Farther Up Mill Brook

It's a fine day, sunny with the morning still cool.  I put in on a back channel near the mouth of the Connecticut River.  The tides are perfect for heading up into any of the smaller tributaries - a push from the last of the flood will become a return push from the beginning of the ebb.  Plus, the higher ends of the any of these creek sized rivers will be well flooded.

I head up towards the Lieutenant River.  But first, there is a mile or so of paddling along Great Island.  This is Osprey country and supposedly, one can see thirty Osprey nests from the put-in...if you can't see that many, have no doubt that there are.  Nearing the Watch Islands, I can see eight Osprey, five Great Egrets, a Willet, and a dozen Cormorants, without turning my head.

Red Throated Loon with damaged wing

I spot something that looks like a Loon, which would be two months out of place.  But, it is one of those Cormorants with the light colored breast.  At Watch Island, I spot something else that looks like a Loon, a lot more like a Loon.  It's a Read Throated Loon, and it is definitely two months out of place.  They migrate  through in the spring on their way to very far north.  I paddle closer to see if it might have a fishing lure stuck in it.  When it decides to move away, a flap of the wings show the problem.  It has lost the outer third of its right wing.  Fortunately, it looks fit and energetic and as the injury has to be about 2 months old, it has probably healed.  It won't be breeding and nesting, or migrating, but if a Loon has to be stuck someplace, this is about as good as it gets.  

Willet

I head up the Lieutenant - more Osprey, more Egrets.  Then, through the Boulder Swamp, which doesn't resemble the name right now, the tide covering the dozens of boulders that like to reach out and nudge the daydreaming paddler.   I head up into Mill Brook. I look for, but can't locate the Eagle nest that I'm familiar with.

Mill Brook

The neighbors seem to have dealt with the small beaver population.  No fresh signs at all. Then, under a small bridge, and one easy step over on a well-known deadfall, and paddle up to a brushy deadfall that has blocked me in the past.  This time, I squeeze easily through the branches and enter new-to-me river.  It is a combination of short paddles and short wades, nothing much to complain about.  I finally get up to a brook side house, which is a good landmark.  Turns out that I am just at the bottom of the lower millpond.  When I have a full day, I'll come back.  The map looks like there's a good mile or more of paddling on and above the millpond. (Later - The house is built on the site of the Bradbury Mill.  River-left on this section of the brook and millpond are forest preserve land)

I wade/paddle back to Boulder Swamp.  I locate the Eagle nest, mostly because my arrival coincides with feeding time and I can her the Eaglets squealing.  It looks like there are two Eaglets with a mature that is shredding the kill.  After a few minutes of watching, I head out.  I pick up a good ebb current as I leave the Lieutenant, and it is an easy cruise back to the put-in.