Season Finale!

Hey everyone! My name is Mekhi Wright-hopkins;I am 15 years old and this was my first year at Save The Harbor. This summer at Save the Harbor was amazing I learned so many new things such as: fishing, setting up crab traps, baiting rods and traps and different things relavent to that. Not only does this organization teach you the essential things for working here at Save The Harbor; they teach you life skills such as being responsible, patient, and communitive. This organization exposes you to so many people and different opportunities which is extremely helpful for us younger staffers. Thank you all so much for this meomorable summer!

-Mekhi

Goodbye Everyone

It has been a pleasure working with Save the Harbor Save the Bay for another summer. I really enjoyed working with everyone and with all the children that I would work with everyday. I love teaching the kids new things and I feel like I have accomplished my goals for this summer. One of the goals that I have accomplished was being more patient with the children. Also being able to be taught by the children as well. I would love to continue working here for the next few summers to come. It has been an awesome experience and I will take this experience to other people. I love everyone and I hope you all have a great rest of the summer.

The Last day of summer

The last four weeks with Save the Harbor Save the Bay were amazing. This summer I got to work at the children museum and community boating this year. The kids were great. They are always ready to do hands on experiment and activity. even through the summer was hot the kids made it enjoyable I also got to meet great coworkers that are amazing on what they do specially Sara. This made the summer enjoyable and full of adventures. The summer ended before I even got to know some of the staff. I hope this isn't a good bye but see you next summer.

~Senait

Farewell Summer '11

Well, that's the end of another great summer. This has been my second summer working at SH/SB and I'm glad to say that it was more fun than last year's. That being said, last year's summer was also very fun, I did not think I could possibly ever have more fun working in the summer than I did that year, but I have been proven wrong. One of the main reseason why this summer was so fun was all the fantastic people I got to meet. Our staff this year was more than double what we had last year. I also had the opportunity to go on all access three times more than I did last summer, so I got to meet three times the amount of wonderful kids I met last year.

Perhaps the only downside to this summer was the fact that I only caught three fish, compared to last year's 8. Nevertheless I had a ton of fun trying to catch and helping so many kids have a go. Personally, the joy of helping one of the young anglers catch a fish was greater than catching one myself.

So, as they say, all great things most come to an end, with this blog post, another fantastic summer working at Save the Harbor Save the Bay comes to an end. But hopefully just until summer 2012. Look forward to working with all of you again next year.

Enjoy the rest of your year folks.

~Aruna Bah

Goodbye Summer '11

It is so hard to say goodbye to such an awesome summer. This summer I was very happy to be back on the water and enjoying having fun with the kids. I will definitely miss the All Access Boston Harbor trips and Camp Harborview because they are my two favorite sites. I love going out to the islands because it always feels like a home away from home. Camp Harborview is an awesome camp with many activities and it's tons of fun to fish off the pier. I had a great summer working with everyone on the Save the Harbor staff. There were definitely experiences that I had this summer that I will never forget. Staff day capture the flag was fun for me even though my team lost. Also, the fishing tournament is something I won't forget due to the fact that my team caught a Gull! We didn't catch anything else, but I feel as though we should have received a prize for that catch.

Now that the summer is over I can officially say that I achieved my goals. I did my best to keep kids engaged and made sure that each kid around me was having fun. I was able to do something I haven't done before and that was teach people how to fish during an insane and spectacular cliff diving event. I definitely maintained great relationships with all of my co-workers and they all made my summer fun, interesting and different. I really don't want to say goodbye to this summer, but I have to. It was another amazing summer working for Save the Harbor Save the Bay and I hope to be back next summer having even more fun.


-Will Clark

Hello adventure seekers,

Last week was the last week of summer programs for STH/STB, but I still had time for one more trip to Spectacle Island to end my summer on a good note. The weather could not have been more perfect for some kayaking, kite flying, sea glass hunting, and swimming!


After stopping at Piers Park to pick up some intrepid sailors looking to explore the Harbor Islands, Vinh, David, David's daughter, and I spent a very productive afternoon combing the beach for sea glass. It was a little bittersweet since this was the last time I was going to be on the beach before heading back to school, and I was lucky enough to find some really unusual colors and shapes; I even found a marble! The rest of the afternoon was devoted to cooling off in the water before waving good-bye to the island one last time.

Since the 2011 season of All Access is officially over, I'd like to take the time to thank the people who make it so much fun, starting with the groups that come out with us. Kids, you ROCK! Your enthusiasm inspires me, and keeps every day interesting. Counselors, you do a great job helping the day run smoothly and it's great to see you all have the time of your lives on the islands as well.

To David Coffin, All Access leader extraordinaire; to Michelle and Brianne, schedulers and crisis avoiders; and to Bruce and Patty, Save the Harbor's fearless leaders: thank you for making this program what it is, for allowing so many children from Boston to experience the wonders of the sea, and for allowing me to be a part of it.

