October Paddling

From the ramp at the southeast corner of the pond to the river at the north end is about a mile,

and another mile or so to the road after the highway overpass.

The car was loaded and the kayak tied down for an early Monday morning departure for Nauset Marsh before I went to bed.  But the promised sunshine faded to mostly overcast, and near-freezing temperatures and strong winds predicted by morning for Eastham would have made paddling an ordeal at best.

Bummer.

Determined to put my preparations to some use, I decided on a fall paddle of "Lake" Nippenicket, with a hoped-for side trip down part of the Town River--one of the sources of the mighty Taunton River.

I spent the morning, coffee in hand, scouting the trip, then put the boat in the pond shortly after 1pm.  With all the recent rain, the pond was higher than I've seen it.  The air was in the balmy fifties, with a  sun that peeked fitfully through the clouds.  A few yards from shore I rigged my new spray deck and set out north for the far end of the pond.  The spray deck kept my legs warm and dry despite the breeze.  I took many photos, but fall colors were a bit washed out due likely to the rain, and there wasn't enough sunshine to really bring out what color there was.  But this counted as good paddling weather for the season.

The trip out.

The north end of the pond.

 I'm dressed in fleece-line pants, a fleece shirt, a wool sweater and windbreaker, and of course 

my Adventure Hat.  Though my feet were in wet water shoes, they were comfortable 

tucked inside the boat.  I'm very glad I didn't try to kayak Nauset Marsh in a freezing gale!

 This little inlet looks like the entrance to the river.

 After learning my mistake (I cheated and checked Google Earth on my phone),

I finally extricated myself from the woods.

And lo! I have at least a good safe hour more to spend out on the water!

The first mile or more of Town River.

The real entrance to the river isn't hard to find if you're paying attention.

Curiously, there was no perceptible current here--even with the water as high as it is.

Having experienced the challenge of paddling among trees and bushes,

I was very glad that the real river runs through marsh instead. 

 Winterberry (Ilex verticillata) is a relative of American holly.

Short videos better give the flavor of being on the river.

 Swamp white oak is a tree I knew only from a few weedy trees in an empty lot near home.

Here, they are in their element.

  Swamp white oak is the dominant tree in this marsh.

 Swamp white oaks can get big.  I wonder how they survive living with their roots underwater?

The current, which gradually became perceptible, increased noticeably 

after I passed the confluence with the Hockomock River.

Drifting at a good 1 knot without so much as dipping my paddle.

The river begins to meander approaching the highway, which means

you hear and even see the highway intermittently well before reaching it.  

I had plenty of time to worry about the rapids and rocks I have encountered under bridges in the past, but the flow beneath the highway was smooth and flat--perhaps because the water was so high.

More meanders downstream of the highway.  Negotiating them is fun.

The Scotland Street bridge was just as smooth underneath as the highway bridge.

After wrangling all gear and boat up to the road over the loose rocks, I lost enthusiasm for an hour's walk back to the car.  Fortunately, my loving wife came to get me, and I was safely home by about 6pm.  Now I'm ready to paddle much more of the Town River, though I need to determine where some hazards are, and how to avoid finding myself in the reservoir that the river is eventually used for!