Belle and the Castle (A Very Fishy Tale!)

     This week my group was stationed at Castle Island in South Boston. Between the constant roaring of planes taking off from nearby Logan Airport and the clanks of metal shipping containers coming from the shipping facility next door our group was able to discuss our topic of the week, fisheries! I myself, starting out this week asked the question, what in the world is a fishery? However, I have learned that a  fishery is the area in which fish are caught or processed and sold consumer markets.  When I heard this week’s theme my first thought was “Michael must be really excited to talk about fishing” as Michael, our staff expert on fishing, and I have had many conversations about fishing in New England. 

Our team hard at work preparing and baiting the hooks, we used Flounder and Sea Bass Hooks with Squid as bait! 

        As someone who is by no means an expert at fishing, I was excited this week to learn as much as possible about fishing, as it is something that I want to do more in my spare time. This week I was able to learn about the types of fish in Boston. The most common fish caught around Boston Harbor are Black Sea Bass, Skates, Flukes, Flounder, and Stripers. I did also learn that Flukes or Summer Flounder often eat other fish like the Black Sea Bass, which I thought it would be the other way around!

First catch of the day! I caught a Black Sea Bass, watch out for that razor sharp spine!

    We were pretty lucky to have our fishing trip scheduled for this past week! We got to take a few hours to take a tour on Charlie’s fishing boat “The Belle”. Charlie and I got the chance to talk about the parts of the fishing rod (who knew there were so many parts?). He also showed me a technique to catch Black Sea Bass by moving the rod up and down once the weight hits bottom, and I ended up with the first catch of the day! All in all we had a great week catching fish (and some rays) as a team! 

The team catching some rays on the way back to shore! We had to take a silly picture on the bow of The Belle!

Our group is excited for our final week of the season next week so stay tuned (or tuna-ed!) 

Stay salty, 

Caroline

Environmental Justice & Carson Beach Fun!

Heyy everyone,

    This week my group and I got to hang out at Carson Beach! We set up a piece of paper as our mural with the question "what's your favorite thing about Boston's Beaches?" written at the top. We asked people to answer that question by drawing or writing and got to hear their stories which was really cool to hear. We dug for clams and my shoes got really muddy so that was kinda sad but it's fine. On Wednesday our group got to go out to Spectacle Island with David Coffin who told us all about the island and its history. We collected some cool sea-glass, I really liked finding the bottle necks and pretending they were rings. After leaving the sea-glass on the beach we hiking up to the top of the island which was quite the workout, but once we got back down we got to swim and that was great way to end the day. To wrap up the week we had a little staff kayaking trip on the Charles, also QUITE the workout, but I got to talk to other groups I hadn't met yet and friends I hadn't seen in a while, I had so much fun :)).

    This week we have been talking about environmental justice, which is giving everyone the resources they need to protect and clean their environment regardless of race, color, income or anything as well as enforcing environmental policies. The Office of Environmental Justice has done some amazing work such as assisting overburdened and under-served communities to find solutions to local environmental and human health challenges, creating youth programs and workshops to educate, reducing disparities in childhood blood lead levels and making sure all people served by small community and tribal water systems have drinking water that meets applicable health-based standards. I think making sure everyone has clean drinking water is one of the most important and interesting steps that the OEJ is taking for environmental justice. So many diseases are caused by unclean water and if cleaning it can keep a small community safe from an epidemic then it is so worth it. No one should have to worry about whether or not the water they're drinking is safe or not, environmental injustice is a problem everywhere and the OEJ as well as Save the Harbor are doing our part to try and stop it. An example of environmental injustice occurred in Flint, Michigan during the water crisis. Almost half of those who live there are below the poverty line, and more than 50% are people of color. Flint residents noticed the water quality drop almost immediately, and began to complain about it. State Officials responded by publicly dismissing those concerns and to issue false assurances to them. They were ignored by the officials who were then slow to respond to the problem because the neighborhood didn't have the resources they needed, a classic case of environmental injustice. Another example of environmental injustice that relates more to our city is the number of hazardous waste sites in lower income communities. In an article written by Northeastern, there was a chart I read that used a system that gave each waste facility points based on how dangerous it was, totaled with the other facilities in each neighborhood. Comparing those points with the income rates was astonishing. In Downtown Boston (low income area) there was a total of 224 points, verses Charlestown (medium income area) that has 134. A significant difference and a clear example of environmental injustice. To spread more awareness about this injustice we can educate others as we are doing with this program and like we did in our video at Carson Beach this week. Environmental injustice is something you see first hand in Boston, the nice beaches in some neighborhoods verses the ones in bad shape and that no one really goes to because they aren't cleaned up like others. It's such a sad thing to see in your own city, knowing that there is such a gap between your neighborhood and someone else's. Working for Save the Harbor you also get to see those sites and the difference in how each of them look, but now we have the power to educate others and to speak out about it in our videos, and I am really grateful for being able to make change.