And last but certainly not least, to my coworkers from the past weeks, thank you for taking charge, making children laugh, and keeping me sane. I am so glad I got to meet you this summer, and I hope to see you again in the near future!


Until next time,

~Carolyn

Memories Last a Lifetime

Taking this summer job was a great idea. Now I have experience working in the office from the six week internship I did this past April, along with experience outdoors. Having the chance to work with children from Boston was wonderful. As I taught them how to identify a female and male crab, the type of crab, etc. I was able to learn with them. A lot of what I did was new to me. It was my first time working, working with kids, fishing, crabbing and flying kites. The time has come, summer is coming to an end, but I will carry these memories forever.

I remember my first week I was at Piers Park. I grew close to as eight year old girl, Olivia. Olivia was teaching me how to speak Italian. :) Even though she only knows how to say fruit in Italian it was lots of fun. While I repeated the pronunciation of the fruit she spotted a wrapper floating in the Harbor. She screamed at me "Kristina go get the net, QUICK!" I quickly got the arancione "orange" net and handed it over to her, and she patiently waited for the plastic potato chip bag to float closer to the dock before she was able to have a safe scoop. I let her know if everyone was as aware and concerned about trash in the Harbor, it would be even cleaner. I told her imagine if everyone was able to scoop and grab a piece of trash they seen floating in the Harbor, and she said "I guess we need more people like me. People who care about their environment". Overall, Olivia and I learned something new. I learned some Italian and she learned that we need more concerned and caring people to help keep the Harbor clean.

This summer I caught my first fish. It was a 35" Strip Bass that won me two Red Sox tickets in the fishing competition. The fish was so heavy, until this day I can not believe I was the one who reeled in that large fish! I am so proud of myself. I love the fact that I was announced in the East Boston Times and that my parents brag to his friends about it. This was by far one of the best memories this summer. I learned how to fish this summer and managed to catch one of the largest fish as my first. My mom has the newspaper article pinned up on her bulletin board at work for all her co-workers to see. It makes me feel good about myself every time this memory pops into mind. If I was to never accept this summer job I would have never learned how to fish and never would have caught one.

Staff day! That day was fun with my co-worker. I had the opportunity to learn about my co-workers. On the boat ride to Spectacle Island I learned along with others that Mehki takes his Mac with him.everywhere, or as Kassy says "His Jumbo IPOD!" haha. I learned how most of us had similar taste in music that later led to the discussion of an upcoming concert. Surprisingly the majority of us staffers are attending it! When we reached Spectacle Bruce and Patty, two amazing host, had prepared hot dogs on the grill. Of course Manny, Hughes and I were the first to create the line and ready to eat! :) We ate and socialized amongst each other and laughed at silly imitation Mekhi, Hughes, Manny and Vihn did. While some decided to play a game of capture the flag others hit the beach later on that day. I hit the beach and cooled myself off. It was such a relaxed day.It ended in a great way, a hula-hoop contest. Candido impressed us all with his hip movement and jumping skills that led him be the hula-hoop champion although Kassy was last to drop hers. Getting back to Boston I was happy with the tighter bonds I had built with some of my co-workers.

The first time I seen ghost at George's Island! It was scary! The main attraction at George's Island is the dark tunnel. As many times as you go by the tunnel there are a bunch of kids and adults waiting to overcome the fear of entering this creepy, dark tunnel. While I helped get people in and out of the tunnel two older women had snapped a photo of the tunnel. They both came out with a scary look as if they saw ghost.. Surely their camera captures white blots down the tunnel that seemed to actually be GHOST! I was freaked out. I could not believe this. I quickly pulled out my camera and snapped a bunch of photo of what seemed to be a never ending tunnel. My camera along with the other women's camera had caught the same image. Some people said it was the lens of the camera that was dirty; therefore, I cleaned it several times to still get the same picture. A bunch of blurry, white circles in scattered places in the tunnel.

The Clam Seeding was something different! My team and I had headed to Thompson Island. As we waited for the ferry Bruce took pictures of us. At first I thought the event was going to be cancelled due to the weather forecast, but the weather pulled through was okay for the day.I had no idea of what we were going to do, it was a surprise to me when I heard we were headed to Thompson Island. It was a surprise to all of us staff along with what we were up for at the island.Once we got there we were told we were going to do clam seeding. I was not prepared to do so because I had jeans on. Luckily, the staff at Thompson provided us, around 40 people, long rain boots and gloves. I tied my hair up, pulled up my boots up and put my gloves on. My group of eight headed out to the water, it was low tide. We placed a net on a muddy surface and began digging around the square net. After we did that we pulled the net back and began racking the surface removing Green Crabs we seen.We all grabbed clam seeds and carefully sprinkled them on the surface as the other eight groups did. We pulled the net over the seeds and put tons of mud on the edges of the net to told tight when the tide comes in. At the end of the seeding everyone was dirty! Some had squishy, dark , watery mud on their face, gloves, arms, pants and shirts.Before we knew it, it was time to bring our materials back and head back out to Boston. This was my first time clam seeding and I enjoyed myself. I hope I get the chance to do this again!

