WESTF

ESTFIIELD RIVERNOTES
VOL. 3, ISSUE 2
MARCH/APRIL 2006
Dear Westfield River Friends,

We are embarking on an exciting project to create a Westfield River Wild & Scenic Stewardship Plan.
Through the course of this project, we hope you will lend your skills and talents and become
involved through joining a Stream Team or sharing your knowledge and concerns about the Wild &
Scenic resources along the Westfield River corridor.

The project will include the creation of three Stream Teams along each of the three branches of the
Westfield River. These groups of trained volunteers will be the eyes, ears, voice and, yes even in
some cases, nose, for the river. The Stream Teams will help us inventory and assess the resources
along the Westfield River corridor and to help develop recommendations for projects and programs
to protect and enhance these many wonderful features. This will be a great way to get out along the
river explore and I hope you will be able to join us!

In the meantime, I encourage you to join us on Saturday, April 1st at the 12th Annual Westfield
River Watershed Symposium at Westfield State College. The symposium will highlight the
watershed's flora and fauna, look at well-known and not-so-well-known local historical attractions,
and explain programs to protect the unique characteristics of the watershed now and in the future.
Guest keynote speaker is Wayne Klockner, State Director of The Nature Conservancy. Those
attending can also get a sneak peak of clips from the film documentary “Railroad to the Moon”
which highlights the Keystone Arch Bridges and tells the story of how America’s first mountain railroad
was created by an ingenious engineer of his day; Major George Washington Whistler, a graduate from
West Point. For more information about the symposium, visit the Westfield River Watershed
Association’s website: www.westfieldriver.org.

~Robert Thompson, Chair

Westfield River Wild & Scenic Advisory Committee

IN THIS ISSUE:
⇒ DID YOU KNOW? (PG. 2), WHAT WE NEED TO KNOW? (PG. 3)
⇒ RIVER STEWARDS NEEDED TO DOCUMENT THE WESTFIELD RIVER WILD & SCENIC RESOURCES!
(PG. 3)
⇒ VALLEY OF PARADISE PHOTO CONTEST, DEADLINE EXTENDED UNTIL SEPT. 15, 2006 (PG.4)
⇒ RESOURCES: COVERTS WORKSHOP, MAY 11TH-14TH (PG. 5)
⇒ UPCOMING EVENTS, PG 5-8
⇒ SAVE THE DATE: WESTFIELD RIVER SYMPOSIUM, APRIL 1ST!

1
 DID YOU KNOW….?
The longest free-flowing river segment in The double arch keystone railroad
Massachusetts begins in North Becket Village. The bridge in Chester was one of the first
West Branch begins at the confluence of Shaker Mill Brook, bridges of its kind in America and is
Watson Brook, Depot Brook, and Yokum Brook (all but three still in use today. Constructed in the 1840's
currently designated Wild & Scenic headwater tributaries) flowing by George Washington Whistler, the Keystone
unimpeded for over 25 miles. Arch Bridges carried the longest and highest
railroad at the time. The passage, so steep and
Middlefield topology The Middle Branch, remote, was said to be impossible, as
allows it to claim the designated as Class A ridiculous as a “railroad to the moon.”
Following the West Branch gave the railroad
“Highest Waterfall in Waters, begins at the
builders the lowest altitude crossing of the
Massachusetts.” Glendale confluence of Trout Berkshire Range (1458 ft). The serpentine
Falls is one of the longest Brook and unnamed course of the river made constant bridging
and most powerful waterfall brook in Worthington. necessary, with over 10 bridges constructed.
runs in Massachusetts. In Waters designated as Class A
spring, the waters of are in near pristine condition
Glendale Brook roar over and can serve as a public Savoy’s extensive wetland system along
steep rock ledges more than water supply. The only other Drowned Land Brook provides
150 feet high before joining Class A waters in the region
the Middle Branch of the exceptional fisheries and wildlife
are small tributaries or
Westfield River. habitat. Not only included as part of the
reservoirs in headwater areas.
Natural Heritage Endangered Species Program
(NHESP) Biomap Core Habitat, but it also
October Mountain State Forest, the largest contiguous includes a red maple swamp, historical remains
state forest in Massachusetts, encompasses a large and hidden gorges.
section of Washington and several of the headwater
tributaries to the West Branch of the Westfield River.
Several mill sites and an abandon settlement are also found The “Grand Canyon of Western
within October Mountain. Hiking, fishing, camping and many Massachusetts” can be found in
more recreational opportunities abound in the state forest. Chesterfield. Located in the scenic
Berkshire foothills along the East Branch of
the Westfield River, Chesterfield Gorge is the
One of the premier Nordic x-country ski areas in
entrance to an extensive natural recreation
Massachusetts is Notchview Reservation in Windsor. area. Chesterfield Gorge has seventy-foot-
Over 3100-acre reservation owned by the Trustees of high granite walls carved by centuries of
Reservations provides ample opportunities for skiing, hiking, rushing water. The surrounding forest features
picnicking and fishing. Notchview is also the starting point for hemlock, ash, and oak, and is home to bears,
the 100-km “Tour of the Hilltowns” bike ride which includes a bobcats, and turkeys.
tour of the upper parts of the Westfield River Watershed.

