paul. After seeing my post on Facebook, Dave decided to join us as well.

The Quinebaug River arises above East Brimfield Lake in Sturbridge and flows generally southeast for 60 miles through MA and CT to Norwich where it joins the Willimantic to form the Shetucket. We would be running the 10-mile section from Danielson to Canterbury. You can also shorten this trip to 5.3 miles by taking out at the CT DEEP Fish Hatchery.

Paul

I met Paul and Dave at noon at Wayne R. LaFreniere Memorial Field at 39 Wauregan Road in Danielson for the shuttle down to Robert Manship Park at 50 Lovell Lane in Canterbury. We got on the water around 1:00 and headed downstream. The gage was offline, but based on intermittent readings it looks like the level was around 6’, 2,000 cfs – plenty of water and no rocks to dodge.

This is one of the longer, more challenging sections of the Quinebaug with flatwater, lots of quickwater, and easy rapids at the broken Dyer Dam (2-miles downstream, rebar river right - run center or left) and the old Wauregan Dam above the Wauregen Road Bridge (5-miles downstream). The trip took up about 2.5 hours, but it would have gone faster without the wind.

Quinebaug River - Wauregan Bridge from Erik Eckilson on Vimeo.

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Putnam Gage

Quinebaug River Paddle Guide (see page 21 for this trip)

Quinebaug River Canoe Trail - East Brimfield Lake to Holland Pond - September 18, 2021

A foggy start t the trip

We were looking for something close to home, so we ended up back on the Quinebaug River – this time the section from the East Brimfield Lake to Holland Pond.

The Quinebaug River arises above East Brimfield Lake and flows generally southeast for 60 miles through MA and CT to Norwich where it joins the Willimantic to form the Shetucket. I have paddled several sections of the Quinebaug including this section as a RICKA trip in 2007, Sturbridge to Southbridge, Fabyan to West Thompson,  Putnam to Dayville/Brooklyn and Danielson to Canterbury.

Swamp Maples have turned

East Brimfield Lake was created by the Army Corps of Engineers with the completion of the East Brimfield Dam in 1960. The dam was part of flood control work after the devastating floods of 1955. East Brimfield Lake now includes Long Pond - a natural body of water that was incorporated into the dam's pool as the water rose. Upstream of the dam are over 2,000 acres of flood control land that can be inundated when the reservoir is filled for flood control, including Holland Pond.

Between East Brimfield Lake and Holland Pond the Army Corps of Engineers created the Quinebaug River Canoe Trail – a 3.6-mile section of the Quinebaug River that meanders through forest and marshland. Boat ramps are located on Long Pond, on East Brimfield Lake and at Holland Pond. There are three "rest stops" along the river with benches for a quick rest. There were fire rings at stops 1 and 3, but overnight camping is prohibited.

Eagle at Holland Pond

We met at 8:00 a.m. at the boat ramp on East Brimfield Lake. The river was at a nice level at 3.2 feet, 100 cfs. on the East Brimfield gage - it gets scratchy below 50 cfs. East Brimfield Lake was infested with milfoil – an aquatic weed that makes it difficult to paddle, so we didn’t paddle down to the dam. A sign at the boat ramp said that the milfoil was being treated with a chemical herbicide – we'll see how that works.

It was foggy and misty as we headed out, and the swamp maples along the banks had turned bright red. We took a break at rest stop 1 before continuing up to Holland Pond. The water was too high for us to paddle under the Holland Pond Bridge, but we decided to portage over to Holland Pond anyway. It is a small pond, but we were fortunate to see an eagle high up in a tree. The river was moving nicely as we headed back downstream to the take-out.

Paddling with Bill

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My Pictures from 2007 RICKA Trip

Quinebaug River Canoe Trail

East Brimfield Gage

Quinebaug River Paddler's Guide

Holland Pond and the 1955 Flood

Quinebaug - Danielson to Canterbury - High Water Run - September 3, 2021

I got together with Paul, and we decided to start off the Labor Day weekend back on the Quinebaug River for another run on the section from Danielson to Canterbury. 

