Beavers on the Canal?

A couple of weeks ago I went up to the Delaware Raritan Canal. The big rains had just ceased, and the Millstone River was still in flood.

Millstone River - Road Closed 

It was fine on the canal , the current and water level was pretty much the same as always....but check out the photos. If this is not beaver biz, then I don't know what is!

Monksville Reservoir, Ringwood NJ - March 26th 2011

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My Friend Lerro, from Ringwood NJ, is always defending her home turf against all the New Yorkers who sneer at Jersey.  Saturday I found myself looking for a place to paddle in fairly gusty conditions not too far from the City.
I headed up to Monksville Reservoir fully equipped with all my cold weather gear. In the wind, the temp was about -6 Celsius.  It  was a beautiful sunny day and I couldn't bear to let it go by without making the best of it.
I went up via Campmor, the outdoor store where I bought a replacement pair of silk glove liners, having lost one of them on my last day out.  That took my to Ringwood via Suffern ,. The drive up into the hills was great. Lerro was , as usual, right.
The are is heavily forested, and waterways abound.

The boat ramp ( one of three at the reservoir)

There was a stiff wind blowing, and the open areas were quite choppy, so I tootled around the edge, keeping out if the wind as much as possible .
There was still snow on the hillsides, and those hand and toe warmers really came in handy.
This would be a lovely place to see when the trees are in leaf.

I only stayed out for about two and a half  hours, but it was a lovely day out.

Hackensack River: Johnson Park Upriver

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It was a cold start to a beautiful day. There was  stiff northerly when I arrived at Lauren Hill County Park, with considerable small waves and no real shelter on the stretch near the launch. The water is still very cold, so I headed back to Hackensack and put in adjacent to Johnson Park on S River Street Hackensack.

The tide was rising and I paddled upriver. I had been a little way up the river previously, but today I went a fair distance, up as far as  New Milford Avenue. Following the heavy rains, the river was flowing well, but upriver there was a great number of plastic bags- I guess they will all end up in the ocean and the river drains straight into NY Harbour. 

Bald Eagle 

Hackensack River Marshes

Finally got back on the water today. It was windy, so the Marshlands on the Hackensack seemed like a good option. I have been there once before, but only had the briefest exploration. Today I launched at the Millridge Rd boat ramp at Seacaucus .

 I followed the Mill River arm of the marshes to the end. I passed a water treatment plant and found myself at the end of many local roads.

 I had not realized there were so many homes fronting on to the marshes.

The strong southerly was no trouble as the tide was ebbing and I pretty much floated all the way back.