Overall, this has been the most memorable summer! A summer of learning, teaching, having fun and networking. It is a perfect way to end my summer and begin my new beginning in the fall for college in Schenectady, New York. :)

Au revoir!

Is it already time to say goodbye?

At Save the Harbor/Save the Bay, 'tis the season where we say goodbye to the staff, kids, parents, and excitement of the summer youth programs. :( And what an exciting summer we had!

Some of my fondest memories of Boston came from the kids at all of our program sites around the city. At Community Boating, I will remember the wind on the Charles river whipping through the sails of boats, the smiles produced from first-caught fish, and the clumpy cumulus clouds. At Boston Children's museum, I will remember the expression created on a child's face after beholding a lobster for the first time. At Courageous Sailing Center, I will remember teaching kids about marine debris, and recovering it using a Remote Operated Vehicle with the Rozalia Project.

Other Save the Harbor highlights come from the work I did as part of a team of AMAZING staffers. I enjoyed being able to mentor my coworkers and learn from them simultaneously. Special thanks to Michelle Palermino and Brianne Studer for keeping the team running like a well-oiled machine.

Most of all, I will remember the impact I was able to make on Boston's youth. Hopefully, all of the children we worked this this summer have learned to love and respect their local marine environment, Boston Harbor. It was more than rewarding to be able to share my love of the sea, and teach about its creatures and systems.

This summer, I educated and was educated in return. I trust that the things I learned about Boston, working with kids, being part of a team, and even about myself, will serve me well in my future endeavors. I am excited to apply my new found knowledge!

Thanks to Save the Harbor/ Save the bay for an amazing summer!

Cheers,

Sheuli

Ode to Decapods at Boston Children's Museum

What would you do with ten feet?

Would you walk faster? Would you invent a new decapodian dance? Would you paint the toenails on each of your feet a different color? I might do all three, in honor of the decapods we find everyday in the Fort Point Channel at the Boston Children's Museum.

Along with a whole host of other creatures, lobsters, shrimp and crabs are of the taxonomic order decapodia, which ,in Greek, means "ten-footed". As our fishing 101 group found out this summer, the lobsters and crabs that we pull up in traps there have 8 legs and 2 claws! In addition to their lovely limbs, the decapods at Boston Children's Museum have a whole host of other cool features!

My favorite characteristic of these animals is their fantastic exoskeleton. Imagine having armor on the outside and no interior bones to speak of! As invertebrates, lobsters and crabs are spineless. So why is their shell called an exoSKELETON? Hmmmm. Let's think. Our bones provide support for our bodies from the INSIDE, but an exoskeleton protects and supports a body from the OUTSIDE. The kids at BCM enjoyed feeling the hard shells of the crabs and lobsters we found.

Apart from their physical forms, the BCM decapods entertained kids and parents alike with fast moves and feisty personalities. Hundreds of kids at the museum marveled at the way crabs walked sideways, using all eight legs! The speed with which the crabs attempted to run out of the traps also impressed many entertained onlookers.

Thanks to BCM for a great week and a great summer. But we cannot forget to thank our friends the decapods for their good looks and all the entertainment they provided us with this summer!

-Sheuli

Goodbye Again!

Thus ends another summer at Save the Harbor/Save the Bay. It was a great summer to come back to Save the Harbor as it was our 25th Anniversary year, we held great trips on All Access Boston Harbor and great programs at all of the sailing centers as part of Boston Harbor Explorers and then, as my last two days, had a Summertime Beach Bash for the kids and then a Summertime Splash party the day after!

I had a great time at the beach bash spending a majority of my morning making sand castles and then spending my afternoon feeding the masses a tremendous amount of hot dogs. It was great to be around the kids as an unofficial "office rat" it felt good to go out and see the work we had been doing all summer come together.

It was also great to come back again and hang out with people that I had met last summer, like Thi and Michelle! I met great new people that had come to the office such as Brianne and Caitlin. I thank all of the people in the office, Brianne, Michelle, Caitlin, Matt, Patty, and Bruce for making this another summer that I could never forget and that I also felt like, again, that I was making a difference in Boston especially for the youth of Boston and the surrounding neighborhoods. I also thank all of the summer staff for doing an amazing job and not driving me too crazy with the blog posts :)

So unlike last summer, a summer of firsts and a little hectic, this summer was calm and great and I was so thankful to come back to Save the Harbor and be an intern again! Everything I've learned will help me so much!

