Jay, Goldie and I got on the Connecticut River pretty early this morning, putting in on the New Hampshire side in Orford.

When we studied the map of the river last week, Jay noticed a sizable inlet just north of the Orford put-in and we made for that.

It was perfect, full of birds, little nooks and crannies to poke around in.

We explored for an hour, paddling slowly.

At one point, we reached a spot where a brook flows over a little waterfall on its way into the big river. The sun was dancing on the water, making a perfect backdrop for my annual “Jay and Goldie in the kayak” photo.