One great thing about the Bradford Dayhike & Dine events I’ve been joining during the last year is that I’ve gotten to know some nice people. One of them, Jared (the founder/creator/Godfather of the group), recently told me about the Paddle The Border Kayak & Canoe event, sponsored by Upper Valley Land Trust. I’d initially planned to solo kayak the 8ish mile section of the Connecticut River but, a few days ago, Jared suggested that we canoe it together - that sounded like a great idea! I was up by 0600, packed up my car and left my condo at 0815. Using I-91 and VT-25, I arrived at Jared's home at 0845. We loaded up his canoe and drove to Newbury Crossing Boat Launch. After unloading, Jared drove back to Bugbee Landing (in Bradford) and caught the free shuttle bus back to where I was waiting. Soon after he arrived (1010), there was a mad rush to launch all of the kayaks and canoes - it took about 10 minutes before we launched. Along with 55+ other boats) we began our paddle down the river (1020) The day had started with fog and mid-40s temps but improved tremendously while we paddled. The sun came out and we had great views of the river, our paddling colleagues and the surrounding mountains. Fall colors were not prominent but we did get to see a few pretty areas with foliage. At a few points along the way, we chatted with other paddlers (EVERYONE knows Jared) but, otherwise, we were mostly by ourselves. Through it all, though, we enjoyed the ride downstream! After passing the ruins of Bedell Bridge, we made our way to the mouth of the Waits River - the last two miles were new paddling for me. Seeing the spires of Bradford churches was a real boost and we made it to Bugbee Landing at 1315 - less than three hours for 8 miles! Jared and I ate some lunch (burger, hot dog, corn cob, drink) at Bugbee Landing - there some good food and live music and we relaxed for about an hour. At 1415, we loaded up the canoe for the ride back to Jared’s, where I assisted him in putting it away. Before long, I was on my way home (VT-25 to I-91) and was at my condo by 1530. Overall, this was an awesome way to start the month of October - I’m looking forward to the Spring version of this event in 2024!
