Volunteer River Wardens recently held a successful cleanup event in North Reading. Volunteer, Butch Conary, is seen in this photo using a bow saw during a past cleanup to trim overhanging brush to make paddling more enjoyable!
The Ipswich River is a favorite paddling destination and important ecological area. Encouraging people to visit and paddle the Ipswich River is very important to protecting this valuable resource. A water trail project was completed last year to develop the Ipswich River Water Trail. This included the construction of informational kiosks by volunteers, updating the paddling map, installing stream crossing signs and the initiation of a River Warden volunteer program. The purpose of the River Warden program is to maintain the water trail by looking after landings and surveying sections of the river to report fallen trees in the river (blowdowns) or other hazards that might impact paddling conditions.
A team of Wardens recently surveyed the River in North Reading from Mill St. to Ipswich River Park. The accumulation of blowdowns over time made for challenging paddling conditions where the river is much narrower. Four wardens coordinated a cleanup event on October 23rd to work their way through this section using hand tools and create openings to allow for better passage. Brandon Boyd, Dean Baumeister, David Bunting and Bill Campbell volunteered about four hours each that day with a successful outcome. They were able to create passage through 80% of the nearly 20 obstructions on this one section! The warden program will resume next spring. Rivers are constantly changing and woody debris is beneficial to river ecology, so visitors will always encounter different amounts throughout the paddling season, which is part of the paddling experience. Thank you to all of the River Wardens who monitor the length of the Ipswich River from Wilmington to Ipswich and the many landings along the way so that others may enjoy all that the river has to offer!