Thanks guys and maybe see you next summer, who knows!

Cassie

A Farewell to Spectacle Island

Last Friday's Beach Event Day in South Boston was amazing! I had a great time. It was so cool to see so many campers come together and just have a day of fun and relaxation, courtesy of Save the Harbor! I was mostly working on Sand Castles, which ended up with of bunch of campers and I digging to strike water (which we eventually did) and campers being buried up to their necks. And even though the stress level seemed to have gone up when lunch began, Save the Harbor did a great job working together; good job guys!

But, my main focus of this blog post was to say my farewells to Spectacle. Although I have only been there three times with Save the Harbor, all my visits granted me some new adventure. My first time was meeting new staff and seeing what the island was all about (by the way, that was my first time ever ON the island); my second time had me flying kite (not going to talk about it); and my final time, which was today, had me kayaking around the island! Thi and I, along with three other people from another group, went kayaking in a sort of informal tour around Spectacle Island. Although the harbor was really choppy, it was such an experience. I have only kayaked on rivers before, and to do it on theharbor for the first time, around such a beautiful island, truly was breathtaking. Later once we came back from All Access I realized what an awesome way that was to end my summer not only at Spectacle, but also at Save the Harbor.

It's not my last blog post, but I still want to say thanks to all my fellow staff and the leaders and senior educators who made this experience for me an unforgettable one. I am going to miss all of you!

Thanks,

David

It's already over?

This summer working for Save the harbor/ Save the Bay went by faster than I thought- maybe too fast. I made a lot of new friends and was able to see a lot of new things, some of which I would've never thought possible. It's crazy because this time last year, I probably wouldn't have seen things how I see them now. This was a good thing for me because I learned how to come out of my shell and adjust to new surroundings. I'm thankful that I had the opportunity to work with Save the harbor/ Save the Bay, I learned a lot and I also grew in some ways. Hopefully I will have the chance to work here next year but until then it was nice getting to know my coworkers and the harbor! See you later!

Last day at AABH

As we draw closer to Spectacle island, I take a minute to reflect on this wonderful summer. The smell of the harbor, the call of the gulls and the shine of the sea glass. I think, what a summer!

Today was a relaxed day. When I was on the top of the island my eyes seem to focus on the view of the city, a nice summer day and the perfect view atop Spectacle. Today, all the little things mattered, from playing with a beach ball in a windy environment, to conversing with my co-workers about where to get good-priced school supplies! The lady at the summer shack even gave me and Manny two cheeseburgers for only $4.00! Now I'm not going to say today was my favorite experience on Spectacle island but it was more of an until we meet again type of situation. I tell you this though; nothing gets better than kicking your feet up and taking a minute to say "I'm on an island!"

... But then it's right back to work. Being apart of the AABH team was definitely the highlight of my summer!

Summertime Splash!

On the weekend of August 12th, Save the Harbor/Save the Bay hosted parties for all of the kids that we have worked with this summer, and their families. The turnout was quite impressive, with about 400 people showing up. The day was jam-packed with painting, sand castle building, fishing, and a touch tank with a lobster inside!

With 400 people comes 400 bellies, so lunch was the most hectic part of the day, with alot of scrambling to get condiments and hot dogs. The staff was prepared with 1,100 hot dogs. We also built a beautiful sand sculpture of the Save the Harbor/ Save the Bay logo! Meanwhile, Timmy, Candido,Will, and I had dug a very deep hole to keep our feet cool.

Another highlight of the day was when the entire staff played ultimate frisbee. Conor was the leader of one team, while Michelle led the other team. Conor's team dominated as he was the ultimate frisbee co-captain at his college. Of course, the most important highlight of the day was when everyone ran into the water to help raise money to help raise money to benefit Boston's beaches. The water was frigid, but everyone still had a blast!

Mayor's Visit

Dear Mayor Menino,

My name is Vinh Tran, and I am a sixteen year old residing in the Boston neighborhood of Dorchester. I currently attend the John D. O’Bryant School of Math and Science. I’ve only been a staffer here at Save the Harbor for the past two months, but during those two months I have already acquired a plethora of knowledge relating to Boston Harbor. If the television show “Who wants to be a Millionaire?” had all of its questions based on Boston Harbor, I’m confident that I would walk home with a million dollars. I love spreading and sharing this knowledge with children younger than myself. I have also grown to love and cherish Boston Harbor, and I would also like to share the same feelings and opportunities with the generations to come.

Not many people get to go out to the islands for a leisurely hike or swim. To fulfill this, I think that Boston Harbor should offer more activities on the many islands such as sand castle building and sand sculpture building. This would attract more and more people to the islands who would appreciate the harbor’s clean and refreshing water. I also think that every island should have their own compost and recycling area so the parks can have less trash. Each of the islands could have installed a compost pile so that organic items could be turned into compost.
The people in the positions of political power can also help improve the harbor by campaigning and asking the public for donations so that the islands can build better facilities. They could also use their political influence to spread the word around all of the state and even the entire nation to help gather funds to benefit the Harbor.

