Time for Programming

We finally get to start programming! I got to start my summer at Piers Park, a beautiful park located in East Boston. It is a sailing center for young kids ages (roughly) 5-9, and it was a blast! Some kids were returning, and knew about all the fun things we were going to dive into, but the new kids were surprised by all the fun activities. We were able to fish, sail, crab/mino trap, kayak and more. We played some fun ice breaking games, so that we got to know each other and started our week with some fun! For the following two days, I was at a very familiar site: All Access Boston Harbor. We went out to Spectacle Island, and we caught a 17 inch fish! We also swam, played some football, and had a whole lot of fun.

We caught some animals this week, ranging from fish to crabs. In particular we caught green and spider crabs. Green crabs are cool because beside each eye they have five little spikes that you can use to spell out green. We also taught the kids how to differentiate between a male a female crab, by observing its stomach! Spider crabs stole the show however. From puny to giant, we caught a boat load of spider crabs! Spider crabs have a more scary type of look, but they are actually a lot more calm in my opinion. They are also covered in algae from the ocean floor where they live, establishing a mutual relationship by giving the algae a place to live, and the crab some decent camouflage so that they will not be noticed by predators.

spider crab dun dun dun

To close out the week, I am going to be celebrating July 4th with some friends. I am going to start by going to Singing Beach in Manchester, NH. I hope to play some spike ball, eat a nice breakfast, and get ready for the long night of fireworks at a beach near my house.











Until next week,
Qalid

STHSTB Annual Marine Mammals Safari Hunt!

     This weekend marked Save the Harbor/Save the Bay's annual Marine Mammals Safari Cruise! This was my first time on the trip, exploring the harbor in search of seals and porpoises willing to surface and say hello on the rainy day. 

     The clouds made identifying the sea critters increasingly difficult, especially the porpoises whose brief appearances could be missed in the blink of eye! From the looks on the passengers' many faces, however, this did not detract from the amount of fun had from catching a glimpse of one of these marine mammals peering their heads out of the water. Nor did it deter them! I saw many a passenger equipped with binoculars, bouncing from one deck to the next in hopes of being the next one to announce a sighting. Admittedly many blunders were made; driftwood being mistaken for porpoises; buoys being taken for seals. I myself may have announced a sighting or two that panned out to be nothing more than a bobbing cormorant head. 

     Though I enjoyed spotting the different marine mammals "porpoising" about the harbor, the highlight of the trip came at its close, when the STHSTB staff and myself escorted the passengers off the ship and shared our last farewells. The many thanks and words of appreciation we received from the exiting voyagers and their families reaffirmed for me the importance of the organization's mission to provide Boston's neighborhoods and communities with opportunities like these affording the city's inhabitants the chance to interact directly with its beautiful harbor! 

Good to be Home!

Max gearing up for the rope course at Camp Harbor View

Hello everybody! For those that do not already know me, my name is Maxwilliams Iwuala and I am a senior Biology major attending Stonehill College. I have worked with Save the Harbor Save the Bay's summer programming in previous years, but have recently made a return to the company working as a project assistant aiding in the review of their 2017 summer curriculum.

I was raised in Boston for nearly my whole life and have visited many a beach in the Boston area. It was not until, however, working with Save the Harbor Save the Bay during my sophomore year of college that I was able to appreciate the beauty and liveliness of the Boston Harbor and the region's public beaches. More importantly, though, I realized the numerous extraordinary experiences I had been missing while living in the harbor's very backyard. 

Max instructing a young camper how to cast a fishing rod

I can still remember my first time fishing off of a boat in the harbor with Camp Harbor View’s fishing club hosted by Save the Harbor Save the Bay; my memory becomes a bit hazy when trying to recall whether or not I actually reeled in any fish that day, however, I will never forget the excitement and sense of adventure the trip inspired in all of the young fishermen and women and myself. From the looks of the faces on some of the young campers I could easily discern this too was their first time fishing on the waves, untethered from any semblance of seashore. It was then that Save the Harbor Save the Bay’s mission became real to me; aside from the abundance of fun had by both the staff and the thousands of children participating in our summer programs, there is an indisputable commitment to sharing the local beaches, harbor and Boston harbor islands alike, with underserved youth communities inhabiting this great city that otherwise may not enjoy the opportunity to do so. I have experienced firsthand the impact of such opportunities and have since refocused my aim to assisting Save the Harbor Save the Bay in extending these experiences to the countless children reached by the company’s community programming!

Max searching for invasive species along the shores of Long Island