Sea you out there,

-Jane

Erickson, Jim. “Flint Water Crisis Is the Most Egregious Example of Environmental Injustice, Says Researcher.” Phys.org, Phys.org, 22 Oct. 2018, phys.org/news/2018-10-flint-crisis-egregious-environmental-injustice.html.

Faber, Daniel R. Unequal Exposure to Ecological Hazards: Environmental Injustices in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. faculty.uml.edu/sgallagher/Environmental_Hazards-MA.pdf.

Orientation blog

Hey guys!!

     My name is Che. I go to Excel Academy Charter High School in East Boston. I play basketball both on my school team and outside of school I play on an AAU team. Besides basketball, fishing is also really fun and I always have a fun time waiting and hoping a fish gets hooked on to my rod. The excitement when the fish does hook on is amazing.

     I live in Charlestown and I am glad to be part of Save the Harbor. I grew up in Boston all my life and I always had a good time near the water and harbor. During orientation, I learned so much about the harbor, it was amazing how hard the community worked to clean up the harbor. We learned that the Boston Harbor was the dirtiest harbor until we came to a realization that this is hurting the water animals and also us. Then we made a lot of technology that helped us clean the harbor. We burned all the trash we threw into the water and once all of it burned we started fresh and made sure to keep our harbor clean. Now after all of our hard work, the Boston Harbor is one of the cleanest harbors in the country.

     The marine animals such as fish in the harbor are very nice, each fish has their own type of look, the weirdest looking one that kind of freaked me out was the skate, it had human-like eyes and it curled into a ball which was kind of weird. We also learned about the Black-striped sea bass and that they are overfished, so if you do catch one you should put it back because if we do keep fishing them they will become extinct. But if we let them live there won't just be a lot more, they will also keep getting bigger over time.

Kamal catching a fish!!

     All 3 days of orientation were very fun but I liked the fishing part on the second day the most. It was good seeing everybody patiently waiting for a fish to hook on and their faces, when they did catch one, was priceless. They had so much joy on their face. Although I didn't catch a fish, I had a lot of fun waiting for a fish and hanging out with my peers. I had a good time talking to everyone and getting the opportunity to get to know everybody.

A running game we played during the first day of orientation

Sincerely,
Che Hanks

First Day

Hello everybody,

My name is Aidan Haney, and I'm a new Junior Harbor Educator working with Save the Harbor Save the Bay Summer Youth Program. I've been to Boston beaches and been on the water many times before, so I'm looking forward to many great days ahead with the SHSB team!

I was born and raised in Holbrook, Massachusetts and I am going to school at Holbrook Middle High School. During some of my earliest years as a kid, I spent lots of my time learning and observing animals, mostly birds and aquatic life. I've always held a deeper interest in the denizens of the oceans, mostly due to their bizarre forms and varying organisms, and it makes me excited that I get to be even more up close with them than I ever have before.

My time spent at orientation was amazing. The first day of going to Spectacle Island was a blast. My first impression of Spectacle, during the summer about a year ago, wasn't too good, since I could only hike around accompanied by my brother, and my sister Patrice was working. But playing games and being able to make friends and interact with others around me made the day about as good as any summer day could get. Also, I never would've thought that Spectacle, when it was a trash dump, would burn for ten years straight, even through storms of rain and snow! I also found it a little funny that a whole dump truck once sunk into the rotting abyss (luckily the driver was retrieved safely).

I'm the one in the black sweater in the front row, holding a flounder.