One of the oldest regional agricultural fairs in the
country occurs each August in Cummington. The
Cummington Fair was initiated in 1883 as the Hillside Agricultural
Society. Each year thousands come to celebrate the importance
and significance of agriculture and horticulture in the Hilltown
communities. And alas to enjoy the Ferris Wheel and fried
dough!
Huntington hosts the longest
consecutively run whitewater races in
America. Each April, hundreds gather along
the banks of the Westfield River to participate
in the annual Wildwater Races sponsored by
the Westfield River Canoe Club.
2
WHAT WE NEED TO KNOW?

• What are the key Historical, Cultural, Geological, Recreational and Natural
features in each of the Wild & Scenic Communities?
• Which resource features need further protection or are there opportunities to
further enhance these resources?
• What is the health of the river corridor? Are there areas that need improvement
along the river, such as access points, road treatment, land management, and
discharges?

RIVER STEWARDS NEEDED TO DOCUMENT THE WESTFIELD RIVER WILD

& SCENIC RESOURCES!
The Westfield River Wild & Scenic Advisory Committee seeks you help in documenting the
scenic, cultural, historical, recreational and natural features of the Westfield River valley. As
part of the Westfield River Wild & Scenic Stewardship Plan, WRWSAC will be meeting with
community members and organizing volunteer “Stream Teams” for each of the three
branches. The goal is to inventory, catalog and assess the features that led to the Westfield
River being nationally recognized as a Wild & Scenic river.

According to Carrie Banks, Wild & Scenic Coordinator, “The information collected will help
us keep abreast of the current conditions along the river corridor, determine the needs of the
communities to protect or enhance their resources, and to help us develop strategies and
programs to protect the resources we cherish.”

WRWSAC will be working with interns from the newly formed Westfield River
Environmental Center at Westfield State College to develop base-maps of the key Wild &
Scenic resources in the region. These resource maps will be reviewed with members from
each of the communities to insure their accuracy and determine conditions of the resources.
Stream Teams will then be organized along each of the three branches – East, Middle and
West Branches – to conduct visual surveys and to photo-catalogue resources along each of
the river segments.

“We hope to finish with a comprehensive inventory and needs assessment for the key Wild &
Scenic resources which will then be used to create the Wild & Scenic Westfield River
Stewardship Plan,” said Banks.

The project is being partially funded through a grant from the National Park Service’s
Challenge Cost Share Program.

3
Valley of Paradise
Photo Contest

The Westfield River Wild and Scenic Advisory Committee

invites you to submit photos of the

National Wild & Scenic Westfield River

&
the remarkable scenic, cultural, historic, recreational and
natural resources of the Westfield River Valley.
Please help us capture the beauty and life of the Westfield River in the
scenic and historic Massachusetts towns of Becket, Chester,
Chesterfield, Cummington, Huntington, Middlefield, Savoy,
Washington, Windsor and Worthington.

