Egg Rock to Monadnock

 

Kind of an odd week that started with a look at the Egg Rock inscription in Concord, MA which has been partially submerged pretty much the whole season.  Upon heading upriver on the Assabet I attempted to get a photo of a good-sized beaver swimming by...but instead, just as I snapped my camera, his powerful tail-slap filled the air with droplets against a bit of fall foliage...

Other oddities included what looked like a wedged "Wilson"...

...and some fleshy mushrooms growing beneath the base of this recently blown-down tree...

...leaving me to wonder if they were growing under the tree before it fell over.

Another blob-like mushroom was found on Brooke Island in the Sudbury River...

A mid week trip to a man-made lake straddling the Massachusetts/New Hampshire border provided more than a few unusual signs...

The "Welcome" sign is located next to an informal boat launch for hand-carried boats...

...however due to its jagged-rock slope to the water it needs to be traversed with care.  I found out about the boat launch from the Massachusetts Paddler website.

There's no shortage of Private Property signs along the lake's shoreline...

...but only one of these...

In addition to the many signs is a ship, the Santa Maria, seemingly emerging from the woods...

The lake also has a few stunted lighthouses to guide such vessels...

Monomonac is almost 3 miles in length with about a third of it in Winchendon, MA and two thirds in Rindge, NH.  It was created by the damming of the Miller River's North Branch way back in Colonial times...

I've long been looking to paddle Monomonac's waters as they constitute the headwaters of the Millers River, and was hoping to get a view of Mount Monadnock from the lake. Also figured an eagle sighting would be in the offing.  However a steady northeasterly breeze was bringing in forest fire related haze from Maritime Canada for most of my time there.  Thinking I'd struck out on both possibilities I reached the lake's southwestern corner and turned about to begin the trip back to my starting point.  Just then an eagle flew overhead against the hazed-over sun...

...and as I followed its line of flight to the north, there was a looming Mount Monadnock...

Glad I waited until the shoulder season to visit Monomonac as nearly all of the lake's wide variety of watercraft were sitting idle at their docks.  I recall seeing somewhere that, later in the fall, the lake is lowered a few feet to make room for the spring run-off.

During the entire week very few boats were seen on the water. In fact the only other paddler seen was Mrs. Trashpaddler...

...when she and I enjoyed having the Sudbury River's Fairhaven Bay all to ourselves on Thursday.

Ended the week Friday on the Assabet River in Stow, MA paddling between Fort Meadow and Elizabeth brooks.  A mute swan family passed the time...

Trash from Sunday on the Assabet included 6 miniature (aka nip) bottles...

Trash from a virtually trash-free Lake Monomonac included only 1 miniature (aka nip) bottle ...

Trash from the Assabet in Stow included 10 miniature (aka nip) bottles...