The Quasi-semi-every-so-often Shelton Run

I put in under the highway and head upstream. It is a fine day with some wind and temperatures in the low 70's. The tide is still coming in.

The weather and tides have finally met in my comfort zone. Once in awhile, although not very often and definitely not every year, I paddle up this lower section of the Housatonic pretty much as far as one can. I set out with the tidal current pushing me up. The wind is in my face, but at its worst, the two seem to balance each other. Of note, there are two new Osprey nests at the old power station, making three total.

At the unnamed 6th island, a Bald Eagle flies over. It looks to have brand new white tail and head feathering as the underside color of the wings is still patchy.

At Wooster Island, a pair of orange flashes whiz by... Orioles. I don't see them all that often and it is always a treat. They refuse to pose for a photo.  A second mature Bald Eagle flies over.

The wind calms down above Wooster Island. I continue all the way up to O'Sullivan Island, in Derby. This is where the Naugatuck joins the Housatonic. Going up this part of the Naugatuck is a grim, pointless paddle between towering levees, and there is just a quarter mile or so to the Shelton Dam on the Housatonic, so this is a good turn around.

 

Derby

The return starts easy with a gradually increasing current behind me. Unfortunately, below Wooster Island, I get the predicted wind shift and will have a stiff headwind for the rest of the trip. I pay for the easy outbound leg as the current helps, but doesn't make up for the headwind. It is a game of paddling in as strong a current as possible while hiding from the wind as much as possible on the west shore.
A third Bald Eagle soars high over as I approach Pope's Flat.

It is an 18 mile trip with a steady 6-1/4 hours of paddling.