mhabich
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Posts posted by mhabich
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I'm looking for any curricula or other materials from the CAM classroom workshops that Scott Camlin presented. Any packrats out there?
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There shouldn't be broken links now. If you see one, first try clearing the cache on your browser. If it persists, let me know.
Thanks to Prudence, we have some great pictures here and there now.
Let me know what else could be better.
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If you've bookmarked nspn.org/forum to get straight to the message board, you'll get an error when you go there. nspn.org/forums (plural) works.The default calendar view is now a stream rather than a month. You can change the view if you wish, like most any calendar app.
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We've moved the site hosting to be maintained by the forum software vendor, so in future we'll always be up-to-date on releases.
Our site has been divided in two parts: the forums, calendar, and membership management (the part that looks like this) running on the forum software, and the introductory stuff (who we are, links to weather and put-ins...) running on WordPress. We've cured this schizophrenia by moving the WordPress content under the same umbrella as the forums (a new capability). By moved, I don't mean we have the walls painted or pictures hung...there are still cardboard boxes everywhere. We'll pretty it up as we go.
There are some broken links here and there, and we're fixing them.If you're looking for the Calendar, it's now called Events.
I'll update here as things progress. In the meantime I've locked this thread to keep the chatter down...I'd rather see posts about paddling than website minutiae. Do send complaints, problems, comments, questions, and chocolate to me at mike@nspn.org
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Pool sessions at the Haverhill High School for the 2024 winter season are now available for purchase in the Store. Details to sign up are under the calendar listings for each date.
The dates for the sessions are
Saturdays Jan 6, 13, 20
Saturdays Feb 310, 17, 24
Sunday Mar 10
Saturdays Mar 16, 23All 1-3 pm
Each session is limited to 10 boats.
These sessions are offered as a benefit to paid members of NSPN, and therefore are only available to active members. We are required to have insurance in order to use the pool facilities, so we are using the ACA club insurance program. You need to sign the online ACA Liability Waiver for 2024 here. Each pool session spot will cost $30, plus $10 if you are not an ACA member.
These sessions are a great way to keep existing skills active over the cold winter months or work on new skills for the upcoming paddling season. Although NSPN does not offer official instruction, many members are willing to offer whatever assistance they can while they are at the pool. However, if you would like to pay for professional instruction, you can seek out an instructor directly, either from NSPN members (some of whom are actually certified!) or from other professional instructors.
You'll need a kayak, paddle, sprayskirt, and lifejacket. You'll likely want a mask and maybe a paddle float. Light neoprene clothing works well, both to keep warm and to keep down the bruises on your legs from jumping in and out of your boat.
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We'll have pool sessions at Haverhill High School again this winter.
Saturdays Jan 6, 13, 20
Saturdays Feb 10, 17, 24
Sunday Mar 10
Saturdays Mar 16, 23All 1-3 pm
Once we get the details worked out, we'll enable signups.
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This looks like a molded ABS boat like an Eddyline or Delta rather than Fiberglas composite.
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We’ll have pool sessions January through March. Working on schedule. Will announce when it’s set.
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On 10/22/2023 at 12:38 PM, Deborah Walsh said:
I'd like to partner with someone else to host some WLPs as I become more familiar with NSPN's model…
Have a look at
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4 hours ago, Ms. Dew said:
Date saved! Is there a safety group like the Fishing Partnership but for recreational water sports? ACA?
Not really, as Fishing Partnership is dedicated to improving the economic security of working fishermen. As recreational paddlers, we're on our own.
ACA and British Canoeing are the organizations dedicated to training and safety for paddlers.
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We've been using the Haverhill High School pool. It's 25 yards long, six lanes wide. We can fit 10 sea kayaks.
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Working on it.
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Think so. Hope so.
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Water at Chebacco tends to be quite good. There was a closure for Cyanobacteria a few years ago. We monitor the Essex health department postings for this.
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More, again from the Massbird list:
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I've provided some additional information from Mass Audubon in response to the Status of Essex County Egret Rookeries. Robert provided some very nice historical context. Here is some information regarding Mass Audubon's current work on these populations. See below for the intended post to MASSBIRD.
Hi everyone. My name is John Herbert, and I am the Director of Bird Conservation for Mass Audubon. To add to Robert’s post, Mass Audubon has continued to monitor Kettle Island and the Great Egret breeding population has remained to be approximately around 200 nests. The other wading birds are no longer nesting on the island, except for a single, Black-crowned Night Heron nest this year. We are also conducting vegetation surveys outside of the breeding period, in order to better understand the nesting habitat on the island.
Additionally, Mass Audubon is monitoring other islands and surrounding marsh habitat to document the habitat use and foraging habits of wading birds, American Oystercatchers, Common Eiders and terns. These islands include Children’s, Ten Pound, Straitsmouth, Thacher and Bakers.
