Since we last wrote in Newport, VT, we've been plugging away at some pretty tough upstream paddle and some LONG portages. We're now enjoying another zero day in Berlin, NH with Seth. Now that we are just over half way (377 miles down!), we wanted to do some minor boat repairs, clean our laundry, and have a relaxing visit. Here's what our days have been like:
Day 16
After our rest day we headed out of Newport and made our way to Pensioner Pond. We portaged the first part of the Clyde River to avoiding ascending a series of rapids. This was a good decision, made even better by a chance encounter with Shirley Hackett. As we were walking along Rt 5, a car quickly peeled off the road, into a parking lot, and out came Shirley. She proclaimed that she had been following our blog since the beginning and gave us big hugs. Though we declined her offer for a ride to Island Pond, we did take her up on an offer to launch our boat into Salem Lake at her friend's house. Thanks again, Shirley! After Salem Lake we paddled up the Clyde until Pensioner Pond, where we camped at Clyde River Recreation. A short day of 12 miles.
Us and Shirley |
Day 17
We woke up to a light rain. At this point in the trip, we're not really surprised! We pulled on our rain gear and started back up the Clyde. Our original plan was to pull out at 10 mile square road and portage around the section that our guidebook claimed was confusing. While we ate lunch at ten mile square road, we happened upon the Northern Forest Canoe Trail farm stand and met Bill Manning, head of the Northwoods Stewardship Center. He encouraged us to paddle farther up the Clyde through the fen. We had a great chat, he snapped our photo, gave us an ice cream, and sent us on our way! His map was incredibly helpful for navigating this section of river and we highly recommend stopping here. We did stop at 5 mile square road and portaged to Island Pond to avoid some rapids.
21 miles.
Just made it into Island Pond |
Island Pond |
After reading the guidebook closely and talking to locals, we decided our long canoe and desire to get to the Connecticut River didn't mesh well with the Nulhegan's oxbows and narrow width. We portaged around the few miles you could paddle on the Nulhegan before rapids forced you to portage anyhow. While we were sad to miss the wildlife, we don't regret this decision. We made it to the Connecticut River by 2 pm and were SO EXCITED to paddle downstream. We were bummed, however, that the DeBanville General Store had closed. We were looking forward to floating downstream with some pizza, beer, and a new pair of suspenders (for Brian). Nevertheless, we enjoyed our afternoon and camped at the Maine Central RR trestle campsite. The campsite itself was very buggy, but the beach was wonderful. We enjoyed every second.
25 miles.
SHARK! |
Connecticut River |
Improvised beer refrigeration! |
Day 19
Woke up and had a gorgeous paddle for 13 miles down the Connecticut before starting upstream on the Amonoosuc River. We quickly decided that the current was too strong, so we portaged along an access road into Groveton. At this point, the story gets CRAZY!
A peaceful moment on the Connecticut River |
35 miles.
Day 20
We ditched most of our stuff at Seth's house, where we knew we'd be spending 3 nights. We still wanted to chip away at our upstream paddling, so Seth dropped us back off in West Milan around 11 am. We portaged to the Pontook Reservoir where he joined us for a beautiful, sunny paddle. We were so pleased and relieved to find that upstream travel on the Androscoggin River is doable. We paddled until Wentworth Island, where we took out and portaged until the road met the river upstream. We then paddled a few more miles and met Seth on the road around 5:30. Then it was Chinese food and bed!
13 miles.
Seth came to join us for a while |
The rest of the maps out, planning the last few weeks! |
Today's a rest day and tomorrow we'll camp in Maine! Not sure when we'll update again, but stayed tuned.
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