Day Canoe Trip on the Connecticut River

Who: Boy Scouts
Where: N. Hartlant Vt. - Cornish NH.
Brief Description:This outing will be a one-day paddling trip on the Connecticut River from Sumner Falls to Cornish (about eight miles). The river in this area is an easy, pleasant combination of flatwater, quickwater, and the occasional class II rapid when the water level is right. Good scenery and wildlife abound. The trip provides an excellent opportunity for novice paddlers to learn the basics and for experts to enjoy the water and the scenery. Advancent opportunities include some requirements for Canoeing MB, Whitewater MB, and Second and First Class water safety and nature observation requirements.
Details:Put in at the New England Power company's Hartland Falls Picnic Area and Boat Access. This site is just off US 5 about 2 miles south of where the highway crosses under I-91 in N. Hartland, VT. The actual put-in is below Sumner Falls (aka Hartland Rapids, aka Hartland Falls). After unloading, we will review the requirements for Safety Afloat, establish crews and buddy boats, and then depart.
During the trip downriver we will stop regularly for instruction, nature observation, lunch, and even swimming. Most stops will be determined enroute, but we will certainly stop at the Burnham Meadows Campsite (built as an Eagle Project by a scout from Troop 45).
The takeout is the Cornish Boat Ramp, a quarter mile upstream from the Windsor-Cornish Covered Bridge on the New Hampshire (left) side. It is recognizable from the river by the large, steel retaining wall. Do not proceed past the catenary! By road, the boat ramp is about a quarter mile north of the covered bridge on NH 12.
The boat ramp is the trasportation pickup point. Coordination of boat transport will complicate this pickup, so be prepared to help load boats and equipment.