On July 9th, 15 boaters in 14 boats (kayaks and canoes) put in a Kilowatt Park in Wilder to paddle north on the Connecticut River as part of the 3rd in our summer series, Wild About Cornish, sponsored by the Cornish Conservation Commission. Joining us on that spectacular summer day were Kathy Urffer of the Connecticut River Conservancy (CRC), and Sandy Sonnichsen, a Fish and Wildlife biologist/volunteer for the Sullivan County Conservation District. Also an excellent overview of boating safety and group paddling instructions was provided by our kayak outfitter and instructor, Bonna Wieler of Bold Paths Adventures. To begin our water journey, Cindy Heath (CCC member and organizer of the day’s event) shared a Land Acknowledgement of First Peoples and also gave a short indigenous historical perspective of the CT River which was provided by Denise and Paul Pouliot of the Cowasuck Band of the Pennacook-Abenaki people.
Our original plan was to explore Chase Island located in Cornish, south of the Cornish-Windsor covered bridge, and home to the endangered Cobblestone Tiger Beetle, but low water conditions in the river on our scheduled date prevented appropriate access for a large and relatively novice group of boaters. Given that all were amenable to a change in plans on short notice, we traveled north instead to Kilowatt Park.
The 3-hour paddle was punctuated by a raft-up moment along the river to hear Sandy speak to river health, including fish and aquatic invertebrates so important to the aquatic food web, and also specifically about the Cobblestone Tiger Beetle, which only lives in the open habitat on the upstream end of free-flowing river islands and specifically in and around the pebble and cobble-sized stone areas. The upstream sections of Burnaps, Chase (in Cornish), Hart, Johnston, and Walpole Islands in the river all provide suitable habitat. The beetle does not tolerate heavy sedimentation or dense vegetation cover which often grows at the downstream edges of the same islands (and the reservoir-like area north of Wilder Dam is not a suitable environment). Chase and Walpole islands had the highest count of beetles in a 1993 study, and the beetles were still documented to be present in a 2014 survey. Landing boats on islands where beetles are present, and walking on the cobblestones have the potential to trample larvae in their burrows. All islands that support Cobblestone Tiger Beetles are protected under the state Endangered Species Act.
The Connecticut River was designated as an American Heritage River in 1999. The Silvio O. Conte National Wildlife Refuge Act (1991) and the Rivers Management Act (RSA 483) protect the river. The July 9th boating group landed on Gilman Island for lunch and River Steward Kathy Urffer, described the mission and focus of the CT River Conservancy. CRC is a voice for the entire CT River watershed, from source to sea and collaborates with partners in all four New England states to protect and advocate for the river’s health and for education and recreational opportunities for all citizens who live along its shores. The CT River is the most extensively dammed river in the nation. Currently 5 hydro plants in the heart of the CT river watershed are renewing their operating licenses for the next 40-50 years, and include 3 in VT/NH: Wilder, Bellows Falls and Vernon. The two companies operating these dams designate only 0.6-.08% of their operating budget on existing recreational infrastructure. To learn more about CRC’s advocacy for river health and recreational benefits for the next 50 years, watch the attached YouTube video and or visit their website at ctriver.org. Information on how you can share your opinions, requests and dreams for the next generation of river users can be found on their website.
Cornish is fortunate to have a section of free-flowing river as its western township border. Whether you are a boater, painter, birder, fisherman or photographer, summer is the time to get out and enjoy the beauty and diversity of habitat it provides for all!