The second day when we went fishing was also a great time. I was relieved the boat didn't smell like the unholiest amount of fish on Earth, and I took great enjoyment with the scenery, surfing out across Logan Airport watching planes go by, and the city of Boston disappear in the fog that day. Unfortunately, I didn't catch any fish, but it didn't stop me from marveling at what others caught, like flounders, skates, and one large black sea bass. I never knew that before the harbor was clean, the flounder had tumors and disease, which was identified by observing the normally white belly of the flounder. It was hysterical to have everyone sing along while Bridget taught us "Haul Away Joe" and the Fisherman song.

Watching a friend bait a hook

The third day of orientation had me settle in at the Children's Museum, where we got to play around Martin's Park, built in honor of Martin Richard, a victim of the Boston Marathon Bombing, where I was able to embrace my inner child and enjoy the big slide and mist area.

Anyways, that's all I've got to say this week. As I said before, I look forward to the following weeks with the  Save the Harbor Save the Bay crew.

Until next time,

Aidan

REELy excited for this summer!

Hello all!

     My name is Tessa, I’m a new Senior Harbor Educator working with the Summer Youth Programs. I’m new to Boston and so excited to spend this summer getting to know the city through my time teaching on the Harbor.

     I was born and raised in Charlottesville, Virginia and attended college at William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. After graduating, I moved up to New England to work in environmental education. As a kid, I visited New England every summer, and always loved my time near the water and seeing all the ocean stewardship that so many wonderful organizations work for in the area. I have spent the last two years working for The Ecology School in Maine, The Seacoast Science Center in New Hampshire, and substitute teaching. I’ve always had a love for nature and a passion for sharing its wonders, but have found a new level of joy through teaching students about local ecology.

Fish head, most likely tuna, that I found in a New England Salt Marsh!

     I’m very excited to continue working with students on the water this summer. Orientation was a blast and confirmed that it is going to be a great summer. I feel lucky to get to work with so many high school and college students who call Boston home and are so ready to share their knowledge with me. Throughout orientation I enjoyed the opportunity to swap expertise and passion with the students; me teaching about some marine animals and them teaching me about the history of Boston Harbor and Save the Harbor, Save the Bay. I was equally impressed by the returning staff sharing their knowledge as well as the new staff with their willingness to jump right in. I am so excited to get to not only teach young students this summer but also to work with our awesome high school staff.

     This past week I learned just a tiny fraction of the history of Boston Harbor, and yet what I learned is already so fascinating. I was particularly interested in learning about the waste treatment plant on Deer Island. Humans produce lots of waste, of many forms, and it is wonderful to hear about large initiatives to properly dispose of this waste. Hearing stories and seeing the evidence of the work that so many people have put into cleaning up Boston Harbor gives me hope for humanities’ ability to reduce our waste in many other places. I look forward to learning more about waste-reduction initiatives currently happening in Boston in order to keep our waters and land clean.

     Our fishing trip on Tuesday was especially exciting because I always love getting hands-on with salt-water creatures. Over the past few years, I’ve learned a lot about shore-dwelling creatures, so it was wonderful to get a chance to go out into the channel and bring up some animals that live offshore. I particularly loved learning about using different weights and different fishing methods for catching different types of fish. I never knew that you should have your line a few feet above the bottom with a jig in order to catch Black Sea Bass. Bruce Berman, our director of strategy & communications, was especially patient with teaching me some of the finesse it takes to hook a bass. I have only dappled with fishing when I was young and I’m so excited to get better at it this summer. It is so wonderful to bring up healthy fish that are benefiting from human’s efforts to protect and clean the harbor.

Having a blast on our orientation fishing trip with Damani, Michael, Stephanie, and Dee

     I am so excited about all of the adventures and new relationships that this summer will bring. I can’t wait to get out on the shore with our staff and the students we serve next week!

CATCH you later,
Tessa

Hooked on a Feeling

Boston, where the first American lighthouse was built in the harbor in 1716. The harbor an essential part to the city of Boston for tourists and residents. While scrolling on Instagram, I came across the Save the Harbor Save the Bay page and I was instantly interested in their programs and philosophy. I saw that the organization was hiring for a summer Senior Harbor Educator position, my expertise with children and high school students encouraged me to apply. 

I was offered the opportunity to work for Save the Harbor Save the Bay, an organization that is the leading voice for clean water in the region. I moved to Boston from Chicago to work as a Senior Harbor Educator. Back home, I devote a large portion of my time to Best Buddies and I work with children who are on the autism spectrum. I have always had an interest in marine and environmental studies but never had the courage to apply to a position that wasn't my speciality. The first week of orientation changed that for me. 