Sincerely,
Vinh Tran

Another Fabulous Summer At Save the Harbor/Save the Bay

This summer, I was so excited to come back to Save The Harbor. Last year was my first year, and I learned a lot of new things and got a chance to see a lot of new places. This year, I came back with everything I learned from last and I had a chance to be able to teach some of our new staff.

It felt good because I remember when I first started. This year I can say that I was more engaging with people. I talked to everybody. I also got to meet a lot of new people, but the best part about it was I wasn't shy or anything.

I just want to say thank you to Save The Harbor because it was this organization who gave me this opportunity to come work with them and learn about the harbor. They also helped me come out of my shell. Now I can actually sit down and explain this whole youth program to somebody without a problem. And I want to thank everyone that was here when I first came for helping me get where I am now. I don't want to say goodbye because I do plan on coming back. So see you next summer!!! (Hopefully)

Mark Rose

Last day at southie

My last day at Southie was the great. It really didn't feel like the last day. Everybody was having fun as usual, enjoying the wonderful weather, relaxing on the beach and out sailing. Me and my co-workers were down on the beach walking with a couple of kids looking for crabs.

We also found a couple of pieces of sea glass. I didn't even know that Southie had sea glass on the beach, so that gave us something teach the kids about even though the kids at Southie know everything!

But some of them were surprised on top of that because I got to work with some of my best friends for the last week of work. Being one of my favorite sites, i will truly miss McDonough and all my Southie kids.

Mark

Party time!

On Friday August 12th Save the Harbor held a huge beach party for 450 people. We had many kids all over the beach in South Boston doing many different activities with the staff. The activities that took place were sports and games, fishing, kite flying, swimming, art and sand castle building. There were many ways for the kids to have fun all on one beach. I personally enjoyed being able to say thank you to everyone for coming and supporting Save the Harbor. All day I witnessed kids having fun and smiles on their faces.

Ours staff did a great job at keeping the kids engaged and made sure that every group had something to do. Lunch was definitely the craziest part of the day, but with all the staff doing what they could to help and our guests being patient things stayed under control. As an instructor for sports and games I enjoyed playing football and soccer with the kids. I learned a new soccer game called world cup which was very fun. Also, playing the football game called Jackpot was entertaining especially since I hadn't played in a long time. All together the day was very successful and it was a Save the Harbor event that I will never forget.


-Will Clark

GoodBye Everyone :(

This was the best summer ever for me with SavetheHarbor/SavethBay.
I loved working with all of you.

I learned a lot and went to places I've never been to. My favorite event was the Summer Splash. I had so much fun working with all of you! I wish we could have spent more time together!

It's hard to say goodbye to each other. I hope all of you have a great rest of the summer. Be safe.

-Candido

Clean Water excitement

On Saturday, our event whas another amazing day.
We all ran down and jumpd into the water with exciment.
Some of us built a SavetheHarbor/SavetheBay logo sandcastle.
We threw some of the staff into the water who didn't want to get wet.

Then we played a frisbee game, but my team lost.
After we took a picture with our Save the Harbor logo sandcastle, and I didn't smile like always! There was aslo a band there! I loved the sound of the thier drum.

-Candido

Final Week

What a way to start off the the final week, with rain. :( Usually the rain brings people's mood down, but not at Camp HarborView! It was nice to see how the fishing club was still so excited to fish. The rain did not stop them from what they love. In the cold rain we fished together. Like any other beautiful sunny day where we collect bait, check the traps and fish we did in this cold, cold rain. The wind was strong and when it smacked your skin you would get chills through your body.

Camp Harbor View kids? The rain was nothing. Not once did a kid say they wanted to be somewhere dry or they wanted to go back indoors. These kids love to fish and I was surprised at their attitudes towards the rain. I loved seeing how focused and full or energy they were. When their camp counselor said it was time to go they all sucked their teeth and whined. All they wanted to do was do what they love, fish!
I know if these kids keep this type of attitude they will go far. Never let anything get in the way of what you love.

-Kristina :)

Last Week

After the fantastic day we had last Friday with all the groups we have been working with though the summer, it only made sense that they would think it was our last day. So today when we showed up for another fun day at Constitution beach, we found that the group had not arrived. They thought Friday was our last day and didn't show up. After waiting for a while, Sheuli made a phone call and eventually the East Boston Y was informed that we were holding program. And so, even though they were only going to have about a half hour of programing by the time they got there, they still decided to make the trip to the beach. And to me, that just shows how well we have done with them this summer and how much they all enjoy spending the day with us. With the limited time we had, we were able to separate them into two smaller groups, one consisting of members that wanted to go exploring, and the others playing games. It ended up being a fun day; a great way to end the summer with the East Boston Y.