We ran this section last weekend at 3.6 feet, 600 cfs on the Putnam gage. Today it was closer to 7’, 3,000 cfs. – just below flood stage, but still up in the trees with fast moving current. The rapids were still there, but there we no rocks to dodge – just long wave trains with 1’ – 2’ rolling waves. The biggest waves were at the broken dam with about a 3’ wave at the bottom (I found a sneak route to avoid it), and the rapid above the Wauregen Road Bridge (Route 205) with some large 3’ waves on the right at the top. I found a sneak line through the center, but the waves pushed me over to the trees on the left by the time I reached to the bottom. 

I brought my Outrage, and I was glad I did. The run only took us an hour and a half. I left my camera in the car, so no pictures from the run. I did get these at the take out.

Quinebaug – Danielson to Canterbury - August 28, 2021 - Low Water Run - August 28, 2021

Paul L.

With my son coming down from ME on Saturday and my mother’s birthday on Sunday I was planning to stay close to home this weekend, but when Paul L. suggested an early morning run on the Quinebaug, I couldn’t resist. Paul D. and Bill joined in as well.

The Quinebaug River arises above East Brimfield Lake in Sturbridge and flows generally southeast for 60 miles through MA and CT to Norwich where it joins the Willimantic to form the Shetucket. I have done several sections of the Quinebaug including Holland Pond to East Brimfield, Sturbridge to Southbridge, Fabyan to West Thompson and Putnam to Dayville/Brooklyn.

Paul D.

Today we would be running the section from Danielson to Canterbury – about 10-miles. (You can also shorten this trip to 5.3 miles by taking out at the CT DEEP Fish Hatchery.) We met at 8:00 a.m. at the put in at 39 Wauregan Road in Danielson, and ran the shuttle down to the take –out at the Robert Manship Park at 50 Lovell Lane in Canterbury.

We got on the water at around 9:00 a.m. and headed downstream. The level was 3.6 feet, 600 cfs on the Putnam gage - OK, but 1,000 cfs would be better. This is one of the longer and more challenging sections of the Quinebaug with lots of quickwater, a couple of broken dams and a couple of easy rapids. The run took us about 3-hours - can't believe I hadn't paddled this before.

A typical section of the Quinebaug

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Quinebaug River Paddle Guide

Quinebaug River - Fabyan to West Thompson – February 23, 2020

At the Fabian Dam

I’ve paddled the sections of the Quinebaug from Holland Pond to East Brimfield and Sturbridge to Southbridge to the north, and Putnam to Dayville/Brooklyn to the south, but I had never paddled the section in the middle. When Earl posted that trip on the RICKA Flatwater Message Board I decided it was time.

The Quinebaug River arises above East Brimfield Lake in Sturbridge and flows generally southeast for 60 miles through MA and CT to Norwich where it joins the Willimantic to form the Shetucket. We would be paddling the 5.8-mile section from the Fabyan Dam down to West Thompson.

Me and my Mohawk

We met at the Fabyan Dam (622 Fabyan Road, Thompson CT 06255) for the shuttle. The Fabyan Dam was built in the 1820’s to provide power to a carding/fulling mill, and later to a foundry and textile mill. The mill was damaged in the 1938 hurricane, and destroyed by fire in 1939.

As we put-in the day was sunny and warm, and the river was running at 2 feet, 300 cfs on the West Thomson gage. I was paddling tandem with Bill, and we had 7 other boats – 3 canoes and 4 kayaks. The river alternates between flatwater and quickwater as it twists and turns though forests and fields.  

At the top of Auger Brook

We stopped for lunch at Auger Brook, which cascades down a rocky waterfall into the Quinebaug River. We hiked to the top to check out the view and the old stone foundation from a colonial sawmill. This site is also along the old Connecticut Path – a Native American trail that became one of the main colonial roads between Boston and Hartford.

