Blackstone Valley

A ride aboard the Blackstone Valley Explorer River reveals that the wildlife that's returning -- and you might hear a few good stories, too.

01:25 PM EDT on Monday, July 4, 2005

BY TATIANA PINA
Journal Staff Writer

CENTRAL FALLS -- Something about the solitary mute swan gliding down the river past trees and tall grass makes you forget you are in this square-mile city.

Journal photo / Steve Szydlowski

Passengers on the Blackstone Valley Explorer ride past canoeists as they travel up the river from Central Falls.

As the Blackstone Valley Explorer pulls farther away from the Broad Street Bridge, where cars whiz by, the river and the trees swallow up memory of triple-deckers with a silence and tranquility punctuated now and then by the hum of the boat's motor and kingfishers that squawk as they fly along the Blackstone River.

The kingfishers are a good sign.

Their presence means there are fish in the river they can eat. Kingfishers are returning to the river, says Gordon Beeton, a guide on the Blackstone Valley Explorer.

People taking this tour of the river aboard the Explorer are on the lookout for turtles, blue herons, egrets, muskrats, deer and mallards. The Explorer docks along the river where Central Falls and Cumberland meet. Sunday public tours on the river began last month and run through next month.

One recent Sunday, about 15 people sit and look out from the Explorer as it passes the banks of the river, searching for wildlife.

Delia and Gary Anderson, of Attleboro, are taking a ride on the Explorer after having read about it in the newspaper. Gary Anderson wanted to learn more about the history of the river. The Andersons like to bike and plan to try the bike path that runs along side the river.

"It's very relaxing," Delia Anderson says of the river boat tour.

BEETON IS THE KIND of guide you want on the river. He tells the history of the Blackstone with jokes and sly humor.

Beeton explains how the Narragansetts, the Nipmucs and the Massasoits paddled upriver to trade lobster and oysters for beaver and wolverine pelts.

One of the trees you will find along the river is the black willow. The Indians used its bark to make a tea that helped get rid of headaches, Beeton says. "It's now known as aspirin," he says.

The boat passes the Valley Falls marsh with St. Matthew Church in the background. The marsh was dug deeper by the people who dug the Erie Canal so it could act as an additional reservoir to the mills, Beeton says.

The Explorer passes the banks where two men have landed their canoe and are fishing. Fishermen can catch fish but must let them go.

The boat approaches the back of what once was the Lonsdale Drive-In. Dragonflies flit in and out of tall grass along the Lonsdale March. A couple years ago, the state Department of Environmental Management worked with the Army Corps of Engineers to restore grasses, trees and plant life to the area of drive-in, which was a marsh before it was filled in.

The Lonsdale marsh has more reeds and grasses where young fish can live. Because of the restored marsh, the river has 30 percent more fry, Beeton explains.

From the water, the terrain slopes up the banks. The brick mill that houses an Ann & Hope store peeks through the trees.

In the 1800s, the Blackstone River was dotted by mills that produced cloth. To make the fabric more appealing, the mills began to use cadmium, lead and arsenic to dye the cloth. "Sixty-five mills dumped into the river. It was tutti-frutti. It started bubbling sometimes," Beeton said. "The farmers didn't like that. Water was a hot commodity. People would come out with axes and take out dams."

Not far from Ann & Hope, on the banks of the river, the DEM has placed decoy mallards and pintails in hopes they will draw real ducks that will build nests along the banks, Beeton says.

Two years ago, with federal and state money, Central Falls built a dock and a public boat ramp. The ramp has helped improve access to the Blackstone River. Boaters, canoeists and kayakers are using the boat launch more frequently, according to Patty McAlpine, an educator for the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council.

Plans are in the works in Central Falls to develop property adjacent to the dock. In March, the City Council, on the recommendation of the mayor, tentatively approved a plan by developer Ron Lariviere to build a restaurant, condominiums and office space on a 40,225-square-foot site and an existing three-story building adjacent to the river. Lariviere, owner of Stateside Vinyl and Ron Lariviere LCC, was scheduled to present plans last month but was unable to do so because of illness. Plans are being made for his presentation this month.

Central Falls Mayor Charles Moreau has said development plans for the river's edge could make that property the gateway to the city.

RAMON RODRIGUEZ is a river captain on the Explorer. He has been working on the river for 17 years, including 8 1/2 years with the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council. He is also a river engineer, taking care of the Explorer as well as the Samuel Slater, the boat used for overnight stays on the river.

Rodriguez and Beeton have stories about the their time on the Blackstone. There was the time last year when they found a safe in the river. Rodriguez noticed the safe because it shimmered in the water. After they dropped off the people who had come for a tour, they went right back to the spot where they had seen the safe, which was the size of a college refrigerator. It looked like someone might have tossed it off the nearby John Street Bridge, not far from where the river had dragged it.

Inside the safe, they found watches, necklaces and rings. They turned it over to the Cumberland police, who determined the safe had come from a jewelry store.

Last month, on Father's Day, William Stubbs, 85, of Cranston, took the trip down the river with his daughter, Judy Dalnas, of Cranston. Stubbs recalled being on the Blackstone with a canoe as a child, when the river was very dirty. Back then, a lot of the rivers were dirty, he said. He remembered he and his friend calling the Pocasset "Stink River."

Stubbs was surprised when he came to the Blackstone last month. "It's very nice. It's cleaner now," he said. "It looks a lot better than it did."

The Blackstone Explorer can take up to 49 passengers on these cruises. The 45-minute trips along the Blackstone leave every hour from 1 to 4 p.m., Sundays through Aug. 21. On Thursdays at noon, there is brown-bag lunch cruise. The cost of a ride on the Explorer is $7 for adults and $6 for children and senior citizens.