Our goal with this work is to better understand the colonial nesting wading bird population and to promote their conservation in the state. These species can be very sensitive to habitat change and disturbance during the breeding season. We aim to enhance nesting habitat and increase awareness for these species, so they continue to breed on the Massachusetts islands.
John Herbert, PhD (he/him)
Director of Bird Conservation
Mass Audubon
208 South Great Road, Lincoln, MA 01773
jherbert@massaudubon.org | 781-259-2164
massaudubon.org -
Robert was a scientist with Mass Audubon.
—————Some thoughts on egrets and other wading birds along the North Shore
Robert Buchsbaum
rnbuchsbaum@gmail.com
Beverly, MA
Before the mid-20^th Century, Great and Snowy Egrets only occurred in Massachusetts as rare vagrants from the South. Since that time, there has been a steady movement north of both species. Based on historical records (see Veit and Petersen 1993, Birds of Massachusetts, published by Mass Audubon) neither egret species nested in Massachusetts until the 1950s. House Island, which is just outside Manchester Harbor was the site of one Great Egret nest in 1955. Of the two species, Snowy Egrets expanded more rapidly initially in Massachusetts, with 220 nesting pairs recorded at House Island in 1977. There were also a few Little Blue Herons and Tricolored Herons nesting on House Island in 1977 and 1976 respectively. Somewhere between 1978 and 1984, all waders totally abandoned House Island and moved to Kettle Island, which is outside Magnolia Harbor. The move from House Island to Kettle Island in the early 1980s could have been caused by the maturation of the forest on House Island creating less than ideal nesting habitats for waders. Of course we do not know for sure.
Kettle Island, which is a Mass Audubon sanctuary, is where most of the egrets, Glossy Ibis, Black-crowned Night Herons, and a few Little Blue Herons, in Salem Sound nested until the past few years. I took part in wading bird surveys on Kettle and Eagle islands in Salem Sound in 2012-2013 as part of a Mass Audubon team. The surveys were initiated in the mid 1970s by Simon Perkins who was often assisted by Jim Berry and occasionally people like me. There were also statewide colonial waterbird surveys done in 1994-5 and 2006-8 spearheaded by Scott Melvin who was with the Mass Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. Snowy Egrets reached a high estimated at 300 pairs on Kettle Island in 2008, but their number has undergone a steady decline since that time. On the other hand, Great Egret number have increased. The last time I was part of a quantitative survey, we estimated 201 Great Egret nests in 2013 on Kettle Island. A smaller number have nested on Eagle Island along with Black-crowned Night Herons. The trends of the Mass Audubon surveys were similar to what the state DFW surveys recorded during roughly the same time period.
Now, the nesting on these North Shore islands is apparently more dispersed than it used to be. Chris Leahy has been carrying out annual observations by boat of some**of the North Shore islands the past few years. He reports a thriving colony of egrets,**Glossy Ibis, and Black-crowned Night Herons on Children’s Island, which is off Marblehead. You can see them looking across the water from Chandler Hovey Park in Marblehead Neck. As several of you have pointed out, there are also egrets, night herons and possibly Little Blue Herons nesting on Ten Pound Island in Gloucester Harbor. The number of nesting pairs of egrets on Kettle Island is smaller than it used to be according to recent Mass Audubon surveys and consists of almost all Great Egrets. Why the egrets and other waders are now seemingly abandoning Kettle Island is another intriguing puzzle.
From a global perspective, neither Great or Snowy Egrets are of high conservation concern. They are both noted as species of regional conservation concern on the State’s Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP). SWAP notes that they are vulnerable in Massachusetts due to the small number of nesting colonies, which are almost all on islands. In recognition of their importance to wading and other birds, the North Shore islands are now an Important Bird Area (IBA, the Essex County Coastal Bird Islands. IBA, Leahy suggests that there may be other islands in the IBA that have not yet been surveyed and could be supporting nesting wading birds. -
Werner is also having a sale on factory seconds, including straight shaft Cyprus in all sizes:
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Helen, 220 is long for you. Maybe 210 or 205. If you can get to Chebacco you can try some.
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Thursday's going to be nice and hot. You should come to the lake.
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Oops. Wouldn't be back for Chebacco. I'm out.
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Looks good for now. Tides even give us option of Chauncey Creek return if coast is just too boring.
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We get wet anyway, so rain doesn't stop us. See you there.
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10 minutes ago, John Harkey said:
I have signed a NSPN waiver before. Is it necessary to sign one for each outing? Or annually? I don't see a link in your post that leads to a waiver form.
Once a year is enough. You last signed in May, so you're all set. You can check when you last signed by clicking on your name to go to your profile.
Hoping for 4th Annual New Year's Eve Day or New Year's Day Boston Inner Harbor Paddle
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