French River Park Nears Completion

The sign is up

and the lights are on

at French River Park, almost ready for opening day August 20. The ribbon cutting is at 11am, followed by an afternoon of music and family fun.

Perryville Trace Walk

The second Trace walk of the summer was conducted August 13, with Elaine Parker leading seven walkers through the woods. They were treated to a nice aerial display by two blue herons.

Oxford Boy Scout Troop 147 was seen portaging Perryville Dam, having launched from French River Park.

The Perryville trace is located in Webster, where Perryville Road crosses the river. It is listed as one of "1000 great places in Massachusetts" by the state department of tourism.

More Sponsors Join French River Park Opening Celebration

Two more sponsors, Hometown Bank and Commerce Bank and Trust Company, have signed on to sponsor the Opening Day Celebration August 20. In addition many, many businesses have contributed smaller amounts or drawing prizes. The response to that fundraising effort has been extremely gratifying.

Dam Trail Race a Success Again

The gun went off at 9am August 6 on the annual Dam Trail Race at Hodges Village, the French River Connection's major annual fundraising event. Once again, approximately 120 runners ran one of two courses, five-plus or ten-plus miles, designed by Race Director John Grenier. Prizes were awarded for men and women in each age class for each of the two races. This year, the race was supported by sponsorship donations from Oxford companies Fabrico, Industrial Packaging Supply, and Wilson Language Training. There were eight food sponsors, and a dozen French River Connection volunteers joined other race volunteers to make this a successful event.

Park Opening Banner Goes Up At Town Hall

A 20 foot banner, produced by the Party Planner, has gone up on the lawn at town hall. The logo was designed by by Ryan Wade. You'll also see signs announcing the opening of the park in the windows of many businesses, or in some cases, inside. Many of these businesses have made donations of cash or drawing prizes. They will be listed on a sign at the event.

French River Maintenance

Many jobs keeping the river and its shoreline pleasant and accessible take only a few man-hours each and never become the subject for a full volunteer workday, but they are important nonetheless. In recent weeks we have cleaned two sections of river, and since they have been cleaned before, were able to guage how fast trash accumulates. "Our" section of the French in Thompson, from Perryville to Wilsonville, was cleaned up again after only a year, and the "take" was approximately a wheelbarrow load, with no tires or large heavy objects. This is a place that a few years ago yielded over 60 tires. We also cleaned in Webster near the new French River Park, which was last cleaned in 2006, when many tons of trash and dozens of tires were removed. This year there were 16 tires, which seems like a lot, but that's only about three per year in a primary dumping area. Sometimes we find lone objects that just have to go. A large liquified gas tank was discovered where we had cleaned near Chase Avenue in May. Perceiving a possible danger, and recognizing that it would might never be easier to get, with the cooperation of a nearby business owner, the Fire department was called and they removed it as a training exercise.

Not all maintenance needs are man-made. It's a touchy subject, but sometimes it is wise to cut a path through trees that have fallen in the water. This needs to be done with a minimum disturbance, as fallen trees are a natural part of the riverscape and provide habitat for aquatic creatures. And paddling through them is part of the experience of traveling a narrow, tree-lined river. However, they can pose a danger, especially to novice paddlers. A few well chosen cuts can make the paddle one that more people can enjoy, and who may then wish to add their voices to those who support river protection. With this in mind, we opened the river up a little bit above and below the Park location, so that paddlers will not immediately run into daunting obstacles.

Unfortunately, some of our maintenance tasks are born in meanness and stupidity. Such is the case with the Perryville Trace sign, which, after standing for three years, was cut down by vandals. It has now been removed for rebuilding.

Park Opening Sponsor List Grows

Two local companies, Charniak Insurance and Webco Chemical, have joined the list of French River Park Opening Celebration sponsors, bringing the total to seven. Many other local businesses have provided cash donations and gift certificates to support the event, scheduled for August 20 from 11am until 4pm.