~wilshere

Summer Time Splash

Last Friday and Saturday, we held Summer Time Splash at one of the South Boston beaches; both days turned out to be a huge success. On Friday, we invited all the groups we had the pleasure of working with throughout the summer. Over 400 kids were fishing, painting, building sand castles, playing sports flying kites and eating hot dogs. It was a great day to be at the beach. On Saturday, we had much less of a turn out, but it turned into a great day regardless. We built a very impressive symbol for Save the Harbor and got to welcome the Boston light swimmers. It was a fantastic weekend, possibly the best I have had all summer.

~wilshere

Easy fishing on the River

We have never had a bad day fishing at Community Boating. As soon as Annie starts mixing up carp cookies the fish swarm. We can usually reel five fish or more in a very short time, better than any other site. The kids all love to fish and the easy fishing is what makes CBI a really great site.

-Scott Wortman

From the Hub to the Mitten

My, how the time has flown! It seems like just yesterday that we were all arriving for the first day of staff training, but now here were are in the last week of the summer. Working for Save the Harbor this summer has been an absolute blast! Every day I got to outside, play with some really great kids, and help them learn about and enjoy their harbor; you can't ask for a better job than that!

If I had to choose, I would say the highlight of my summer has been working at Camp Harbor View. I forgot to mention this earlier, but on the last day of fishing club, Henry, my pro snail catcher, put his hand in the water, plucked a mussel off the dock, crushed it and put it on a fishing hook himself! Quite an accomplishment for a boy who two weeks earlier was afraid to even touch the water.

An additional highlight for me this summer has been working with and getting to know the rest of the Save the Harbor staff, especially the junior staff. It has been great to watch their confidence and experience grow over the course of the summer!

This week is not only my last week at Save the Harbor, but also my last ever week in Boston. Although I was born in the city and grew up just outside of it, I haven't really gotten to know Boston inside and out until this summer. Next week, I will be moving to Ann Arbor, Michigan to begin my PhD studies at the University of Michigan (Brianne's alma mater!) in ecology and evolutionary biology. While I won't get to be outside or go fishing as much, I will still get to teach and work with snails.

Working for Save the Harbor has given me a new appreciation for the challenges of integrating sound science, education, and policy, some great memories, and a pretty decent tan. All in all, it's been a great summer that I won't soon forget!

-Paula

Crab Count: The Results are In

After a summer of hard work pulling up traps, turning over rocks, and measuring fiesty crabs, it's now time for the fun part: putting all of our data together and looking at the results!

First, some basic numbers:

• In total, we caught and measured 493 individual crabs this summer!
• 270 were Asian shore crabs
• 130 were green crabs
• 89 were red rock crabs
• 4 were spider crabs
• 300 were male and 193 were female
• They ranged in size from a tiny 4mm to a whopping 12.04 cm

From our total numbers, it certainly appears as if invasive Asian shore crabs and green crabs are the dominate species in Boston Harbor, but let's take a closer look at our individual sites.

Asian shore crabs, the most dominant species in our total, are actually only the most common species at two of our six sites: Camp Harbor View on Long Island and the Harry McDonough Sailing Center in South Boston. These sites are both rocky and gravely beaches where we searched for crabs in the intertidal zone (the area between the high and low tide marks which is sumberged for only part of the day). Asian shore crabs do very well in the intertidal zone because they are better than other crab species at tolerating the dryer conditions of this habitat.
Black's Creek in Quincy is also a gravely beach where we searched for crabs in the intertidal zone, but we found almost exclusively green crabs at this site. Why no Asian shore crabs?
Black's Creek is a Salt Marsh Estuary where fresh water mixes with ocean water and lowers the salinity. Green crabs are very tolerant of a wide range of different salinities, but Asian shore crabs can't survive as well in the low salinity of Black's Creek.
Green crabs are dominant at Piers Park Sailing Center in East Boston, Courageous Sailing Center in Charlestown, and in Fort Point Channel at the Boston Children's Museum as well. These crabs were introduced to New England in the early 1800's; their quick reproduction and adaptability to a wide range of conditions have allowed them to easily outcompete native crabs, so it is no surprise that we found so many of them.
At Piers Park, Courageous, and the Children's Museum, we caught crabs from the subtidal zone (the area that is always submerged, even at low tide) using traps. At these sites, we saw two additional spcies of crabs that are not as tolerant of the dryer intertidal zone. Red rock crabs were common at Piers Park and Courageous, and spider crabs were found at Piers Park and the Children's Museum. Although we never saw the sea floor at these locations, the species of crabs that we found at each of them can actually tell us a little bit about what the bottom is like! Red Rock crabs (as you can probably guess from the name) like habitats with lots of rocks, while spider crabs (a type of mud crab), prefer muddy bottoms. Based on the data we collected, Courageous probably has a more rocky bottom, Fort Point Channel has a more muddy bottom and Piers Park likely has a mixture of both.
This is only a small example of the kinds of things we can learn from the crab count information we've collected this summer. We'll be sending all of our data along to Dr. Judy Pederson at MIT who will use it to study the spread of invasive species. Hopefully, she'll keep us posted on what she finds!
-Paula

Horrible weather=Great day to catch fish

Yesterday's weather was awful, but despite the nasty weather
we still managed to catch some sunfish, catfish, and eels.