Orientation, the night before jitters began, thousands of question and worries that I had before my first day (i.e. I don't know how to fish, never met any of the staff before...) On Monday, we met as a team I was kindly greeted by Kristen, Bridget and the rest of the staff that I would be spending my summer with. Everyone was friendly and enthusiastic, those jitters and worries immediately went away. 
Once we got onto to the boat, I realized that- what an opportunity this is, an honor for me to be at SHSB. We made it to Spectacle Island which was interesting to learn how it was a landfill. The story behind it really taught me something, that if there's a group of people that want to change something they could with persistence and patience, once a landfill; now a beautiful beach to swim and hike at. I was hooked on a feeling and I knew that this summer position was off to a great start. There is nothing better than a job that allows you to learn and work simultaneously.

At Spectacle Island, we played this magnificent “Shipwreck” game that tested our ability to listen to directions closely and bond with our peers. I would have to say that was my favorite part of orientation. 

The second day of orientation was all about FISHING. A sport I am not familiar with, but was able to "catch" on quickly. I touched a sea worm- which hands down is the ugliest creature I have came across, it bites, squirms and is hairy. I learned how to to tie a knot and put bait on a hook. I didn't catch a fish, but I held one! (FLOUNDER MAN). Now, I will enjoy fishing because the staff and peers made it an amazing time. Seeing the students get thrilled about catching a fish and not having to use their phone to have a good time gave me a great feeling. In a world of technology, seeing teens enjoy their peer's company and not being glued to their phones is an exceptional thing to see! 

I know this summer will teach me more about marine life but I am positive that this experience will impact me and change the way I look at patience, persistence and enjoying the moment I'm in. 

Crab ya later, 
Katerina 

Oh my COD, we’re ready for another great summer!

And just like that, we are back for another summer on Boston Harbor!  We are this summer’s dream team, a duo unmatched by any other, full of energy and enthusiasm, teaching experience and love for marine life.  We are Kristen Barry, Director of Youth Programming and Bridget Ryan, Lead Teacher for the Summer Youth Programs! We thrive in running the day to day operations for the program and are in charge of a staff of 35 which includes post-grads, college students, and high school students. We have been patiently awaiting the start of the summer, as we are excited to get to know the new staff, see the returners, and help to share the harbor with Boston’s youth!

I (Kristen) am back for my FIFTH summer at Save the Harbor! As a former Senior Harbor Educator stationed at Camp Harbor View, I am thrilled to be back for summer 2019 - this time getting to experience all of the sites that Save the Harbor works at. Having worked as a science and math teacher and coach for the previous three years, I am eager for the summer programming to start so that I have the opportunity to work not only with the kids that Save the Harbor programs with, but more so the youth staff that brings the energy to the job each day. I currently live in Cambridge, and love to swim, hike, bike, run, and do really anything that gets me outside (which Save the Harbor summers are perfect for!)

I (Bridget) am back for my SEVENTH summer at Save the Harbor!  During the year you can find me teaching government and politics to 8th and 12th graders at the John D. O’Bryant in Roxbury and coaching the Girls Varsity Soccer and Softball teams.  But when it comes to the summer, I’m ready to catch lobsters, take trips to Spectacle and Georges Islands, and enrich the lives of thousands of kids as they discover the wonder that is Boston Harbor. One of the greatest aspects of this job are the kids who work for us! I have been very lucky to have O'Bryant students become summer staffers for the past six years - and the kids we have this year are incredible! I live in South Boston and love walking around Castle Island and enjoying the cleanest urban beaches in the country!

Going with our summer theme of FUN, we kicked off orientation with a trip out to Spectacle Island accompanied by our Boston Harbor Historian David Coffin. On the cruise out to the island, David pointed out significant landmarks along the way, and shared with us the history of the Boston Harbor cleanup. Not only did we learn that the solid waste coming from the toilets of Boston is repurposed into fertilizer that is sent to Florida in order to help oranges grow, but we also learned about the fiery history of Spectacle Island. What piqued our interest was the tale of the bulldozer that sunk deep into the piles of trash that covered Spectacle Island before it was transformed into the beautiful island that we spent the day on.

