Chapter 11- The River
Fonda-Fultonville to Schoharie Crossing
Discovery: Mother Nature is Full
of Surprises
June 1, 2002, 68 degrees, Sunny
The wind came up so fast and blew so hard we had
to dig deep and fast to keep from being blown into shoreline trees. Although
the waves were higher than the gunnels on the canoe, we wouldn't take in
water as long as we maintained our current speed and heading. And this
was supposed to be a leisure trip.
weren't interested in being caught.
After parking a vehicle at the boat launch at
the mouth of Schoharie Creek, we returned to Fultonville to launch the
canoe. It was only a 4.3-mile run, but because this section of river also
serves as the Canal there is usually very little current to carry the canoe
along; much like paddling across a lake. On occasion the prevailing winds
make the trip a little easier, but more often than not the entire trip
requires paddle power.
We expected to spend at least four hours on the
river. Bridget wasn't fishing, but I planned to cast lures to likely looking
water, and of course we would criss-cross the river looking at wildlife,
wildflowers and other points of interest. I especially like to poke the
canoe into bays and the mouths of tributaries to fish and to see the numerous
carp that often cruise in these areas. These are also good places to see
waterfowl.
Mother Nature had other plans. A day and night of
thunderstorms had turned the river muddy, littered it with floating logs
and branches, and created a respectable current. So much for criss-crossing
stillwater, catching fish and seeing carp. No matter, there was only a
hint of breeze, so the current was welcome and there was plenty of waterfowl
on the river.
We pushed off at 9:30 a.m. and immediately encountered
rough water, and the sounds and smell of civilization. A big cruiser came
up the river and didn't slow down until it passed us. As we pointed the
canoe into the rollers, a train rumbled along the opposite shore and the
air was filled with the smell of diesel fuel from a nearby truck depot.
No matter, just downstream was farm country.
The land on both sides of the river from Fultonville
to Fort Hunter has been farmed for hundreds of years, first by the
Mohawks who grew fields of corn plus squash and beans, and later by European
and New England immigrants who planted wheat and "pease." Today much of
this riverside soil is planted to corn, but a few truck farmers grow a
variety of vegetables.
One byproduct of these fertile farmfields is abundant
vegetation in the river. According to local anglers, during the summer
and fall these shoreline plants attract both smallmouth and largemouth
bass and an occasional walleye or tiger muskie.
The river is over 500-feet wide in this area, and
the banks are lined with a narrow band of trees and brush. Breaks in the
shoreline greenery reveal country homes, barns, silos and fields. For an
hour or so we drifted with the current with occasional detours into bays
and stream outlets. We saw a variety of wildflowers including, honeysuckle,
white and purple phlox and yellow flag. We also saw mallards, Canada geese,
kingfisher,
crows, redwing blackbirds and red-tailed hawks. Carp were finning near
the surface, creating rings in the muddy water and occasionally splashing
on the surface
At 10:40 we paddled up Auriesville Creek, under
the Thruway Bridge and beached the canoe under the Route 5S Bridge. Along
the way we startled a pair of mallards and a deer. The mallards disappeared
into shoreline brush and, after giving us the once over, the deer "crashed"
into the woods.
We beached the canoe under the Route 5S Bridge where
a construction crew had been clearing stone and gravel. A big orange shovel---a
mechanical T-Rex---glared down on us. Undaunted, we waded under the highway
bridge and the long-abandoned West Shore Railroad Bridge, past a pair of
concrete abutments and up to a stone retaining wall. Every one of these
structures provided runs and pools that had to hold fish. None of them
were interested in being caught.
We had noticed treetops swaying before we paddled
back into the river, but with the hot sun overhead, we welcomed the wind
at our back. Even when the wind cranked up, adding rolling water to the
current, we didn't mind. The wind was at our backs and the canoe cut through
those eastbound waves like butter. For a mile or so we zipped down the
river like a boat under sail.
Our troubles began when the river turned north and
the wind and waves continued east. To our right waves pounded shoreline
trees and stones, no place to land a canoe. Straight ahead was another
bend in the river and calmer water. We had to maintain a northerly course
without getting swept to shore or rolling sideways in the swells. That
meant cutting through the waves at an angle and staying away from shore.
Bridget knows what she's doing in a canoe, so I was glad she was with me.
We worked as a team paddling, back-paddling, steering the canoe to maintain
speed and direction. The wind and waves were so strong that for several
minutes we were both paddling hard on the same side of the canoe to keep
it moving in a straight line.
Despite a few scary moments, we made the mile run
without taking on water or dumping the canoe. Five minutes later we beached
the canoe at the Schoharie Crossing Boat Launch. We made the entire run,
including stops, in 2 hours and 30 minutes. The last mile and a half took
just 20 minutes.
In the background are the remnants of the Old Erie Canal Aqueduct that crossed Schoharie Creek.
A family was sitting around a picnic table
having lunch, their kayaks drying on the grass. They got off the water
when the wind came up. Bridget and I decided to skip lunch and go directly
to dessert, so we drove out to Karen's Produce and Ice Cream Stand across
from the park entrance. It was without a doubt the best decision of the
day.
Follow the path of this discovery trip by clicking on Mohawk Valley Maps: by Maptech.
Type Fultonville select New York, press GO!
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