After lunch we continued downstream to the takeout at the pair of bridge abutments that used to support the old Blain Road Bridge (326-342 Ravenelle Rd, North Grosvenor Dale, CT 06255). This marks the beginning of West Thompson Lake, the mile-long, 200-acre impound of the West Thomson Flood Control Dam. 

Approaching the take-out

Since the takeout above the dam was iced in, Earl decided to have us take-out here. We carted, dragged or carried our boats up the long, icy hill to our cars - just one of the many things we are willing to do for a great day on the water.

Quinebaug River from Erik Eckilson on Vimeo.

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West Thompson Lake

Quinebaug River Paddlers Trail

West Thompson Gage

Quinebaug River - Putnam to Brooklyn - January 20, 2018

Earl heads downstream

One of the first trips that I did with Mike and Chuck was the Quinebaug River from Putnam to Dayville. It was the spring of 2006. I had just bought my solo canoe, and was pretty much a complete newbie. Little did I know that it would be the first of many trips that I would do with these fine paddlers. 

The Quinebaug River arises above East Brimfield Lake in Sturbridge and flows generally southeast for 60 miles through MA and CT to Norwich where it joins the Willimantic to form the Shetucket. Since that first trip with Mike and Chuck, I have driven past the Quinebaug many times on my way to other rivers.  When I saw that Earl had posted a Quinebaug trip on the Flatwater Message Board, I decided it was time to go back.

Ice at the take out

We met at 10:00 at the canoe launch at Simonzi Park (80-82 Kennedy Drive, Putnam, CT 06260), and decided to extend the trip past Dayville to Riverside Park (18 Day Street, Brooklyn CT 06234) – a trip of about 11 miles. The river was a nice level – 700 cfs on Putnam gage, and the weather was warm – almost 50°. 

The run was uneventful from Putnam down to Dayville. About a mile past Route 101 is the Rogers Dam, which we portaged on the right. We played in the easy rapids below the dam before continuing downstream. Along the way we saw various ducks, a bald eagle, and a golden eagle - a first for both of us. We couldn’t find the boat launch at Riverside Park, so we ended up taking out below the power lines a little upstream, which involved a long carry back to the cars. Still a fun trip

Quinebaug River from Erik Eckilson on Vimeo.

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Earl's Pictures

My Video – Earl below the Rogers Dam

Quinebaug River Paddle Guide

Putnam Gage

Quinebaug - Sturbridge to Southbridge - November 23, 2014

Heading down from the put in

I had a couple of paddling options yesterday, but decided to join Tim and Al on the section of the Quinebaug River from Sturbridge to Southbridge. 

There are a number of good sections of the Quinebaug River.  I have done the sections from Holland Pond to East Brimfield Lake, and from Putnam to Dayville.  Henry always runs a trip from Fabyan Dam to West Thompson Dam – I’d like to do that sometime.  This section is the racecourse for the Sturbridge Lions All American Canoe Race, which runs each spring in late April.

The farm at Old Sturbridge Village

We put in at Turners Field on Route 20 in Sturbridge and took out at Westville Lake in Southbridge - about 6 miles. The river was definitely low (3.5 feet, 200 cfs on the West Brimfield gage).  I wouldn't run it any lower than this. According to Tim, 300 cfs is a good level.  

The first mile is quickwater as the river twists and turns it’s way down to the Mill Pond at Old Sturbridge Village.  We portaged the Mill Pond Dam on the left and continued downstream. Just downstream of Old Sturbridge Village you can see the extensive damage caused by a tornado that touched down in this area on June 1, 2011. The path of the tornado is clearly evident with dead and fallen trees in a wide swath along the river. 

Tim running the low head dam

At Sturbridge Village begins a 3 mile section of flatwater down to a low head dam above the bridge at Old Mashapaug Road.  At higher water, the next mile is an easy Class II rapid.  At yesterday’s level, it was a rock field. There is one large drop at the end that we ran left to right. 

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West Brimfield gage

Sturbridge Lions All American Canoe Race

Quinebaug River Paddling Guide