Day two brought us out on The Belle with Captain Charlie for a fishing trip. It seemed as though the old wives tale that you catch more fish in the rain may be true, as we did not see a shortage of flounder, blackfish, black sea bass, and skates. We motored out around Long Island, and as soon as we dropped lines, the fish began to bite. Each staff member got the opportunity to fish, whether they were a seasoned fisherman or it was their first time holding a fishing rod. We learned how to line a fishing rod, how to put a sea worm on a hook to use as bait, how to remove hooks from the mouth of fish, and much more! The senior harbor educators took this time to not only get to know their staff a bit better, but also teach them all they knew about the different species that we were catching. As a treat, we prepared ceviche and sashimi with fresh fish for everyone to enjoy.

Our favorite part of orientation was hands down playing games with David on the field on Spectacle! It was amazing to see the energy and teamwork with which each person approached the challenges presented to them. Our staff took this opportunity to get to know each other, and show how supportive and communicative they are on a daily basis. If these games were any indication of what is in store for our team this summer, then it will surely be the best one yet!

What keeps us coming back to Save the Harbor each summer is the connections that we make with our youth staff, the kids on Boston Harbor, and how much fun it is to spend the day outside fishing, crabbing, and learning more about the urban natural resource that is the harbor.

See you on the water!

Kristen & Bridget

Pirates Sail Through Fog

Hello Ladies and Gentleman,

On Sunday the 18th of September, Save the Harbor/ Save the Bay(S.T.H./S.T.B.) was hosting a free trip to Spectacle Island! The fog that was present that day was absolutely abnormal. If I wasn't so excited to see the fog, the atmosphere could've been seen as an eerie. We had  sign up list that indicated that roughly a thousand folks would join us that day, but due to the fog and weather conditions, a lot of folks got deterred. On our journey to Spectacle Island, the fog was so thick out in the harbor that anything beyond fifty feet was not visible. The usual Boston skyline was not present, nor was there the usual vast blue sky.

Figure 1. After several hours, a lot of the fog had cleared up, however one could still see how much fog was present in the horizon.

With a majority of the S.T.H. staff geared up in pirate wear, we cruised to the island and started our sections of fishing, fish printing, kite flying and hiking! 

 Figure 2. Shown in the picture above is the Hula-hoop section, where folks gathered around to show their exquisite talents.

After fish printing with Schup, Mackerel, and Flounder for about three hours I can say I saw a lot of interesting things that day. At around 10:30 AM, I saw a mom attempt to fly a kite. She went for a chaotic run to try and fly the kite high enough to get it up in the air. After a failed attempt, I tried to get the kite going.  I retired my short lived kite flying career after my attempt and offered it to the kids that were eager to follow my foot steps by running with the kite. Visitors left and right came up to view if the fish we were using were real. People shared their stories like where they are from and what they do as a profession. I had the chance to meet this one guy from the Philippines who was a professional photographer. He ended up taking photos for folks who had children fish printing. This professional photographer worked with Times Magazine. Once Times Magazine was mentioned, folks were voluntarily offering to be in the photos taken by the Professional photographer!

Figure 3. One of the kids that enjoyed fish printing volunteered for a photo opportunity! 

Figure 4. A view from the top of the boat of some of the lovely visitors that we had that day aboard with us to and back from Spectacle Island.

Thank you guys for reading another blog post from myself, I hope you'll catch my next post whenever that will be.

Raymond Chai

See ya Spectacle!

 For one last time, Hello Boston!

Max giving a final crab talk

Jaiden teaching proper fishing technique

It is with a heavy heart that I write about my last week on Spectacle Island! Thursday we made one final trip out to the island for the summer. Max and I orchestrated fishing and welcomed families that were joining us for the day. We met so many lovely people who were extremely grateful for the opportunity to fish and try things they had never done before. In true Spectacle Island fashion, we caught a good amount of crabs. One luck boy caught 3 in a row! The kids and adults had a fantastic time hanging out on the pier with us, playing with crabs, and perfecting their side casts. Once fishing came to an end, we took one last plunge into the cold water. Even though the water seemed colder than usual, we welcomed the chill and appreciated our final swim all together.

