Let  it run  to the Sea, no questions from me.

Last night the  Selectmen meeting was a bit over the top. In the  11th  hour  Lionel  Ingram  has informed us that the State of NH would like to discuss removing the Great? Dam. I attended a handful of Lionel’s River Study Committee  and  know his position . He is quoted in the minutes on one occasion deriding dam removal  as “foolish”. He continues to  be the point man moving forward. I don’t know why given his  hard position.

The discussion of  this proposal will now be put off for as many as 5 months. During that time  I would like  to see all Lionel’s meetings televised. I would also  like to see a time change as they are usually during the  week , at 930am. Last night I heard Lionel say  “the constant need to go before the public” in an almost irritated tone. The context being his statement  to the Board that he felt bringing the dam removal concept forward was “more political than the Board can handle”. Lionel should not have held this letter from the State. We need to explore this issue fully before sinking money into an old  dam. The entire process has to be made more public, and sorry Lionel, there will be questions.

Today  I took a few  snaps of the   Exeter  River beginning in Chester NH  off  RT 102. I  am trying to answer  for myself what the River  might look like minus  the dam.

This water was moving pretty fast  in Chester , and it was clear to the bottom.

This is in Fremont along 102, beautiful, deep , and running fast. This is looking downstream.

Same location looking up stream. You know a running river has such a pleasant sound , all that burbling and gurgling, unlike the dead silence  it maintains  at Gilman Park.

This is 111A at Red Brook Road really nice.  Flowing,  sparkling.

This is Fremont

This cascade is across from Lindy’s Store in Brentwood. Oxygen, the life blood of a River.

This view is off Haigh Road in Brentwood, the river is  still  moving fast.

Pickpocket Dam, the last dam before the Great? Dam.

The Exeter  River below Pickpocket Dam, free again, for a bit.

This is near Exeter Elms campground. It seemed  I was  looking at a different river. You could not see the bottom, and the water was still. I feel this effect is  brought on by the Great Dam. It’s almost creepy, not the campground , the river. I spend all my time below the Falls on the Squamscott. Which is tidal.

This is  looking upstream  at Gilman Park here in Town. Those leaves floating in the foreground were not moving.

There was some opining last night about water depths minus the dam . This river must have deep holes, one was big enough to conceal  a stolen Crown Victoria ( a police  cruiser, with  a shotgun still in the trunk) for a number of years. I believe it was in this stretch of the river, right near  our Town water  intake.

Downstream view, though it’s hard to tell by looking at the river flow.

My hope is that the greater time line of History prevails  on this dam removal  and not the last 150, or someones own fairly recent memory, someone whose time is passing.

If you were  having a bite at 11 water today  you might have seen me fall  in  getting this last shot! I bet it looked pretty funny. The  Dam is actually built on top of the Exeter Falls which will provide generations with a lovely and varying waterfall .

“Did you see the Falls today?”

“Gorgeous!”

It’s a bedrock shelf folks , a natural dam.

I hope we move forward with the study with full public participation. Oh one more thing. Lets stop throwing  out specious numbers for water wells. Someone  in attendance should have challenged  last night.

Mike

October 7, 2008