Exploring Local Wetlands With
Friends for the Marsh
Linda Arntzenius
Princeton Town Topics, December 20, 2006.
Five canoes and 15 kayaks set out from the
Bordentown Beach last Saturday, December 16, to explore the
Hamilton-Trenton-Bordentown Marsh from the point where Crosswicks
Creek meets the Delaware River to the John A. Roebling Memorial Park
some four miles upstream.
A group of around 30 paddlers showed up for the
trip led by George and Leona Fluck of the Outdoor Club of South
Jersey (OCSJ). The Flucks have been organizing trips like this one
for a decade, most of them in the Pine Barrens, on the Batsto,
Mullica, and Wading rivers, but also further afield, including a
moonlight paddle of the marsh in August.
"This is a typical turnout for this popular trip,"
commented Ms. Fluck. "We're working on opening up Crosswicks Creek
from Bordentown to New Egypt, some 26 miles. Access to the river in
Anchor Thread Park in Groveville (Hamilton Township) will allow us
to go further in this direction."
Having gathered at 9:30 a.m., the group was on the
water by 10:15 a.m. But before we set out with the rising tide, Mr.
Fluck introduced some protocol, mainly for the benefit of the five
newcomers. Most of the group — members of the Friends for the Marsh
and the Outdoor Club of South Jersey — were experienced paddlers.
All had brought their own canoes and kayaks as there are no boat
rentals in the marsh.
The first practice to note, according to Mr. Fluck,
was that three blows on the whistle indicated a call for help. Even
though it was an unusually mild day for the time of year, the 5 to
10 mph winds out of the west would be against us for most of the
time out with crosswinds at the bend, he told us. For the 8-mile
trip, as with all OCSJ outings, there would be a lead boat and an
end boat.
Our route would take us from Crosswicks Creek to
Watson Creek past the Bordentown Bluffs and the high banks where
Joseph Bonaparte, brother to Napoleon, had built his New Jersey
estate. As we paddled along, a history enthusiast among the group
described seeing wrecked hulls dating from the War of Independence
and still visible at low tide in the flats along one of the many
unnamed tidal channels that meander though the marsh and swampland.
Patriots hid their boats from the British navy there. After sailing
up the Delaware in pursuit and finding nothing, the British seamen
had launched longboats to maneuver into the marsh to find the
patriots' boats and burn them to the waterline.
The marsh is an area rich in Colonial and earlier
history. Native Americans lived on the natural riches of the marsh
fish and plants. On Saturday, we paddled beside cattail, teasel,
rush, and 12-foot high marsh grasses, including wild rice. "In
September, the red shouldered blackbirds gather to feast on the
seeds," said Ms. Fluck. Earlier in the year, the marsh is a riot
with spectacular displays of marigolds and purple-stemmed asters.
We saw few flowers or birds on Saturday — several
red-tailed hawks wheeled above the cliff-tops, a white heron fished
in the shallows, and there were mallards and the ubiquitous geese.
Someone said they'd spotted a kingfisher but given the time of year,
there were few of the marsh's over 200 bird species to be spotted.
According to the D&R Greenway Land Trust, the marsh supports more
than 850 recorded species of plants, 28 species of butterflies, 60
species of fish, 19 species of amphibians and reptiles, 237 species
of resident or migratory birds, and 17 species of mammals. The
Flucks reported frequent bald eagle and osprey sightings.
Interestingly enough, no ducks were seen until we
reached a section of the marsh where a sign designated the area as a
wildlife safety zone with no hunting allowed. Did the birds know
they were safe, perhaps? December is hunting season and several
hunters in camouflaged boats had taken to the water as the paddlers
left Bordentown Beach. Asked about safety, Ms. Fluck reported
confidently that the hunters were generally very respectful of
paddlers, who generally know where the blinds are hidden.
Passing under the multiple on-ramps at an
intersection of I-195 and I-295, our flotilla maneuvered between the
pylons where cliff swallows build their mud nests in early summer.
