Pawtuxet River

Saturday, June 27, 2009

There was a "Tree Walk" the RI Tree Council either sponsored or was somehow involved in. With my 13 year old, we met at the Farmers Market in Pawtuxet Village. The talk was a little dry but it was what I expected. It wasn't what my son expected. He was painfully bored. After a half hour, we ditched the talk and walked around the village.

I live only a couple miles from Pawtuxet and I seldom visit. It's gorgeous. The river is gorgeous. Too bad it's polluted.

After a short walk and a drink (ice cream shop didn't open until noon - what gives?) we headed for the river walk.

I did this walk maybe in '07 with all three boys. It is quite nice and a great respite from the city. Unfortunately too many teens find it a great place to burn trash and drink beer. In spots the teens like to linger there is significant damage. The trail was widened by the chopping down of bow timber trees for use in the fire. Some trees were spray painted. Trash was everywhere.

I wish I could speak directly to those kids and have them listen. First off, beer cans don't burn. You can stop trying. Secondly, a fire, even a small one, over shallow roots and under low overhanging branches is dangerous. If the season is dry, a root fire could spread and burn the area down. Good thing the area is as wet as it is.

Natural places are special because they don't stink of civilization. Bringing our stuff and making our mark there makes it a lot less special. The trash and damage doesn't ruin the area, but it does diminish it.

There are quite a few side trails and we followed a bunch of them. The entire walk couldn't have taken more than a half hour, but it certainly recharged my son's mood. Maybe not as much as ice cream would have, but we do what we can.

Big River Management Area

Friday, June 26, 2009

Big River is over 8000 acres of forest and wetlands, mostly in West Greenwich. I was completely unfamiliar with it, largely because the guidebooks I use don't mention it. I saw it on my Greenways map then picked up the Great Swamp Press map. Apparently, many years ago, the state decided to condemn the land to built a reservoir. Some 200 houses once existed there. That reservoir was never created and instead we got ourselves a nature area.

I set foot on the property a couple weeks ago but haven't found time to hike it until today. I had driven by a parking area in the eastern side near Tarbox Pond, but today decided to park on Congdon road. I was a little put off by the No Parking sign, but decided that they just didn't want me parking by the river near a pipe. With the exception of water, my pack was ready to go. I started following Sweet Sawmill Road, picking my way to Sweet Pond. It was 3:10 pm.

Many trails are former roads from when this was a neighborhood. The map also shows many side trails. What the map does not show are the many, many other side trails, some of which go nowhere. Mapping them all would be futile and make the map even more busy than it already is. Much of Big River is mature white pine. There were the usual oaks, maples, beech, and birch you see most places, but pines dominate the landscape.

The forecast called for thunderstorms, but the skies were clear and it was hot. Coming from work, I was wearing blue jeans. Shorts would have been in order, but I didn't think of packing a change of pants. I had deet in my pack, but I made the decision not to use it. Perhaps I should have. The bugs were bad. When I sweat up, and boy did I sweat up, large flies were dive-bombed my head.

I found a Eastern Ribbon Snake on the way that seemed to want to be photographed. Of course I obliged. At the pond I banged a left and came upon an old cemetery. Someone had been by not too long ago to leave plastic flowers and American flags by some of the stones. I couldn't read any of them.

The path was well worn with the signs of mountain bike tracks. It appears as if there was some sort of race there in the recent past. There are arrows nailed to trees pointing the way. The area is off limits to ATV traffic and there was a sign saying so at the parking area. Clearly it went unheeded as I saw some ATV tracks as well, some with serious tread on them.

I didn't see a single person on my walk, but I certainly saw evidence. Trash everywhere. Shotgun shells, snickers, beer cans, and the leftovers from a trash fire. I kept an ear out for gunshots. On the first sign, my legal orange would have gone on and I would have picked the fastest path out of there. I don't recall if hunting was allowed, but clearly that point is irrelevant.

I followed Burnt Sawmill back to Sweet Sawmill and started back for my car. Then an 'aw what the hell' feeling came over me and I doubled back to continue on Burnt where it crossed Sweet. Here I found less small trash, but more large trash.

The truck is not native to the New England mixed forest. I don't know if you can tell, but that light bulb is huge. It could not have been there very long.

I heard the call of birds above me. At first I thought they were crows, but saw them and knew they were hawks. They were clearly angry, maybe at me. They continued circling around. I didn't think I could get a shot of them, but they persisted. So I pulled my phone out, put it into video mode, and they were gone. Go figure.

I took another side trip to an unnamed pond. There were side trails away but the map did not show them, and I was eager to get back to the car. I was hearing rumbling from the North. I got to my car, happy to be in air conditioning and away from the bugs. it was 5:30.

Boy Scout Hike, Fisherville Brook, both sides

Saturday, May 30

Boy Scouts need various things to advance in rank. Map and compass skills, nature knowledge, and just to be on scout outings. This is why I was disappointed when only three scouts went on our hike. Two of which went on the Great Swamp hike.

The path I chose was to do the South side of Pardon Joslin road, the entire orange then blue loops, then do the North red and white loops. We spent a lot of time going over material, so it took a while. My son and his best friend could not restrain from chattering away about nonsense. We passed a lady clearly inspired by the bird watchers from the old Woody Woodpecker cartoons. I smiled and said hello. She said "I could hear you over the hill. Shush!" When we passed her way again, she was clearly unhappy to see us.

I handed the Audubon map and a compass to one boy and asked him to orient it, and locate our position. He did so in short order. I gave it to my son's buddy and he did the same, but I was certain it was a lucky guess. A little later on I had him try again and he was way off. Again, I explained it and I think he understood.

I intended on doing both the red and while loops on the North side, but time was growing short, so we did just the Red outer loop. Not a soul was seen. A scout did find a tiny deer tick nymph on his shirt, but that was it for those suckers. We returned to the parking lot and drove home.

A rude comment may get the immediate desired result from a small but noisy band of Scouts, but I wonder if this lady understood that the greater good is served when as many noisy kids as possible become familiar with, comfortable in, and learn to respect our natural places. When these places are viewed as exclusive, they will not be valued by all.