Upper Wood River - May 31, 2026

Heading out from Route 165

It has been a while since I paddled the upper section of the Wood River, so when I saw that Sharon had a trip on the RICKA Flatwater calendar, I decided to join.

The Wood River is a Wild and Scenic River that flows 25-miles from its source near Sterling, CT to the Village of Alton where it merges into the Pawcatuck. There are two sections of the Wood River which 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 in Richmond to the Alton Dam with a portage at the Woodville Dam.

Crossing Frying Pan Pond

We had 9 paddlers for this trip – 4 canoes and 5 kayaks. We ran the shuttle down to the Wyoming Dam at 10:30, and were back at the put-in launching our boats by 11:00. The level was low, but still fluid - 2 ft, 70 cfs at Hope Valley gage; 3 ft, 35 cfs at Arcadia gage. 

Below the put-in, the river twists and turns through the woodlands of the Arcadia Management Area. In many spots, there was just enough water to float over, and there were numerous blow-downs to maneuver around. We passed several fishermen trying their luck on this popular fly-fishing stream. After a couple of miles, the river opened up as we paddled into Frying Pan Pond.

Take-out at Wyoming Dam

We stopped for lunch at the Barberville Dam, which is also the headquarters for the Wood Pawcatuck Watershed Association. There are two portages around the Barberville Dam. The right portage allows paddlers to avoid the quickwater directly below the dam. We all went right since there wasn’t enough water to run the small rapids on the left.

The quickwater continued below the dam until Skunk Hill Road where the impoundment for the Wyoming Dam begins. It was an easy paddle down to the Wyoming Dam, but the pond's infestation with milfoil was very apparent. It would probably be difficult to paddle across later in the season. We finished up by around 2:30. Great trip.

The crew at WPWA Headquarters

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My Pictures
Arcadia Gage
Hope Valley Gage
Trip Description form RI Blueways

Upper Wood River – Janaury 5, 2019

At the put-in

I knew I couldn’t paddle on Sunday, so I was glad that Papa Joe changed his weekend hike to Sunday, and that Jonathan was looking to paddle on Saturday. Due to family obligations and a bad cold I missed the traditional New Year's Day trips, so this would be my first paddle of 2019. We decided on the Upper Wood River. The forecast was for temeratures in the mid-40’s and rain, and rain it did.  Fortunately, the rain fell mostly before and after our paddle.

The Wood River arises in the swamps northeast of Porter Pond in Sterling, CT, and flows southeast to Hazard Pond, where it crosses into RI. From there, it continues southeast past Escoheag Hill and over Stepstone Falls. From its source to the Stepstone Falls the Wood River is also known as the Falls River. It then flows south through Beach Pond State Park where it receives the Flat River, continues south through the Arcadia Management Area in Exeter, and forms the border between the towns of Richmond and Hopkinton to its convergence with the Pawcatuck River in Alton.

Smiles from the bow paddler

We would be paddling the 7.5 mile section from Ten Rod Road (Route 165) in Exeter to the Wyoming Dam (Bridge Street) in Richmond.  The river was at a great level - 200 cfs, 4.5 feet on the Arcadia gage, 350 cfs, 4 feet on the Hope Valley gage.  We met at the Wyoming dam at 10:30, ran the shuttle and were on the river by 11:00.

For the first 4 miles the river twists and turns through the woods of the Arcadia Management Area. There were a couple of blow-downs that we needed to portage, but most we were able to paddle through.

Portage at the Barberville Dam

A gentle rain started as we paddled into Frying Pan Pond and down to Barberville Dam.  We stopped for a snack at the Wood/Pawcatuck Watershed Association Headquarters (Jonathan’s delicious potato/leek soup), ignored the sign and put-in below the left side of the Barberville Dam and continued downstream.

We were off the river by around 2:00 and stopped for stuffies and chowder at the Middle of Nowhere Dinner.  Great day, but aren’t they all.  

Barberville Dam

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My Pictures

Arcadia Gage

Hope Valley Gage

Trip Description from RI Blueways

Upper Wood River - June 3, 2018

We had a fun trip today with RICKA on the Upper Wood River.  We put in on Rt. 165 (Ten Rod Road) in Exeter and padded 7.5 miles to Wyoming Pond in Richmond, with a break for lunch at Barberville. The river was low but runnable - 100 cfs, 2.5 feet on the Hope Valley gage and 75 cfs, 3 ft. on the Arcadia gage. I did portage left and paddle the short rapid below the Barberville Dam, but it was boney. 

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My Pictures

River Description from Rhode Island Blueways

Hope Valley Gage

Arcadia Gage

Upper Wood River - September 7, 2013

It felt like Fall when I headed out this morning, but it turned out to be a great day.  It always helps to start the day off with a morning paddle.  I got together with Jim C, Jeff, Sharon and Jim S to paddle the upper Wood River from Route 165 in Exeter to the Wyoming Dam  (Route 138) in Richmond.  The river was at a nice level – 2 feet on the Hope Valley gage and 3 feet on the Arcadia gage.

We put in at about 9:30 and headed downstream.  The river starts out narrow as it twists and turns through the Arcadia State Forest.  It finally opens up as it approaches Frying Pan Pond, which was full of yellow daisies.  We portaged the Barberville Dam on the right (not enough water to run the small rapids on the left) and headed down to the Wyoming Dam. 

The trip was done by noon, and I was home around 1:30 to do some work around the house – can’t beat that.

Daisies blooming in Frying Pan Pond

Links:

My Pictures

Hope Valley Gage

Arcadia Gage

Upper Wood River - May 6, 2012

After several weekends filled with yard work, I was looking forward to getting out on the water, but there weren’t a lot of options. I was thinking about Fife Brook, or maybe Otter Brook, until I saw a post for the upper Wood River on the RICKA Flatwater Message Board.

The Wood River flows 25 miles from its source near Sterling, CT to the Village of Alton where it merges with the Pawcatuck. There are two sections of the Wood River which 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 Hope Valley Landing to Alton with a portage at the Woodville Dam. I had done the lower section a couple of times in the past, but had never paddled the upper section, so the upper Wood River it would be.

I arrived at the put-in on Route 165 at 10:00 and was surprised to see that most of the paddlers had already arrived. I was also surprised at the number of canoes on this trip. In total there were 13 boats – 9 canoes and 4 kayaks. Maybe we should rename the club the Rhode Island Canoe Association.

We ran the shuttle and were on the water by 11:00. The river starts off shallow (2.5 ft, 118 cfs at Hope Valley; 3 ft, 50 cfs at Arcadia) and twists and turns through the woodlands of the Arcadia Management Area. After a couple of miles, the river openned up as we paddled into Frying Pan Pond. A Bald Eagle soared overhead – the first I had seen in Rhode Island.

We stopped for lunch at the Barberville Dam which is also the headquarters for the Wood Pawcatuck Watershead Association. There are two portages around the Barberville Dam. The right portage allows paddlers to avoid the quickwater below the dam. Chuck and I took the left portage and ran the short rapid below the Barbarville Dam.

The quickwater continued below the dam until Skunk Hill Road where the impoundment for the Wyoming Dam begins. We paddled into a strong headwind until we reached the Wyomingt Dam. I had a beer with Chuck and Jim before heading home. Another great day.

Links:
Wood River gage near Hope Valley
Wood River gage near Arcadia

Scouting the Upper Wood River - July 3rd

I was a little early heading down to yesterday’s trip on the Wood/Pawcatuck Rivers, so I decided to check out the put in for the upper Wood River off Route 165 in the Arcadia Management Area. I definitely want to do this section of the Wood River sometime soon.