Spring Events at the Fish Ladder

The storms this spring put the festival area and fish house under 3 – 4 feet of water several times, and we don’t believe the footing is safe for a large public event, so we will not be holding a festival this year.  We will still be celebrating the alewives’ return though, with a Memorial Day weekend concert Sunday night at the Lincoln Theater and a 5K walk/run Saturday morning.  Alewife merchandise and docents will be available on weekends throughout May, and there is also a beautiful quilt on display at Skidompha Library that we are raffling.

The ladder is, of course, still open!  The alewives typically run from May 1 to June 15, but most reliably from Mother’s Day to the end of the first week of June.  Influenced by weather and water temperature, their arrival date is highly variable but arrive they will!  For photographers and bird watchers, early morning or late afternoon are generally better for ospreys and eagles, while the gulls will be in full flock throughout the day.