Catching the Tide

Other than the wind, it was an ideal day for canoeing.  The wind wasn't so bad that it would keep anyone on shore, but it was strong enough to encourage me to head to a smaller and more forested river.

We put in at the usual spot on the Mattebasset.  The water level was quite low as we set out - a combination of late summer and very low tide.  Even here, about 30 miles from the ocean, there is a 2-1/2 foot tidal fluctuation. 

We head downriver.  Great Blue Herons are the bird of the day with 12 to 15 sighted during the trip. S spots a mature Bald Eagle just as we turn the bend that comes out of the forested section.  Cormorants are perching in trees, something I haven't seen all summer.  There is a Kingfisher here and there, and songbirds are starting to feed in the swamp grasses and wild rice.  S spots a baby turtle - no more than 2 inches across. I watch for beaver sign, but see none.  The known lodges are abandoned and dilapidated.

We turn at the big river and head back up, with a side trip up the Coginchaug.  Just below the Coginchaug launch, we find a beaver downed tree.  It has fresh cuts. The grass all around has been well trampled and the limbs of the tree removed and hauled away.  I find two small scent mounds on the far side of the river.  It is not much for beaver sign, but it does show that there is at least one in the vicinity.  I don't spot a lodge or bank burrow. 

Heading back upriver, we stop to shake some wild rice, but get no kernels to fall off.