Photos will be exhibited in locations throughout the watershed.

Submission of photos releases images for future use in WRWSAC

publications, such as newsletters, postcards, calendars and posters.

Prizes to be announced. Submit photos by 15 September 2006.

For more information and submittal forms, please call the Westfield
River Wild & Scenic Advisory Committee at (413) 268-3129 or visit
www.westfieldriver.org.

Westfield River Photos, WRWSAC, PO Box 397, Huntington, MA 01050

4
RESOURCES:
BECOME A COVERTS COOPERATOR. NEXT TRAINING WORKSHOP MAY 11 - 14, 2006 IN
HAWLEY, MA.

Coverts Project:
Educating forest owners and community conservation advocates about wise forest management, wildlife habitat
enhancement and forest ecology.

Through a combination of lectures, field trips, discussions and working sessions,

participants are exposed to a variety of topics and issues, including: historical
perspectives on land use, forest succession and ecology, wildlife habitat, land
management and biodiversity, timber management, harvesting and relevant
regulations, principles of successful communication, and the development of
outreach plans.
For more information, visit http://forest.fnr.umass.edu/coverts/ or contact Dave Kittredge, Jr at
dbk@forwild.umass.edu or (413) 545-2943.

RIVER MORPHOLGY WORKSHOP, TUESDAY, MARCH 14TH AT 6:30 PM AT BECKET TOWN

HALL

Guess speakers Brian Graber, Restoration Scientist from the MA Riverways Program and Heidi Davis,
Environmental Analyst with DEP.

This workshop will provide an overview of river health and describe approaches to protect and restore river
habitat. The workshop will cover:
• Fundamentals of river health, including water quality, flow regime, connectivity, and complexity
• River assessment techniques, including the broad basics of watershed and reach assessment tools, such as
assessing stream stability, bankfull identification, and measuring channel features
• Regulatory implications, including the Rivers Protection Act and the Clean Water Act
• Proactively restoring rivers, including an overview of techniques such as dam removal and stream crossing
rehabilitation

Part of MA DEP’s regional workshops and trainings series. For more information, contact Mark Stinson DEP
Wetlands Circuit Rider (Western Region) at 413-755-2257 or Mark.Stinson@state.ma.us.

UPCOMING EVENTS:
WESTFIELD RIVER WILD & SCENIC ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING:
March 16th, 2006 from 6:30-8:30pm at the Worthington Historical Society, intersection of Rte 112 and Rte
143.
Our monthly meetings are held, on a rotating basis, in one of the Wild & Scenic Communities. All our
meetings are open to the public and everyone is welcome. Meeting agendas are available the week before the
scheduled meeting date. Contact (413)268-3129 or river_banks@hotmail.com for more details.
EVENTS SPONSORED BY THE WESTFIELD RIVER WATERSHED ASSOCIATION:
Hike Lair Mtn. in Tolland: Join Tom & Nancy Condon on Sunday, March 12 for a hike in Tolland State
Forest to look for early signs of spring. This trail on the south end of Otis Reservoir winds through
beautiful hardwood as well as hemlock forests. The trail has some rocky sections and may be wet and
muddy this time of year or may still have snow - come prepared with proper footwear. Expect inclines.
Bring a lunch and drinking water. Meet at the Blandford Post Office (Route 23) at 9:00 a.m. and expect to
return by about 3:00 p.m. Please call 413-564-0895 to register, so if bad weather forces cancellation you can
be contacted.

12th Annual Westfield River Symposium: This year's River Symposium will be held in the Savignano
Auditoriums (Wilson Hall) at Westfield State College on Saturday, April 1. The keynote speaker will be
Wayne Klockner, State Director of The Nature Conservancy. This year's event features themes of "Flora
and Fauna", "Historical Attractions", and "Commitment to Our Watershed's Future". Confirmed speakers
include Wayne Petersen (Mass Audubon) on birding, Dennis Picard (Storrowtown Museum) on the General
Knox Trail, and Dave Pierce on the Keystone Arches. Check the following website link
http://westfieldriver.org/symposia/symposium12.html for the details of the schedule and a full listing of
speakers once scheduling has been completed.

