When I paddle the Oxbow, I generally throw in at Still River. It's got easy access and plenty of parking. This weekend I went out on Saturday morning, wow it was hot! I paddled downstream this time, as I hadn't been downstream in a few months because of other trips and the attention I was paying to the Rt. 117 area.
I was somewhat surprised. I guess it's been since late May or early June since I'd been on that stretch. I made it about 1 mile downstream and my basket was full. I turned around, emptied my kayak, and headed back down.
I made another run, getting about 1.5 miles downstream clean. But the heat started to get to me and I hadn't eaten breakfast, so I called it quits. But I was kind of upset that I didn't even get to Rt. 2.
Sunday I had some free time, so I started out fairly early. I paddled all the way to where I had made it saturday, and started picking up. I grabbed everything from the next several logjams, and then I started to find fewer and fewer items. That was really cool - some of the places that ordinarily collect a lot of trash were empty.
I kept paddling past route 2 and down toward Hospital Rd. I stopped just short of there, but realized I hadn't seen a piece of trash for quite a long time. Hopefully further downstream is still just as clean. The construction at the bridge generally puts some trash in the water, but I'm hoping for the best.
Now that the huge trash deposits between Rt. 117 and Rte. 2 are gone, I'm optimistic that the next high water event won't cause as great a mess as they have in the past. There's still a lot upstream of 117, but that stuff should have a hard time getting downstream any time soon.
The Oxbow really is a beautiful place, now that I've got it trash-free again this year. Get out there and enjoy it folks!
-Ed
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