Communities

Communities along the Wild & Scenic Squannacook River include (from headwaters to Nashua confluence): Townsend, Shirley, and Groton.

History

This region with its river systems, wetlands, and forestlands was once a bountiful place for indigenous peoples to gather, hunt, and fish. The Squannacook River has been known for its abundance of fish long before the arrival of the first colonists, bearing an Algonquin name meaning “place of taking salmon.”  Ledger records from 1812 and 1819, in possession of the Shirley Historical Society, document the presence of anadromous fish like shad and alewife.

Benton MacKaye, the conservationist who proposed the Appalachian Mountain Trail and helped to found the Wilderness Society, grew up in Shirley, MA. He spent much of his youth wandering the natural areas along the Squannacook River, places that were inspirational for his life’s work. Nearly 100 years ago, in 1945 MacKaye proposed the “Nashua-Squannacook River Reservation” intended to protect the linear wilderness along the entire length of the Squannacook in a pattern similar to that created by mountain ranges. This concept, which we think of as greenway today, creates a preserved river corridor which helps to protect the water quality of the river, as well as wildlife passageway and habitat. MacKaye’s conceptual reservation was never created as a singular entity, however, today, many miles of greenway (including 95% of the Squannacook’s floodplains) are permanently protected by state agencies, municipalities, and local land trusts.

Outstandingly Remarkable Resource Values

The Massachusetts DEP has studied water quality in the Nashua River Watershed since the late 1960s. The Squannacook River has provided an ideal location for establishing least impacted conditions for both water quality and flow, and has served as a reference river for decades. A long term monitoring station was established here in 1998, with sampling conducted every two months; available data show that water quality and aesthetics in the Squannacook River have been consistently among the cleanest in Central Massachusetts.

Like the Nashua River, the Squannacook River and its greenway have been the focus of extensive conservation efforts for decades. The Squannacook River Wildlife Management Area and the Bertozzi Wildlife Management Area owned by MassWildlife, as well as the Townsend State Forest owned by the MA Dept of Conservation and Recreation, provide wildlife habitat and opportunities for recreation along miles of the river. The Groton Town Forest at the Squannacook’s confluence with the Nashua River offers extensive trails for outdoor recreation and nature observation.

These greenway areas create a wilderness sense that makes paddling on the Squannacook River a restorative adventure. The lower segments of the river are more open, with upper reaches experiencing numerous downed trees making paddling very challenging. For those interested in quiet nature exploration, Harbor Pond in Townsend (the impoundment of the Squannacook above the historic Harbor Pond Dam) provides access to wetland ecosystems.   Paddlers will enjoy sightings of numerous bird species including bald eagle, kingfisher, great blue herons, and wood ducks, along with turtles, and perhaps a glimpse of semi-aquatic mammals such as beaver, muskrat, mink, and river otter.

The Squannacook River corridor has several records of rare species including the marble salamander (threatened), Blanding’s turtle (threatened in Massachusetts and petitioned for federal listing), creeper (mussel, MA state–listed Special Concern), bridle shiner (fish, MA state–listed Special Concern), and wood turtles (MA state–listed Special Concern). The Bertozzi Wildlife Management Area has been well known among Odonotists in Massachusetts for its odonate (dragonflies and damselflies) diversity: there are records going back decades. Seventy-one species of dragonflies have been collected on a single day on the Squannacook River and its adjacent wetlands – five are state-listed species.

The Squannacook River, together with the Nissitissit River and both of their tributaries,  represent the most substantial concentration of coldwater fisheries resources in the eastern third of Massachusetts. Native brook trout in these waterways make them a popular destination for Bostonians and the greater metro area.