Easthampton, MA, Fourth of July

My lady friend and I spent a pleasant Fourth of July evening on the Lower Mill Pond in Easthampton. We decided that we wanted to be away from the crowds celebrating the Fourth at Nonotuck Park and would paddle around the Lower Mill Pond and wait for the fireworks. I believe it’s called urban canoeing. It became quickly apparent to us that the pond was vibrant and teeming with wildlife such as beaver, muskrat, water rat, osprey, heron and a plethora of unseen fish jumping out of the water. While weed-choked and a bit on the dirty side, the Lower Mill Pond has an eco-system of its own that thrives in the shadows of the Eastworks building on East St.

Beaver—displeased with our presence, splashed their tails in front of us as we paddled silently across the murky water. We were rewarded with the sight of them swimming underwater or jumping through the air to circumnavigate us. Water rats swam around us, intent on escaping into the underbrush of the shore. Osprey flew overhead, lonely and dejected waiting for something to happen. Dragon flies buzzed us repeatedly. As the sky darkened, fire flies emerged, setting off a brilliant display of tiny LED’s. By 9:30 p.m. the sky became pitch black and the fireworks began. We paddled out to the best viewable area and drank our libations in silence as the fireworks ricocheted around the pound and off the Eastworks building. It was wonderful and weird. We had the pond to ourselves (at least free of humans) and it was spectacular. I would suggest to anyone to have the same experience next year.