John Sinton, MRGI’s co-moderator, will lead the tour, which includes stops at early mill sites, at the 1940 diversion, then a walk alongside the former bed of the “Hidden Mill River” and an endpoint where the first bridge across the Mill was built in the 17th century.

Everyone will get a copy of the beautiful brochure with its map and text, along with historic maps and photos.

Time & Date: 10:00-11:30  Saturday, June 1st

Meeting Place: The Boathouse across from the Greenhouse on Paradise Pond

Heavy rain cancels the event.

An advance copy of our first self-guided Mill River Walk brochure will be available at the party. The tour explores the changes to the river’s flow as a result of Northampton’s growth as an industrial center in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The walk follows the Mill River between Paradise Pond and South Street, Northampton, revealing the ‘hidden’ clues to the original river bed and the many diversions that once flowed through what is now downtown Northampton. Free copies will be distributed to the public in May. We’ll also share a presentation to introduce our vision of a Mill River Greenway that Sophia Geller, a Smith senior, developed.

We’re looking to grow our membership base this year so please consider bringing a friend of the river along and introducing them to our work. Please rsvp to info@millrivergreenway.org

1700 Northampton according to Cestre. Courtesy of Forbes Library

This month we are introducing our Mill River History, beginning with the river’s re-emergence from under glaciers after the last Ice Age.

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Introduction and Geological History

We will introduce you to the Mill River and its major features as it brings life to the valley.  You will then discover its recent geological history since the disappearance of the last glaciers and the post-glacial landscape of Lake Hitchcock.  Much of the credit for this account goes to Dr. John Brady, Professor of Geology at Smith College, although the author of the account remains responsible for its writing.

Devil’s Den in December. Photo: John Sinton

While snow has blanketed us these past two months, we’ve been beavering away on several projects:

1. The Williamsburg Mill River Greenway Committee is making steady progress on a feasibility study for a connecting corridor along the river between Burgy and Haydenville centers. The report is set to be delivered to the Board of Selectmen in late June. There will be a chance for public input later this spring, Williamsburg residents stay tuned. (Full disclosure: MRGI co-moderator, Neal Bastek, is a member of the committee.)

2. Save the date: We will hold our annual spring friendraiser party on Friday, April 26th in Williamsburg. We’d love for you to join us.

3. Beginning in March, co-moderator John Sinton will introduce A History of the Mill River in installments, starting with the river’s geological history, then continuing with the First People, the First Settlers, and on to the end of the 19th century.  Your comments and suggestions are welcome.

4. A self-guided tour brochure of the lower river from Paradise Pond to South Street in Northampton will be available in April.  Guided tours will begin in spring.  The brochure is the product of MRGI and Smith College (Reid Bertone-Johnson and his students).  Damia Cavallari of Transit Authority Figures designed the brochure.

5. MRGI co-moderators Neal and John co-authored a paper on MRGI that Smith College instructor Reid Bertone-Johnson and Smith student Sophia Geller (class of ’13) will present in April at the Fabos Greenway Conference at UMass.  The paper will be available on this site in March.

Paradise Pond Drawdown #1 Oct. 2012

Paradise Pond Drawdown 2

Paradise Pond Drawdown #2 Oct. 2012

Paradise Pond Drawdown 1

Paradise Pond Dam Face #1 Oct. 2012

Paradise Pond Dam 2

Paradise Pond Dam Face Oct. 2012 #2

Paradise Pond Dam 1

Several people have asked, “What’s happening at  Smith College’s Paradise Pond?”  Here is the answer from our most knowledgeable source, Gary Hartwell, Smith College’s  Project Manager.

The Pond has been “partially” drawn down to repair the earthen portion of the dam which runs from the spillway upstream 800′ to the throwing field. There will be no dredging at this time, but we have just started planning for the next dredging project. We’re anticipating permits in summer 2014.

Work specifications:  Approx. 300′ (in the middle, on the curve) will be excavated down 12′ and replaced with engineered soils. The entire length will be re-shaped and armored with 1.5′ crushed stone to about 18″ above normal pool.

Elevations in feet above sea level:
top of flashboards – 135.7 (normal pool)
top of earthen dam – 141.5 to 143 (Irene crest 140.5)
depth of excavation – 131
top of new dam – 143
current dam slope (Pond side) – 1:1 and steeper
dam slope after repair – 3:1
bottom of new stone armor 130.7
top of new stone armor 137.0

1. Our colleagues at Friends of Northampton Trails and Greenways have just published their latest newsletter.  Noteworthy is their Photo and Video Contest where the winners were announced on October 12.  Winning photos and movies will be up on their website shortly.

2. There’s lots of news from Williamsburg.  A Mill River Greenway committee has formed in the town and is charged with developing a feasibility study of a multi-use transportation and recreation corridor between the Burgy and Haydenville villages. A handful of dedicated MRGI members serve on the committee. This connecting corridor was one of the main recommendations that came out of the work of the Village Centers Visioning Committee last year and the first to receive serious consideration from the Town. The Greenway committee is charged with delivering the feasibility study by June of 2013.

There will certainly be opportunities for public comment along the way and we’ll keep you posted right here. In the meantime, please share this news with your friends and neighbors in Williamsburg — it’s going to take a strong dose of public will to see this exciting project to fruition.

In other news the Williamsburg Woodland Trails committee just celebrated their 10th anniversary. They’ve amassed quite a legacy of great trails over the past decade and we’re looking forward to the possibility of linking up the river corridor to many of them.

3. We’re currently working with Reid Bertone-Johnson and his Smith College students to produce our first self-guided tour, the Sophia Smith Loop, which will run from Paradise Pond to downtown Northampton and back to the college.  John Sinton will be leading a couple of tours later this fall as test runs for the tour.

4. If you’ve got an idea for a project or a riverwalk on your part of the Mill, let us know at info@millrivergreenway.org

Please contact Andrea Donlon at 413 772-2020 ext. 205 or adonlon@ctriver.org

Well, folks, it’s time for our annual spring bash.  One and all are welcome, members and non members.  We’ll be unveiling the results of the Mill River charrette, a set of design ideas for a Mill River Greenway that local professional landscape architects will have completed (see our April 15th post on the charrette).

We’ll have maps and digital displays up and running.  Come join the discussion.  Have a beer, a soft drink, or a glass of wine and some snacks.  There’s lots to talk about, so we’ll see you there!