River walk

Yesterday Hapi and I walked up the Gaspereau River. We have not been there in over a year and there are changes, the path has moved slightly due to fallen trees and such. In one place the path is almost in the river; the water flow is controlled by Nova Scotia Power and when the river is high the path is under almost a foot of water. It is always wise to wear rubber boots on this trail, you never know when NS Power decides to mess with the flow. Also there are very large muddy patches that can't be bypassed.

"Bridge"

One of the changes I saw on the trail was rocks placed in the river along the side of the path so that at high water there you can still walk through. Another was a "bridge" made of fallen tree branches across a large muddy water patch. The last time I walked this trail there was only one narrow log crossing that patch and you had to balance on it. There was a stash of poles leaning against a nearby tree, you took one pole and used it to balance yourself crossing the log, leaving the pole on the other side. Since there is only one way in and out, you used the pole on the return trip and left it against the tree where you found it. Before that, there was an actual plank bridge, but that rotted away and sank in the mud years ago. Hapi of course just walked through the muddy water, she didn't care about keeping her feet clean and dry.

In another location the path has been widened by building an extensive dry stone wall underneath. I don't know when that was done or by whom, it is very old. Eventually the path ends abruptly at the river shore more than an hour's walk in; I am told that the path continues on the other side of the river but I think you would need hipwaders to get across. That's as far as Hapi and I have ever gone. I imagine this trail to be ancient, perhaps dating back hundreds if not thousands of years.

There are also little walk-in campsites along the river. They are mostly used by fishers, only rarely have I seen people camping overnight there. At the start of the trail are signs put up by the Department of Fisheries about fishing regulations, but there is a new sign now that makes it very clear that this river is home to a rare and endangered type of Atlantic Salmon and fishing them is strictly illegal, except for catch-and-release. Although I think catch-and-release must be very traumatic for the fish, and not good for the survival of an endangered population.

In our heyday, Hapi and I would be on that trail for hours, an hour or more in and then the same time out. There's no cellphone coverage there, I always turn off my phone when I go in and then forget to turn it back on until the next day. It's best to go in the muddy season, when the bugs are gone or not yet arrived. We have seen eagles and deer on our trips up the river, but this time only a solitary raven.

I timed our walk: half an hour in and half an hour out. That was right on the edge of what Hapi is capable of these days, we moved fairly slowly and she seemed to be fine. She stayed with me the whole time walking in, but once we turned around she took off and was soon out of sight. That's what she always does, she knows we are headed back to the car and no longer feels the need to stay close. The river is shallow enough in places for her to walk across, so on the trip home she often crossed the river to explore the other side. But not this time.