The most fascinating thing about yesterday was this spectacular girl
who had her own method for fishing.

It was so successful that she caught not 1, not 2 but 3 fish.

Her method was to drop her line in directly off the dock
and hold the line while laying on her stomach and look into the water
so she knew when the fish were coming.

To be honest I didn't think it would work but it did
and I regret doubting her method completely.

-Mekhi

Super woman

Hello people!
This week I was at Piers Park and Courageous Sailing Center with Paula and Scott. The day was like every other day at Piers Park. We play games and go fishing and try to get some lobsters.
As for Couragoues Sailing Center, we got a lobster, crabs, star fish, and a little girl got a fish! The day was fun. I got to go sailing with the sailing people. After the program was over, me and Paula stayed for extended time. That's when the little girl caught her fish. The kids started to leave, and after everyone left, I fell into the water! Paula screamed and she pulled me out the water. Super man style!
~ Manny ~

Ultimate Fun!

Summertime Splash was an exciting day. It was exciting because I had the opportunity to fly kites with all the different kids and just enjoy the nice weather. The highlights of my day were actually getting a kite to fly in the air for a little girl. Watching her smile made me light up with joy. Another highlight was ultimate frisbee; I've never played an organized game of frisbee before saturday. My most memorable moment of Summertime Splash was trying and successfully fighting off the staff not to throw me in the water. I love these type of events because not only does it give you the opportunity to have fun with the kids it also forces you to bond with your co-workers. I can't wait till the next event this saturday.

-Mekhi

Beach party

Hey guys!

Last week I was at a beach party for all the kids, and some great food was provided by Bruce and Patty. I was with Hugues,Mikay,Aruna and Carolyn. We went kite flying. I had a lots fun there and I'm sure the kids did too. All the kids got to jump into the water together, which was a lot of fun for them. Most of the kids that were lucky enough to fly kites got their kites up and running quick. I personally had so much fun there because I got to run around a little, and I got to do all the good stuff they had there.

~ Manny ~

Saving The Harbor

Dear Mr.Menino,

My name is Mekhi Wright-Hopkins and I am 15 years old. I am from Dorchester, MA and I go to Proctor Academy: a private boarding school in New Hampshire. I work for Save The Harbor/Save The Bay, and my experience with working with this organization was extraordinary.

They have taught me so much such as: fishing, setting crab traps, and pulling up lobster traps. Not only does this organization work on the skills you need to work here, but they also teach you leadership, patience, responsibility, and many other life skills.

As a younger activist in my community, one of my suggestions to further the Harbor's success even more is having more "beach events" in more diverse areas such as Dorchester, Cambridge, or Brighton, to name a few. The other events in Quincy are awesome but, it doesn't involve urban city kids that much. It also leaves those kids that aren't from Quincy or other surrounding areas ignorant about the harbor. I bet many of those kids who can't make it to these "beach events" that are far out don't even know that the we have one of the cleanest Harbors in America! My wish, Mayor Menino, is that you expand your beach fun to make it accessible to every neighborhood of Boston! Thank you for taking the time to listen to my thoughts and suggestions.

-Mekhi

Goodbye, Boston!

Being from California, I had never heard of a ‘clambake’ before, nor had I ever had lobster (I know, pity me!). But if that picture is any indication of how good that guy tasted, then you can be pretty sure I’ll be back for another one!

A few of us went out to Spectacle Island, where we were served delicacies of the New England type. Your regular lobster, clams, and mussels, along with some potatoes and corn. Then we passed the time by talking and watching the sunset fade behind the Boston skyline, as the skyline itself began to light up the night.

What a great way to wrap up my internship at Save the Harbor. Flying out from LA, I didn’t know exactly what to expect in terms of my duties and responsibilities, but I definitely didn’t expect to sail out to Spectacle Island to talk to kids about what they were learning so that I could go back and write up a relevant press release. Nor did I expect to do research on the history of Spectacle Island and help put together a “Treasures of Spectacle Island” pamphlet that would be used on the island as a resource to explain the abundance of sea glass and pottery, and other artifacts on the shore.

