Plymouth Herring Run Festival Saturday
By Frank Mand
fmand@wickedlocal.com
Wicked Local Plymouth
Posted Apr 18, 2018 at 3:38 PM
Updated Apr 20, 2018 at 8:31 AM
Along Town Brook, next to Jenny Pond, and on the deck of the Grist Mill there will be exhibits and activities sponsored by dozens of community-based organizations.
PLYMOUTH – Plimoth Grist Mill’s annual Herring Run Festival Saturday is a natural.
The mill is located along historic and scenic Town Brook, among a series of fish ladders that herring instinctively navigate from the harbor, then make their way up the brook’s long and narrow stream bed, which is easy for folks to follow and, for this event, will be lined with special family-friendly displays and interactive programs.
It’s a wonder that this activity-rich free event has not been overwhelmed by visitors in the past. But the folks at the fully functioning Grist Mill – now operated by Plimoth Plantation – have been unnaturally unlucky. In recent years this and other events along Town Brook have been visited by some of the wettest and often most unseasonable weather imaginable.
This year, though, it looks like you and the fish are in luck.
The long-range forecast for next Saturday includes a visit from that most precious of springtime visitors – the sun – with a bit of clouds and temperatures in the 50s, balmy weather by this year’s standards.
And late word is that the herring are here too. “There are tons of herring at the bottom of the mill ladder, and we’re starting to get counts of them coming through,” Grist Mill Program Manager Kim Van Wormer said this week.
The number of herring is exciting, and the weather forecast is a relief Van Wormer says, but something else is exciting for her, as well.
“Decent weather is great, and unusual for us,” Van Wormer said, “but the big difference this year, something we always envisioned and finally see happening, is that local community groups are owning this event.”
Along Town Brook, next to Jenny Pond and on the deck of the Grist Mill there will be exhibits and activities sponsored by dozens of community-based organizations including the Herring Ponds Watershed Association, the Southeastern Massachusetts Pine Barrens Alliance, The Friends of Burial Hill, even the Beach Ambassadors.
Beach Ambassadors on the brook? Yes, Plymouth’s own Beach Ambassadors, who are famous for their innovative ways to get people interested in and knowledgeable about Plymouth’s natural resources, will be positioned along the herring run.
All day long you’ll also have the chance to meet Plymouth’s own “Herring Lady” Nancy Carroll and listen to her unique and entertaining perspective on the amazing herring migration.
There’ll also be live music, food for sale and to sample, tours of the working grist mill, tours of historic Town Brook and NOAA fish biologist Eric Hutchins.
Hutchins will conduct a Town Brook Restoration Walking Tour covering four completed dam removal projects and two fish ladders and will provide insights into the changes planned after the last Town Brook dam – Holmes Dam on Newfield Street – is removed this summer.
The restoration tours will begin at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Participation is limited. If you would like to attend Hutchins’ walking tour contact Helen Torres at 978-281-9183 to register for either Town Brook Restoration Tour.
There will also be a short, kid-friendly walk at 11 a.m. (Walk Where the Herring Run), a Habitat Tour at 1 p.m., fish counting all day, Wampanoag Maritime Life and Net Making Demonstration starting at noon and a talk on The Importance of Herring to the Wampanoag beginning at 2.
And that’s a good taste of the day’s activities, almost all of which are free.
There is an admission fee for the Plimoth Grist Mill, but if you’re a Plymouth resident (with ID, April 21 only) that’s free for you too.
For more information on the official program of events email programs@plimoth.org or visit www.plimoth.org.
See the attached list for the schedule of Herring Run tours, activities and participants.
Herring Run Festival activities begin at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 21, in and around Town Brook and the Plimoth Grist Mill.
Follow Frank Mand on Twitter @frankmandOCM.
Herring Run Festival tours and activities
10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Hang out with Scientists!
Meet scientists and restoration specialists from the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries, the Plymouth Marine and Environmental Affairs Office, and the Massachusetts Department of Marine Fisheries, and learn about the work they are doing to protect the herring and restore their natural habitat.
Fish counting with federal, state and local experts
Work with environmental specialists to count fish as they pass through the counting station. This data will be used to determine the health and size of the herring population that uses Town Brook to reach its spawning grounds.
NOAA’s ‘All About Eel’
If you’re walking along the brook look closely: elvers – or baby eels – can often be found along the edges. Skinny, black, and potentially valuable, these creatures have their own unique story.
Plymouth’s Own Herring Woman (Nancy Carroll) and the Network of Open Space Friends
Herring Woman is unmistakeable and unforgettable – and her passion for herring is unrivaled.
Magnetic fishing with Plymouth 400
If you drop a line anywhere in Plymouth you’re sure to hook a historical tidbit.
Watching birds of prey with the Beach Ambassadors
The gulls, cormorants and ospreys are fishing for herring, and you can watch them.
Family Activities with the Herring Ponds Watershed Association
Color herring, read about herring, and have a good time with our friends from Herring Ponds.
Help preserve Plymouth’s unique ecosystem with the Pine Barrens Alliance.
Horseshoe crabs and Where Do You Love – two special citizen projects that require your participation.
Other free exhibits
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Plymouth Department of Marine Fisheries — dam removal and river restoration
Division of Marine Fisheries
Plymouth Department of Public Health
Wildlife Warriors
Clark’s Island Oysters
Friends of Burial Hill
Girl Scouts
Mass Audubon
Tidmarsh Wildlife Santuary—Mass Audubon
The Living Observatory
North and South Rivers Watershed Association
Town Brook Walking Tours, led by scientists and habitat restoration specialists
• 10:15 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. — Wampanoag Fishing Demonstration
Darius Coombs of the Wampanoag Nation
11 a.m. to 12 noon — Wampanoag maritime life and net making demonstration
Join Darius Coombs of the Wampanoag Nation and discover how the Wampanoag made nets and other tools to harvest herring and other maritime creatures.
11 a.m. – Walk where the herring run
A short, kid friendly walk, following the herring from the bottom of the fish ladder to the top and into Jenney Mill Pond.
• Noon –Town Brook Restoration Tour
Walk along a portion of Town Brook and learn about Plymouth’s efforts to remove damns and restore habitat in and along the brook.
• 1 p.m. — habitat tour of Town Brook
Walk along the brook and learn about the herring and other plant and animal species which make Town Brook their home.
GRIST MILL ACTIVITIES (free for Plymouth residents, admission required for non-residents.)
• 1-3 p.m. Running the Mill
See how Plimoth Grist Mill shares the brook with the herring, and uses the power of water to grind corn.
• 1-3 p.m., face painting
• 1-1:30 and 3-3:30 p.m. moving the millstones
After the daily grind is over, watch the millers disassemble the mill and move a massive 2,500 pound millstone.
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