Qalid and Vince at the Dorchester Beach Festival

This Saturday was also my last event through Save The Harbor/Save the Bay. I attended the Dorchester Beach Festival to complete one more round of fish printing. We set up next to a shark sand sculpture and greeted children as they arrived with their families. Although we faced a few reluctant people, we talked everyone who passed us into printing a fish. We had some pretty creative outcomes including polka dots and rainbow fish.

This summer has been an incredible one to say the least. I have learned so much about Boston and the harbor, I have tried new things almost daily, and I have met some very wonderful people. Save the Harbor/Save the Bay is an amazing program and I am grateful to have been a part of it. 

A great summer team!

I will be on George's Island for the last week of the summer so stop on by!

I really do hope I sea you out there,

Jennifer Leiendecker

Reuniting with Spectacle Island

The big playing field at spectacle!

Today was the first time this summer I got to go to Spectacle island. Last year, I went a couple of times since I was on All Access, but this was my very first time this summer. Coming back to Spectacle was awesome because I remembered a couple of things we learned about the island from last year, so it was a refresher to hear all the things that I had forgotten, like how it was an island built on trash, and about the big bulldozer that sank at the very top of all the trash that used to be there, and so many more other cool things. 

Before we left to get on the boat I remember David telling the kids that whether they had been on the island before or not, to try and do something they've never done before. So I decided to try something new myself. Last year, every time I came to Spectacle I always did fishing and never really bothered to even try sports. So this time, I decided to go for it and play sports with the kids which ended up being way more fun than I imagined. 

We asked the kids which sport they wanted to play and they all ended up saying kickball so we broke up into two teams and played. I didn't think the smaller kids were so competitive, but they were, which made the game not only a whole lot of fun but also very meaningful to them. After my team was losing 6 to 1, we stepped up our game and started making more home runs. It was nice to see how supportive the kids were of each other and cheering themselves on. Unfortunately my team lost with 6 points while the other team won with with 10 points. However, it was a very fun game and I enjoyed breathing the fresh Spectacle Island air and being out in the sun playing an awesome game of kickball with the kids. I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend the day at Spectacle. Most importantly I tried something I had never done before and so did many of the other kids, and that is all that really matters.

Until next time, 
Rusenny

Jen The Mermaid

Hi everyone!

This week at Spectacle Island, I fished every day. Mind you, the most common creatures we catch are typically crabs, whether its from the trap or the kids fishing. Two out of the three days I went fishing were with our senior harbor educator Max. He's great with all the kids and can fix any problem with the rods. But he's no Jenn. Jenn is one with the ocean. Somehow, whenever she's in charge at fishing, we always catch cool things! For example, we caught a SKATE and all the kids went crazy. It took Kharliyah and I a long time to pick it up because it has a really spiky back. But it's belly is just like that of a snail...slimy.

The skate, me, and Kharliyah.

Now the skate was pretty cool, but then Jenn brought out her super powers. There was one boy who was having trouble reeling in his rod so I walked over to assist him. The rod appeared to be stuck on something. Probably some seaweed or a rock I presumed. I kept reeling and pulling, reeling and pulling. "Man he cast this line far," I thought. I was shocked once the hook began to surface. This kid had reeled in an entire crab trap!

Our ancient crab trap. 

I brought the trap over to Kharliyah so that she could help me untie and open it because there were so many creatures inside. As we were untying the rope, we noticed that the trap must have been down there for years because of how decayed that rope was. Once we got it open, we found two baby spider crabs, a couple green crabs and some baby flounder.

A tough day for this baby flounder.

The best part of the day for me was the catch that I made. When fishing started to slow down I decided to cast out a rod of my own. It went pretty far, so I was proud of myself. When I started to reel it in, I noticed it was pretty heavy. As it came closer and closer, I saw a bunch of seaweed on it and assumed that I just got it caught. But the closer it came, the clearer it became that I had a big crab on the end of it. As I was holding the crab I noticed it was in the process of giving birth. I felt so bad so I put her back in the ocean right away. 

My catch of the day!

Catch you next time

-Patrice

A Bittersweet Defeat

Ready, set, hut!

