Manville - Above Dam

41° 58.334' N    71° 28.258' W   See this location in: Google Maps   Map Server   Acme Maps

This is a site for launching hand-carried boats such as canoes or kayaks.

Description & Overview:

The new Manville Landing park has finally opened, creating a greatly improved access point for paddlers on the Blackstone River!

This site is useful both as a place to put in and do a short round-trip up-river and as a place to take out if you are paddling down the Blackstone River from Woonsocket. From below Woonsocket down to Manville the riverbanks are largely wooded and natural. As you approach the Manville Dam, look for a marshy cove on the left. Head into this cove and look for the new boat launch on the point at the downstream side of the cove.

Be careful to stay well clear of the Manville Dam just downriver from this site!

If you want to continue down the river from here you are better off taking out on river right and portaging along the bike path to the boat launch below the dam. This is a long portage and is described in more detail in the listing for Manville - Below Dam.

This site provides access to the following water bodies in the Blackstone River watershed: Blackstone River.

Location:

Town: Cumberland

Driving Landmarks: From I-295 take exit 10 for Route 122 north towards Cumberland. This will put you on Route 122 (Mendon Road). Go 2 1/2 miles and turn left on Manville Hill Road at Poppy's Family Restaurant. Go 0.7 miles down the hill and look for a park on your right just before the river. The put-in is at the far end of the park, through the parking lot.

From Route 99, turn right where Route 99 dead ends into Route 122 (Mendon Road). Go 1 1/4 miles south on Route 122 and turn right onto Manville Hill Road at Poppy's Family Restaurant. Go 0.7 miles down the hill and look for a park on your right just before the river. The put-in is at the far end of the park, through the parking lot.

Access & Waters:

Water 'Features' At Site: dam, flatwater/slow moving river

Note: Because one boat launch can access, say, both a lake and a river or both the upstream and downstream portions of a river, not all paddling trips at a given site will necessarily encounter all of the features listed.

Type of Access: Boat launch for hand carried boats

Float/Dock: low float or dock

Parking:

Parking: yes: 18 spaces

ADA Accessible Parking Spaces? yes

Sources for More Information:

Website: Blackstone Heritage Corridor website: "Get on the River" page

Website: National Park Service map for the Blackstone River from Woonsocket to Manville

Ecological, Cultural & Recreational Attractions:

The Blackstone River Bikeway is on the other side of the river.

Photographs:

Approaching the take out

Photography by: Bruce Hooke

Date of Photograph: October 3, 2007

A view up river from the boat launch. Note that this photograph is from before the recent, major upgrades to the park.

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