East River Trail Hike: Join Tom & Nancy Condon on Sunday, April 2 for a hike that begins in
Chesterfield Gorge and follow the Westfield River down to Knightsville Dam in Huntington. We'll be
following this trail downriver in search for interesting natural sightings. Bring your binoculars to search for
the return of early spring birds and perhaps a field guide for wildflowers, should we be so lucky, or
mushrooms if the spring is wet. This hike is for casual hikers, we will travel at a leisurely pace. We have no
particular destination or distance in mind. We'll walk as far as people wish and time allows. Please wear
appropriate footwear, dress for the weather, pack a lunch, and carry plenty of water. Meet at the Commuter
Parking Lot at Westfield State College at 9:00 a.m., and expect to return by about 2:00 p.m. Please call 413-
564-0895 to register, so if bad weather forces cancellation you can be contacted.

Art Exhibit: During the month of July the Hilltown Plein Air Painters will be exhibiting their paintings of
the Westfield River Watershed at the Jasper Rand Art Museum of the Westfield Athenaeum. The seven
artists (Alma LaFrance, Mary Montague, Carolyn Avery, Anne Kusiak, Carol Chandler, Natalie Birrell and
Karin Cook) have painted in all seasons at numerous sites along the Westfield River including Chesterfield
Gorge, Knightville Basin, the Keystone Arches, Garden State Park and views in Worthington, Chester and
Huntingon.

EVENTS SPONSORED BY THE HIGHLAND COMMUNITIES INITIATIVE:

To register or for more information about the HCI-sponsored events listed, contact Jane Christensen at
413/268-8219 or email at jchristensen@ttor.org.

CHAPTER 61: UNDERSTANDING THE FIRST REFUSAL OPTION

Thurday March 2| Shelburne Buckland Community Center, 53 Main St., Shelburne Falls | 7 p.m. - 9
p.m. | $5 per person (free to Trustees of Reservations members) preregistration required

This workshop with Attorney Richard Evans will clarify the legal requirements, timelines, and issues surrounding
the first refusal option under the Chapter 61 program. Select Boards, Conservation Commissions, and Open
Space Committees will learn how and when to utilize their first refusal option, and landowners enrolled in
Chapter 61 will gain a better understanding of how this aspect of the law affects their land.

6
MACC ANNUAL ENVIRONMENTAL CONFERENCE
Saturday March 4 | Holy Cross College, Worcester | 8:30 a.m. – 5:15 p.m. | $85 MACC Members, $110
non-members For more information visit: http://www.maccweb.org/edu_aec_workshops.html

CONSERVATION CONNECTIONS SERIES

Landscape Conservation: People, Protection and Prosperity
Monday March 6| Conway Grammar School | 7 p.m. | free, no preregistration required

The third in the HCI and Conway School of Landscape Design speaker series features Glenn Eugster, Assistant
Regional Director with the National Park Service in Washington D.C. exploring the numerous impacts of
landscape-scale land conservation. Eugster has worked for more than 30 years locally, regionally, nationally, and
internationally, with NPS and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, helping communities and park
managers regenerate economies and landscapes.

MASSACHUSETTS LAND CONSERVATION CONFERENCE

Saturday March 11 | Bancroft School, Worcester
Go to Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition for more information

CPTC CONFERENCE: Advanced Tools and Procedures for Planning and Zoning
Saturday March 18 | Holy Cross College, Worcester | 9:00 a.m. – 3:15 p.m. | $50 per person, register by
March 10

Robert Durand, former Secretary of Environmental Affairs, will open the event, which includes 18 workshops
on Sustainability, Smart Growth, Zoning Enforcement, Housing, Transportation, and Land Use Planning. There
will be displays from state and educational organizations, light breakfast and buffet lunch. For more information,
including exhibitor and sponsor opportunities, go to CPTC's website or call Diana Krauth at 413-545-2188

SUBDIVISION SEMINAR
Saturday April 1 | Cummington | $10/person, TTOR members- $5, pre-registration required.