My last day of All Access Spectacle Island last week was bittersweet. We began with a highly competitive game of two-hand-touch football on one of the island's drumlins with a group of campers from the Boys and Girls Club. Being the big shots they were they thought their entire club could face off with me and just three of my Save the Harbor associates. They were right. After getting creamed 3-1 in the preliminary round, we figured it would be better if we recruited some of their star players for our STH team. It wasn't until the addition of their athletes that our tide finally turned; it was a gritty game, but by the skin of our teeth we pulled off a 3-2 win against those unlimited springs of energy in the next game of our series. The final tie-breaker game started with promise, one of our receivers caught a 20 yard pass bringing us within inches of the goal line-- just what we needed to overcome the six point deficit we were faced with (the opposing team had failed their extra-point attempt). In my haste, the next play I threw a pass that was intercepted by one of the Boys and Girls Club counselors that had joined the game for the final event. It was a devastating blow that ultimately resulted in a loss for our team, hence the bitter portion of my day.

Baby sculpin fish caught on Spectacle!

With our tails between our legs, the Save the Harbor squad returned to the pier after the game to assist the fishing club with clean-up. We arrived to discover that we had finally caught some fish on the island!! Our fellow senior harbor educator, Jenn, with her fish-whispering abilities was able to net some baby sculpin, a green shore crab with a baby flounder in its clutches, as well as a skate! After a month of tireless searching, we were finally able to prove to the kids, campers and STH staff alike, that you can catch fish off the islands! After the crushing defeat we were dealt on the drumlin, seeing the kids' excitement as they held the baby fish that they had caught really made up for it. Hopefully we will see the same success next week on George's Island-- I've got my fingers crossed!
Yours truly,
Maxwilliams

Finally Fish!

Our first skate and the lucky fisherman

After a crab-filled summer at Spectacle Island, this week finally broke our fishless curse! I was in charge of managing fishing on Thursday when our luck changed. The first group to fish was filled with energetic kids ready for anything to bite the hooks. After just a few minutes, one young man started shouting that he thought he caught something. I ran over to help him reel up a skate! We got the skate up and onto the pier where Kharliyah and Patrice carefully removed the hook from the spiky skate's mouth. A lot of the children did not know what type of fish this was or confused it with a stingray. After everyone had a chance to see our pokey pal, we sent him back into the ocean. 

When the next group arrived to fish, I told them they had some big shoes to fill after the previous group's achievements. Within a matter of moments, a camper from Tricklin Falls Camp claimed that he had caught something as well. We expected another fish, but instead we discovered that he caught an old and forgotten crab trap. The trap was filled with a few small green crabs, a tiny spider crab, and even a few little fish! One crab had a baby flounder clutched in his claws. When we removed this crab from the trap, he waived his baby flounder around proudly as if he was showing off his own catch. I managed to free the founder from the crab's grasp and gently plopped it back into the water. We let the other little fish go and kept the small crabs in the touch tank for other kids to enjoy. 

Catching crab traps

Baby spider crab

After our first two eventful groups, we continued to catch plenty of crabs left and right. At one point, Patrice pulled up a line to reveal that she had snagged a pregnant crab in the process of giving birth! As she was in the middle of releasing her eggs, we quickly let her return to sea to ensure that her babies had a safe delivery. 

A crab and his flounder friend

I think this has been my most successful day of fishing ever! We encountered so many interesting creatures and it really boosted the kids spirits to see that they could find such cool things in the ocean. I hope this is just the beginning of a bountiful summer.

Sea you out there,

Jennifer Leiendecker

Catching Cutlery

This Monday, I got to spend the afternoon at the Boston Children's Museum. The sun was shining and many families were out and about enjoying the nice weather. Little kids were shocked to see crabs scuttling around in our touch tanks and had a hard time believing they were real. One child had never even seen a fishing pole in real life! He ran up in amazement and asked me "is this what a fishing pole looks like?" I told him that this was indeed a real fishing pole and he could actually use it if he wanted to. He could not contain his excitement and begged his mother to let him try it. I baited their fishing pole and taught him how to carefully side cast into the water. He listened very carefully and followed every instruction I gave him, "I'm fishing, I'm fishing!" he cried out. He waited patiently for something to bite and after only a few minutes, he claimed he felt something pulling on the line. I told him to reel it in and he started to pull it up slowly. It did appear to have something on it, but I could not believe caught something that quickly. As he hoisted his catch over the railing, his face clouded with confusion as it appeared that he caught a plastic fork. At first he was disappointed, but I quickly stepped in to tell him what a cool catch he actually had. Upon further inspection, he had caught a few creatures on that plastic fork. On one side, there was a cluster of tunicates. On the other side, there was a small mollusk secured tightly. The little boy was fascinated and instantly proud of his first-timers luck and touted his fork proudly.

