Hamburg Cove

I set out from the North Cove at Pettipaug (Essex)... yeah, I think the original name has a bunch more pizzazz than the current name.  The water is low and the tide is still dropping, but there is enough depth to get through the gap and out into the main river without having to divert through the marina.  The sky is a high hazy overcast with strips of light blue running across the sky from east to west.  There is little wind and the temperature is in the 70's.  

A Hawk is perched in the tree near the gap.  I'm not sure of the species, perhaps it is a juvenile without the more distinct markings of adult Hawks. It is docile enough that I get several photographs.

I head upriver and cross to the east side following the old Ely Ferry route.  It is the narrowest point in the river for a good distance in either direction, an obvious location for a ferry before the advent of steam power.  Today it might look a bit odd with the west end being a landing on a long marshy strip of land.

I head up the beautiful east shore, a steep forested hillside with small beaches and rock outcrops.  I pass fifteen Common Mergansers - probably one or two female adults and the rest being first years.  Then, I turn into Hamburg Cove.  It is a quiet day with little boat traffic, and none at all in the cove.  There are a good number of Great Blue Herons.  Whenever I flush one, I get a half dozen scolding croaks.  They never go far, crossing the narrow cove or circling around and resuming their original position.

Eight Mile River is running very shallow and I ascend only about 50 yards to the first gravel bar.  It would be mostly wading from that point on, and as the river is only reasonable for a third of a mile on a good day, it is a good place to turn back.

Nearing the gap into the North Cove, I spot another Hawk - or it may be the same one.  It is on the shore and seems to have something worth eating.  I circle it up to the north and around, just to get some more distance.  It seems to always surprise me, but the top of the cove is almost as far upriver as Hamburg Cove.