Learn about specific changes you can make to subdivision regulations, without going to Town Meeting, to
protect the town's financial interests and rural community character. Get guidance from a professional planner,
engineer, and developer on what Planning Boards can and should require of developers, how to encourage roads
that fit and function well in town, and what kind of legal protections the town needs in permitting new
development.

USING GPS WITH GIS: Introduction to Mapping Your GPS Data

May 16 | Location TBA

Do you own a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver? Do you collect and store waypoints and tracks on your
GPS unit? Would you like to view that data, along with additional data such as aerial photos, wetlands and
protected open space, on a map? If so, this workshop may be for you. This workshop will demonstrate easy-to-
use downloadable GPS and Geographical Information System (GIS) software that will help increase the
versatility of your GPS unit.
Upon registering for this workshop, please indicate the level of your GPS experience:
I own and routinely collect waypoints and tracks with my GPS unit.
I own a GPS unit but have not yet collected any data.
I do not own a GPS unit, but am thinking of purchasing a unit.
Other: _________________________________________

7
OTHER COMMUNITY EVENTS

WESTFIELD WHEELMEN VINTAGE BASE BALL CLUB: SIMILAIR to Civil War re-enactors, dressed in period
style uniforms, equipment and rules but the program is not scripted. Please check-out
their website to learn more about the Wheelmen http://wwvbbc.tripod.com

At least three of their home games will be at Whitney Playground, including the home
opener on May 13. Time is to be determined but the game will be billed as "Base Ball
Returns To Whitney." This will be the first baseball game played at Whitney since the
flood of the Spring of 1936. From 1911 to 1935, Whitney Playground was the home of
Westfield baseball until that flood. During that time period, crowds of upwards of
2,500 would regularly attend games at Whitney. Town teams and barnstorming
professional clubs would make Whitney a normal stop. Today of course, just softball is
played there.

May 20, 2006 – 15th Annual Chester on Track, 9am-4pm: Presented by the
Chester Foundation, “Chester on Track” is a family event which kicks off with a
parade and includes concerts, history presentations, games, wagon rides and
highlights this historic railroad town; CSX loco tours, train show, craft fair, Civil War &
early railroad worker re-enactors, tours of a working granite quarry (18 years & up) and
archeological stone works. Hikes to a series of 1830's stone arch railroad bridges (some
accessible, some in use) Speeder and helicopter rides, continuous live entertainment, food & more!
FREE (donations gratefully accepted) (413) 354-7752, P O Box 743, Chester, MA 01011, or
dpiercedlp@AOL.com.

We would love to hear about your events and activities in the Westfield River Watershed. Contact
Westfield_RiverNotes@hotmail.com to list your events.

Membership of the Committee

Town of Becket Bill Toomey, Mercedes Gallagher alternate (Treasurer)
Town of Chester Robert Thompson (Chair), Dave Pierce alternate
Town of Chesterfield Matt Barron, Denise Cormier alternate
Town of Cummington Ben Forbes, Judy Moore alternate
Town of Huntington Jeff Penn (Vice-Chair)
Town of Middlefield Carl Lafreniere
Town of Savoy Debbie Kaczowski
Town of Washington Georgette Keator
Town of Windsor Jim Caffrey (Secretary), Deborah Balmuth alt.
Town of Worthington Helen Sharron Pollard
Commonwealth of Massachusetts Joan Kimball, Jennifer Howard alternate
National Park Service Liz Lacy, Jamie Fosburgh alternate
Pioneer Valley Planning Commission Chris Curtis
Berkshire Regional Planning Commission Melissa Jette, Gale LaBelle alternate
Trustees of Reservations Jocelyn Forbush, Wendy Sweetser alternate
Westfield River Watershed Association Tom Condon

Please feel free to pass this along to other friends of the Westfield River. To subscribe to Westfield
RiverNotes send an email to Westfield_RiverNotes@hotmail.com.
8