Twilight cruises are scheduled for July 20 and Aug. 15. These 75-minute guided tours at start at 6:30 p.m. The cost is $10 for adults and $8 for children.

Reservations, required for the boat tours, can be made by calling (401) 724-2200.

The boat tours and the public boat ramp are helping people rediscover the river, says the tourism council's McAlpine.

"People in the valley are having the opportunity to get back in touch with nature," she said. "The more they get back in touch with nature, the more they are willing to protect it and preserve it."

Keep up with the series, Summer on the Blackstone, at:

http://projo.com/blackstonesummer

Events along the Blackstone River in the week ahead

TUESDAY

7 p.m. Tuesday Evening Arts in the Park Children's Performance Series, live performances by local children's entertainers, near Daggett House and tennis courts, Slater Memorial Park, Armistice Boulevard, Pawtucket. (401) 728-0500 ext. 251.

WEDNESDAY

1 to 4 p.m. Wednesdays Junior Ranger Program, children 11 to 14 learn about local wildlife and history, Blackstone River & Canal Heritage State Park, River Bend Farm Visitor Center, 287 Oak St., Uxbridge, Mass. Call (508) 278-7604 to register.

THURSDAY

Noon to 12:50 p.m. Thursday Bag Lunch Riverboat Tour. Cruise on the Blackstone Valley Explorer. Minimum 15 passengers. Reservations required. Call (401) 724-2200. All seats $7. Central Falls Landing, corner Broad Street and Madeira Avenue, Central Falls.

FRIDAY

11 a.m. Children's Summer Entertainment Series, Mother Goose performed by Kaleidoscope Theatre Company. Stadium Theatre Performing Arts Centre, Monument Square, Woonsocket. Tickets $7. (401) 762-4545.

Noon to 1:15 p.m. Millbury Lawn Concert Series features Celtic folk music of Pendragon. Main and Elm streets, Millbury, Mass.

1 to 2:30 p.m. Fridays Timeline Trekkers, Blackstone River & Canal Heritage State Park, at River Bend Farm Visitor Center, 287 Oak St., Uxbridge, Mass. Children 5 to 10 learn about local wildlife and history through arts, crafts and exploration. Call (508) 278-7604 to register.

2 to 5 p.m. Neighborhood Nature on the Water at Green Hill Park, Broad Meadow Brook Wildlife Sanctuary, 414 Massasoit Ave., Worcester. Canoe fun Fridays through July. Swimming skills required. Call (508) 753-0687.

6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Summer Evening Nature Cruise. Join Audubon Society of Rhode Island naturalist and staff of the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council aboard the Blackstone Valley Explorer for evening cruise of the Blackstone. $15 for adult members, $20 for adult nonmembers, $8 child members, $10 child nonmembers. Central Falls Landing, corner Broad Street and Madeira Avenue, Central Falls. Call (401) 949-5454 for reservations.

SATURDAY

10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Preschool Story Hour -- Snakes in the Sunshine for children 3 to 5 with an adult. Features story, activity and naturalist-led walk. Broad Meadow Brook Wildlife Sanctuary, 414 Massasoit Rd., Worcester. Call (508) 753-6087 to register.

10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Blackstone Valley Celtic Festival, featuring live music including Pendragon and the Glengarry Bhoys, dancers, contests and children's events. King Farm, Sutton, Mass. Free parking. Admission $15 at gate, $12 in advance, $10 seniors and children 10 to 18, free for children younger than 10. (800) 841-0919.

11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Annual Puerto Rican Festival. Features Puerto Rican music, food and family fun. Jenks Park, Broad Street, Central Falls. (401) 737-0751.

4 to 5:30 p.m. Beaver Tales, Broad Meadow Brook Wildlife Sanctuary, 414 Massasoit Ave., Worcester. Fee is $3 for adult members, $4 for adult nonmembers; $2 for child members, $3 for child nonmembers. (508) 753-6087.

SUNDAY

Noon to dusk. 30th Annual Cape Verdean Festival. Traditional Cape Verdean food, dress, music, art and dance. India Point Park, India Street, Providence. Admission is $1. Children under 12 free when accompanied by adult. (401) 421-2489.

1 to 3 p.m. Free Sunday Concert Series. Jenks Park, Broad Street, Central Falls. (401) 727-7425.

1 to 4 p.m. Blackstone Valley Explorer Wilderness Tour. Cruise the river aboard 49-passenger tour boat. Public tours leaving from Central Fall Landing, Broad Street at Madeira Avenue at 1, 2, 3, 4 p.m. $7 for adults, $6 for seniors and children. Call (401) 724-2200.

3:30 p.m. Sunday Concerts on the Canal. River Bend Farm Visitor Center, Blackstone River & Canal Heritage State Park, Oak Street, Uxbridge, Mass. (508) 278-7604.

5 to 6 p.m. Sunday Concerts on the Common. Slatersville Town Common, Route 102, North Smithfield. (401) 767-2200.

6:30 p.m. Pawtucket Riverfront Concert Series. Veterans Memorial Amphitheatre, Roosevelt Avenue and Exchange Street, Pawtucket. (401) 728-0500 ext. 251.

SOURCES: Blackstone Valley Tourism Council Web site www.tourblackstone.com; Blackstone Valley Chamber of Commerce Web site www.blackstonevalley.org; City of Pawtucket Web site www.pawtucketri.com; City of Central Falls Web site www.centralfallsri.us; and City of Providence Web site www.providenceri.com