Paddling in the Bashakill Wildlife Refuge, New York

Sometime in early July I found myself cruising the backroads of southern Orange county New York when, thanks to a detour, I found the Walkill National Wildlife Refuge. I eagerly looked up info on this area as soon as I got home, and filed it for future reference. In my research I also discovered the Bashakill Wildlife Preserve, just slightly to the north of the Walkill. I thought that paddling both of these areas in the same day sounded like a good idea. Two somewhat lazy rivers ripe with birds and wetland plants each only a few miles long would make for a great day of discovery.

My friend Rachel had been asking me to take her on some sort of an adventure for a few weeks. Several attempts were made throughout the summer but between the cold, rainy summer weather and my crazy schedule, I still wasn't able to do anything with her. Thankfully she didn't have to start her fall semester until after Labor Day, and few days before I had some time in my schedule and we had a break in the weather.

Few of my trips ever seem to go off without a hitch. Thanks to some delays courtesy of my ill dog, my morning plans went haywire. I had planned to leave around 8am, it was now close to 11am as we got on the road. Thankfully, we encountered no traffic and made it to the Bashakill area sometime around noon. The put-in spots weren't very well marked. I had just been over this way a few weeks earlier when traveling to the Shawanagunks and didn't even realize that the wildlife area was here. It's kind of hidden in plain sight, thus I think it gets overlooked quite often. My plan was to put-in at the south end of the refuge and paddle upstream to the north. Instead, I nearly missed the road at the northern end as well.

There was fairly large parking area a few hundred feet away from the put-in spot, a gravel and mud embankment off the side of a bridge. Some colorful locals were there fishing and a few of them had parked at the launch spot, thus not leaving a lot of room. After unloading and moving the car to the lot, we shoved off. Rachel had only been kayaking a few times before and didn't want to do something dangerous, but at the same time she had grown bored with the Upper Delaware. So had I, so this worked out well.

Initially, we encountered some expected litter. A plastic bottle here and a bait container there, not to mention the expected lost bobbers and some tangled fishing line, but after we paddled around the first bend it became fairly pristine and after only a hundred yards we spotted a Painted Turtle taking in some late summer rays. It was a nice day. The summer had been exceptionally cool and rainy and a sunny day with highs in the low 70s was a very welcome change.

A trip here a few weeks earlier would have had us paddling the channel during the height of Pickerelweed season. Most of the blue/purple stalks had started to wilt by the time we got there, but nonetheless they were still fairly full and gave harbor to several Great Blue Herons. We saw several throughout the day.

We zig-zagged back and forth through the wetland for about two hours, stopping frequently to gaze upon more herons, turtles, lilies, and other plants that are found in abundance along the Bashakill. It was by no means a challenging river, but I don't think that's why people come to this place. We passed only two other boats the whole day, both on the way downstream. We could hear a few people making some noise at one of the launches near the southern end of this section, but we didn't paddle down that channel to explore who was there or what we might find. We pretty much had the place to ourselves, so we figured why should we spoil it? Granted it was a weekday and most of the schools had already started back, but I have the feeling that this place doesn't see much traffic to begin with.

NY-17 (The Quickway) skirts the north end of the preserve near Wurtsboro and US-209 runs parallel to the river to the west. My guess is most people on The Quickway are too busy wondering what in the hell they are doing on it in the first place and aren't thinking about the wetland in the valley below them. Sullivan County is a relatively forgotten place. It's Drive-By country nowadays. Much of the once majestic Catskill resorts are closed or have been turned into summer camps run by people who either don't have the fiscal means for the upkeep or simply lack the skills to properly use power tools. It doesn't surpise me that many people don't visit the preserve. I too myself am guilty of driving right by the place on more than one occasion, this morning included.


Due to the canine related morning mishaps and the amount of time we lollygagged on the Bashakill, there was no time left that day to head south to the Walkill. That will remain an exploration for another day and I'll undoubtedly return to the Bashakill as well.


For more information visit: http://www.thebashakill.org