As a train on the light rail service between Camden
and Trenton passed, we were saluted by a friendly whistle from the
driver. There's a station at Bordentown and it has been known for
paddlers to bike to the station, stow their bikes, and then take to
the river.
The tidal waters coming up the Delaware River raise
and lower the water level in the marsh six to eight feet twice
daily. At or near the full tide, there's plenty of water for
recreation. At low tide, the channels narrow and much of the marsh
becomes exposed mud flats. So anyone planning a trip must be sure to
check the tides.
Although the tide causes the water to rise and
fall, just as at the Jersey Shore, the water is fresh. The salt
water line on the Delaware River is south of this point, closer to
Philadelphia. At this time of year the change in water level in the
marsh is about seven feet.
By noon we had arrived at the lunch spot at the
John A. Roebling Memorial Park where we stopped to rest and wait for
the tide to turn. It had been tough going against the wind. At one
point the leaders helped us out by exchanging our canoe paddle for a
kayak paddle, which improved our pace. Quite a few canoeists were
using double-bladed kayak paddles in the rear.
While we waited for the change in the tide, the
group's leaders, who had parked a vehicle in the park, unpacked a
barbeque and set to work preparing hot dogs and veggie burgers.
Having refueled there was still time for a hike to Spring Lake with
its resident pair of swans. Swans are pretty territorial so there
were no Canada geese to be seen on this small lake within sight of
the Duck Island power station. We took the circular trail around the
lake. The wind had dropped, giving the sun a chance to warm us as we
walked and chatted.
"It's hard to believe we're only five minutes from
Trenton," commented Kathy Westbrook as we walked along the soft
path. An enthusiastic kayaker and wild life preservationist, Ms.
Westbrook lives in Pennsylvania and is a social worker in Trenton.
"There is so much natural beauty outside our own back door but we
don't often recognize it."
Ms. Westbrook is a paddler who regularly
participates in trips led by the Flucks. She was one of two
individuals commended by the group on Saturday for her efforts in
cleaning up the marsh.
Back at Roebling Park, the group was joined by
Trenton resident Marianne Marquandt out walking her dog. Ms.
Marquandt has also been doing her bit to clean up the marsh, albeit
anonymously. Her volunteer efforts had not gone unnoticed by the
Flucks and other paddlers, though, and the serendipitous meeting
provided an opportunity for them to thank Ms. Marquandt. "We'd
noticed the great job someone was doing," said Ms. Fluck. "It's nice
to know who that person is and to express our appreciation; there
are some very nice people out there."
Friends for the Marsh
The 1,250-acre area of the
Hamilton/Trenton/Bordentown Marsh is the northernmost tidal and
freshwater wetland on the Delaware River. Located on an ancient
meander of the river, the marsh links greenways along Watson Creek,
Crosswicks Creek, the D&R Canal, and the Delaware River. The area
includes several parks including Roebling, North Community Park and
the D&R Canal State Park.
About 1,200 species of plants and animals — some
rare in New Jersey such as the map Turtle and the Northern brown
snake — have been identified in the varied tidal and non-tidal
habitats, of river, lake, tidal channel, temporary pool, and beaver
pond.
For more information about the
Hamilton-Trenton-Bordentown Marsh, including a listing of tide times
for Bordentown Beach, visit
www.marsh-friends.org.
Outdoor Club of South Jersey
Celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, OCSJ is
the largest canoeing/kayaking club in New Jersey with over 300 water
events each year in addition to other outdoor activities such as
bicycling, hiking, and camping. The club's "leave no trace" policy
encourages its over 2200 members to "take only photographs, and
leave only footprints."
While the club's home base is the Pine Barrens,
destinations for trips have ranged as far as New Hampshire and
Georgia. In December, members of the group walked at Pointe Breeze,
the site of Joseph Bonaparte's home in Bordentown, and paddled the
Wading River, Cedar Creek, and the North branch of the Rancocas.
On Thursday, December 21, the Flucks
will lead a Winter Solstice paddle on the Wading River and will kick
off the New Year with a ritual January 1 Oswego Paddle.
For more
information, visit
www.ocsj.org
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