Weather: Still sunny and hot, a little overcast in the afternoon
Portages: 3
#1: .75 miles/Sheldon Springs Dam (REALLY???)
First of all, THANK GOODNESS WE DIDN'T TRY TO CONTINUE ON TO LUSSIER the day before. While wheelable on flat pavement, this portage has a very steep uphill climb. It seems to go on for a long time. Seemed much longer that .75 miles. But it's wheelable, right? We each wore a pack to make the canoe easier to wheel, that's how steep this puppy was for us. The guidebook, at least the first edition, (page 265) states to turn right and put in upstream of the bridge. DO NOT TURN RIGHT. You turn LEFT, wheeling along the road toward a field. There is a sign at the end of the Hydro road that faces the direction to which you should turn. Left. Did I mention, it's a LEFT turn? The bridge is really irrelevant. Feel free to look at it, or perhaps traverse it if you want to visit the town, but the portage is well away from the bridge. Through the above-forementioned field. There IS a NFCT blaze that marks the entrance at the field. The put-in was a bit muddy, but it was the correct put-in. I heard that the other option is even more difficult to follow, but no first hand experience with that option.
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| Turn LEFT as you come up the road and out the gate. |
#2: Bike Trail around Abbey Rapids
Wished we had seen this, but we didn't and we ended up tracking/pool hopping up the rapids. Finally bushwacked our way to the bike trail. The level surface was wheelable and wonderful.
#3: Enosburg to Hotel (in our case) or Lawyer's Landing (for put-in). Wheelable.
Wildlife: Eagles, ducks, heron, hawk, 1 leech
Dinner: Spinach-Rice Casserole with Cheese, Triple Berry Dessert
We slept really well by the Hydro plant. Felt even safer once we saw how far the road was down to the plant/fishing hole. While there are jeep trails along the river up to the plant, there are posted signs that no ATVs are allowed. We experienced a quiet night.
Because we didn't go into town, we didn't get an opportunity to refill our water bottles and jug. (We carried three quart bottles and a pump, when we could use a pump, and bought a gallon water jug that we intended to keep refilling along the Missisquoi where pumping cannot be used.) We were being pretty careful about using what we had the night before and in the morning not knowing when we'd get water next.
Paddling was still going okay until we hit Abbey Rapids. Because of the rapids we hit the day before, I thought these weren't really the Abbey Rapids yet. And we must have missed any sign that the use of the bike trail as a portage was nearby. We definitely missed seeing the Lussier campsite (and again were happy that we had decided to camp by the hydro plant instead of continuing the night before.) At one point there seemed to be a take out, but it was a cornfield, so we didn't explore it further. So up we ended up going.
Abbey Rapids was a beast. We estimated that it took us 4 hours to get 2/3 of the way. We tracked and paddled pools in between. In and out. Slipping and sliding. We could hear the elusive road and presumbably the nice bike trail just out of reach. At one point, I did scout out the hillside, but it was too steep at the point to consider portaging the gear. The hillside was resplendent with meadow plants including chicory, asters, thistles, raspberries canes and stinging nettles. We also were starting to run dangerously low on potable water.
Back on the water. Continued to pull, paddle, slip and slide. Could see a building ahead and cars where the hill was less steep. Decided to bushwack afterall. Beckie and I are loaded down with the packs and what does she do? Stops to notice we are walking through chocolate mint. At this point, I really don't care what we are walking through. Just get to the top of the hill where we'll find water. Got to the top of the hill, negotiated a wire fence and there it was--a smooth bike trail that led right to water in the form of "The Abbey" Bar and Restaurant. Stopped in for water, and...an ice cold beer. Wasn't at first sure what we had literally stumbled upon, with it's John Deere tractor decor and large executive type black chairs lining the bar, but none-the-less, a VERY welcome stop. Had a nice chat with the bartender and two guys who were actually biking on the bike trail vs. hauling a canoe. Got back on the bike trail around 2:30 pm and wheeled for about 15 minutes to the put-in. We were that close to the end before we decided to bushwack. Oh, and The Abbey also cuts the grass down to the bank of the river and there's no fence to deal with. But then, we wouldn't have this story now would we?
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| Was almost easier paddling here than on the river. |
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| Those rapids don't look nearly as hard from the bike trail. |
Got back on the river and had another six miles to go to get to Enosburg Falls. Mostly smooth paddling. A little in and out over low spots. Arrived near the take-out and saw a person waving to us. Hmmmm....someone who will give us a ride somewhere??? Turns out it was a friend of Jess and Pat, the through-paddler couple Sam and I met in Bakers Acres who apparently were right behind Beckie and I. About 20 minutes later we see their paddles flashing in the evening sunlight. Pat is continuing on and now we'll be chasing him. I think he'll get to Fort Kent first. Their friend Mark, drove me to the Somerset Inn to see about availability. And Beckie and I secured a room. (Note: There are only two rooms and no answering service. You have to call the cell phone number listed on the door to get a hold of the owner.) Portaged the canoe and gear about a mile to the Inn where we made dinner on the front porch around 8:30 pm and enjoyed taking our showers. Not sure about next steps. The river is pretty low.
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| Becky and I meet up with Pat and Jess in Enosburg Falls, VT |
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| Yes, the canoe IS parked on the front porch. |
