Wednesday, September 2, 2015

THE SHETUCKET RIVER

Speranza



The Shetucket River is a tributary of the New Thames River, 32.8 km long, in eastern Connecticut in the United States.

It is formed at Willimantic by the junction of the Willimantic and Natchaug rivers.

It flows southeast and south.

Approximately 6 km northeast of Norwich it receives the Quinebaug River and broadens into a wide estuary which stretches southeast for approximately 5 miles (8 km) and joins the Thames estuary on the south side of Norwich.

The river flows through an especially unspoiled rural section of southern New England, despite the historical prevalence of industry in the surrounding region.

Parts of the rivers have been designated by the federal government as the Quinebaug and Shetucket Rivers Valley National Heritage Corridor.

The National Park Service describes the river valley as the "last green valley" in the Boston-to-Washington megalopolis.

In nighttime satellite photos, the valley appears distinctively dark amidst the lights of the surrounding urban and suburban regions.

Crossings[edit]

CarriesLocationBuilt
Connecticut Highway 2.svg Route 2Norwich
Providence and Worcester Railroad
Connecticut Highway 12.svgConnecticut Highway 2.svg Route 12/Route 2
Connecticut Highway 2.svg Route 2
8th Street
Providence and Worcester RailroadNorwich and Lisbon
Connecticut Highway 12.svg Route 12
Connecticut Highway 169.svg Route 169
I-395.svg Connecticut Turnpike
Bridge Street/Main StreetNorwich and Sprague
Connecticut Highway 97.svg Route 97Sprague
Connecticut Highway 203.svg Route 203Windham
Providence and Worcester Railroad
Plains Road

The entire length of the river, as well as the lower part of the Natchaug River flowing into it, is a popular recreational paddling route.
Canoe/Kayak launch sites are located at the following locations:

Lauter Park off Route 195 - Willimantic (on Natchaug River 1 mile above Shetucket River)

Recreation Park on Plains Road - Windham

Baltic Riverside Park on Route 97 - Sprague

Occum Dam canoe portage - Sprague

Lisbon Canoe Launch off Route 169 - Lisbon

Greenville Dam canoe portage - Norwich

Howard Brown Park - Norwich
Short, marked portages are required at four hydroelectric dams:

Scotland Dam
Occum Dam
Taftville Dam, and
Greenville Dam.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. Jump up to:a b Geographic Names Information System, United States Geological Survey (September 12, 1979). "Geographic Names Information System Feature Detail Report: Shetucket River". Retrieved2007-06-09.
  2. Jump up^ United States Geological Survey (2005). "Water Resources Data Connecticut Water Year 2005". Retrieved 2007-06-09.
  3. Jump up^ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed April 1, 2011

External links[edit]

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