This was another short notice trip that I posted with just a couple days notice. I needed to get 3 things repaired on my fiberglass boat and I've heard that Carl Ladd of Osprey Sea Kayak Adventures is very good, so I figured I'd drop off the boat and take a trip on the Westport River in my plastic boat. I didn't want to make the 40 mile drive just to drop off the boat when there's such a nice river to paddle right behind their shop.
Carl had the day off, but Brendan got started working on my boat between customers renting boats. It looked like it was going to another busy day for the rental business.
Jack Z. responded soon after I posted that he'd like to join me, so I waited for him to arrive and watched rental groups take off in tandems and singles.
We launched at about 10:15am. High tide would reach the top of the river where we were launching at about 1:00pm, so it was a little muddy at the put-in.
When the river started widening, we saw a lot of swans in a cove to our right. We didn't venture too close since they looked like they were resting. I counted more than twenty of them.
As we moved further down river, the wind seemed stronger and stronger. I expected less wind from the forecast, but at least we'd have a push on the way back. We weren't going to get any help from the tide - we went against it all day. The only place the tide seemed noticably against us was under Hix Bridge.
There is a boat ramp just below Hix Bridge but it is for residents only. There was plenty of traffic there today.
The island we had stopped at last fall with a group of nine paddlers was occupied by some day visitors.
There wasn't much beach room on any of the islands since it was now close to high tide. We found a little spot big enough for the two of us to stop for a quick lunch without bothering any of the others that looked like they were planning to spend the day.
After lunch we headed further south into a stiffening breeze that was starting to kick up little white-caps. I wanted to at least get down-river far enough to see the route 88 bridge and the huge island size boulders just before the bridge. I knew before we started it wasn't likely we'd make it all the way to the harbor since we were fighting both the tide and the wind.
We came across these confusing signs. Jack's interpretation was that you can shellfish anywhere except between the two signs.
I had to take a picture of this little cottage up on the hill.
According to the chart, the rock in this picture is Speaking Rock.
As we rounded the end of Gunning Island, Jack pointed to some birds. There were oyster catchers behind the gulls and cormorant.
I couldn't get in a good position to get a good shot of the oyster catchers before they took off.
Of course you can always spot some osprey on this river.
There was plenty of power boat traffic with a few towing tubes and water skiers.
When we got back and finished loading up our boats and gear, we headed across the street and had an ice cream cone for PPR.
Here is a topo map of the area with the track of our paddling trip highlighted on the East Branch of the Westport River.
A few stats from the trip:
We launched at about 10:15am and stopped for lunch at about 12:10pm after traveling 5.3 miles.
Our stop for lunch was about 20 minutes and we were on Upper Spectacle Island.
After lunch we continued south another 1.5 miles around Gunning Island before heading back up river non-stop.
Our total distance traveled was 13.1 miles.
Thanks for joining me Jack. It was a great day of paddling.
Norm
Westport River - 7/4/11
Moderator: Chip
Re: Westport River - 7/4/11
It was a very good trip with good weather and a fortunate wind to help disguise the heat and humidity level! First time I paddled this river in an area I wouldn't have normally thought to trek to. As some pictures show - the conditions weren't always "river-like" which was a plus. Although I'm not a bird-watcher, it was fun to see such a variety during one trip.
Thanks for initiating the trip Norm!
Thanks for initiating the trip Norm!
- kayakerjnj
- Posts: 2720
- Joined: Tue Apr 18, 2006 12:12 pm
- Location: Randolph MA
Re: Westport River - 7/4/11
Always loved this trip! Thanks for sharing and taking great pictures!
Paddle with a big smile, its contagious
Jordan
Jordan