I learned a lot about what I might like to do (and not do!) over the course of the summer and from this internship. I know it will serve as a stepping stone for doing something worthwhile down the road.

Thanks to everyone at Save the Harbor and I hope to see you all very soon!

Autri

Rain GO AWAY!

On Monday, it was raining a lot, and it felt worst while at Camp Harbor View. The rules is that rain or shine fishing club must fish as long as there is no thunder or lightning. So I am glad I came prepared with a rain jacket, because it was raining hard!

The kids were not as prepared, and I thought they would complain the whole time. So Sarah, Paula, and the rest of our group decided we would scream "this is great," every time a kid complained. Not one child complained though , they were all ready to fish! It ended up being a lot more fun then usual, because all the kids enjoyed fishing in different weather. We did not catch a fish but we had lots of fun, and we eventually got out of the rain. Something I found interesting was, when it was raining kids were a lot more concentrated on fishing.

Only one child tangled their fishing rod when usually our staff sits and untangles rod about every five minutes. I do not wish to get rained on again, but I can not wait to go back to Camp Harbor View to a group of kids excited and prepared to fish.

-Liz Torres

Rainy Day at the Children's Museum

Although yesterday was a rainy day, we were still able to have a great day INSIDE the Children's Museum. Because of the weather, we decided to hold an indoor touch tank exhibit. We had a live lobster for the kids to pick up and learn about. It felt a lot like a beach event! The touch tank attracted a ton of kids too! Everyone that passed by wanted a chance to touch the lobster. It was a big hit! It was really awesome to be able to reach out to even more kids then we usually see. This was the first time I had ever done a touch tank inside the museum and I was glad it went so well. In the future, this might be a cool thing to have in addition to the fishing and crabbing outside. I would definetely say we made the most of a bad weather day.

Some Ultimate Disc For An Ultimate Saturday

This Saturday, we found ourselves returning to the Curly Rec Center for the second day in a row. The event was the Summer Splash which was an open beach event for friends of the Harbor and was occurring just as swimmers from the Boston Harbor Light Race were crossing the finish line. Before we had a big old splash in the Boston Harbor to celebrate the South Boston beaches for having the cleanest urban beaches in America, we decided to organize a quick game of Ultimate Disc between members of the staff. Ultimate Disc is played with a Frisbee and is very much like a cross between basketball and football. You attempt to throw a pass into the touchdown zone without getting blocked or letting it touch the ground. Also, When in possession of the disc, the player must establish a pivot foot and remained rooted to the very spot. They then must pass the disc to one of their teammates before the opposing player covering them counts to ten "stalls". Michelle and I were the two captains who selected teams. My team worked extremely hard and there work paid off, we soundly crushed the our coworkers. Everyone preformed really well but I got to hand it to Leon with his game changing interceptions and Ahmed with his fantastic touchdowns. After the game we later ran into my buddy Paddy, a young sailor at The McDonough Sailing Center. He ended up playing toss with Tommy and I, where he was not ashamed to show off his Frisbee skills. Paddy started off the summer not knowing how to throw. But this year he has pretty much mastered all the throws. I was very impressed and hope that him and the other Southie kids keep up with the sport. South Boston could rival Amherst as the new hots spot for Youth Ultimate.
Take Care,

Conor B. Newman

Splashing in the Harbor

Friday, August 12. I had no idea what to expect for this event that has been looming over my head for at least a month. Conor, BJ, and I, as part of the Youth Committee, were hosting the Summertime Splash at the Curly Community Center. The day before the event, I realized I had my own station and had to prepare the murals and posters for the kids to color in. It took me the entire day and night for me to be satisfied with my work. I had drawn a huge flounder, an oilfish, and a 30 ft long seabed with 8 signs. I woke up bright and early to arrive at the center by 8:30, lugging along the signs that I had painted only a few hours before. As the entire staff helped set up all the stations, my excitement grew and grew. We sang the famous sea shanty, Haul Away JOE! The moment that ended, every single person lined up along the shore and at the count of four, we all ran in at once!

I had so much fun with all the groups that came! I want to thank everyone who made it happen and made it an AMAZING day!

Thi Tran

Beach Party !!

Friday Aug. 12, 2011 we had a very cool beach party. The beach Party was really fun and i enjoyed it alot. That day was just for the children from all over, from different neighborhoods in our community. We had many different actives for the kids, flying kites, fishing, sand castles, sports center, art, and the best of all was the history about the Harbor Island. I never seen so many kids all in one place running around, enjoying their day at the beach with their friends. The BEST thing that happened that day was when EVERYBODY ran into the beach all at the same time. That was really fun and funny!! We give out food, drinks, and fuirts and veggies to EVERYBODY!! at the end we had to clean up, now that part was very funny becuase every one was saying they already did somehting oh man that made my day evern better !!

-Diana Gomez