A freshly caught fork

The next few days of the week were spent at Spectacle Island. For sports we played football, volleyball, frisbee, and kickball. On Wednesday, we pulled up the crab trap up from the water and learned that we had caught a large number and variety of crabs overnight. We even had two small spider crabs. All of the children laughed at how strange looking the spider crabs were, but I reminded them that spider crabs are very neat and I am sure we look strange to them. Hopefully we keep up the good work with the spider catching and we get a fish soon!

Splayed out spider crab

Sea you out there,

Jennifer Leiendecker

Rain and swimming....Just as Wet!

My team and I finally made our return to Spectacle Island, and it was about time to tackle all of the new obstacles to make the best of our time here for the week. On the first day, the weather was bearable, at least that is only what we thought. We had set up crab traps, caught crabs and taught

kids about them, mainly their species, gender, and more. They were so happy to catch crabs, because they usually do not ever get the chance to fish, or if they do it is really fast paced, and rushed so seeing them finally get to do something they have not done before really put a smile on my face.

just as wet am i right?

As we packed up and walked to the changing rooms to change for the beach, it started to drizzle. It did not matter to us in the beginning, because we were sweating and ready to cool off in the ice cold water. Then the rain came down harder, and harder until it began to pour down on us. All the campers, and YMCA students ran under something to keep them dry, and people rushed out the water as if they did not want to get any more wet than they already were. I really did not want to swim at this point, but then I remembered that one of my supervisors on All Access has a rule for all his staff; go swimming voluntarily, or get thrown in-- even he remained in the water after the rain had begun to pick up. And so I looked at one of my coworkers and we just sprinted into the water. Turns out my whole team came along and none chose to stay behind. David did not think we would have gotten in the water considering how hard the rain was coming down, so I don't even think he would have tossed us in this time, but we all still had such a great time! I mean, being in the water while rain is down-pouring on us did not matter, because we were just as wet.

a little sports fun!

The second day we brought along Amy, one of our bosses (no pressure) to Spectacle Island. That day I was not stationed at the fishing club, I was on sports club instead. The weather was incomparable to the day before. The sun was shining on all of us, and the day started off really slow. Not much people came up to play, and we began to play catch so time can pass by. Soon, a swarm of kids in orange shirts came running, with music playing in the background. They were from the Dorchester YMCA, and they were ready to play some games. We played dodge ball and football, while some kids relaxed under the shade with their counselors. They loved the games, and begged their counselors to come back to Spectacle with us one day for another day of fun and activities!

Stay tuned for more!
Qalid Hassan

Football Fun!

Today at work some of colleagues and I played football with many different kids from the Dorchester YMCA. This day we met Julian, Ishma, and Donte who were only a few of the enthusiastic kids from the group. What seemed as an eternity of fun ended fairly soon due to the fact that they had to go start fishing. This was sad, but at least we got to play around a bit and have some fun before they had to leave 

This is the Dorchester YMCA playing football with us.

Later on this day we met a few more groups of kids, but honestly, no group brought the same intense energy to sports the way the Dorchester YMCA did. As we ended sports club we got to my favorite part of the day, swimming! We went down to the beach and took a dip in the water which is definitely the perfect way to end to a perfect day, and today was no exception. The water was cold as usual but it was such a hot day outside that when we got in it was a feeling of sheer paradise.

My Save the Harbor team and I running sports club on the island!

A Festival of Crabs at Spectacle Island

Hey There!

Me holding my new 10-legged friend!

This past week I had the pleasure of working at Spectacle Island through All Access. We ushered families and summer camps into the Blue Hills Bank pavilion to wait for the departure of the Provincetown Ferry. While waiting, I got the chance to pass around coloring sheets and talk to some families. There was a mix of first timers to the island while there were other families who have already been to Spectacle quite a few times. But one thing that was for sure was that everyone inside that pavilion was excited to board the ferry and land on the island!

When we arrived on Spectacle Island, I was stationed at the fishing club. Fishing is something that I am not familiar with and by being around it, I can learn a lot more about it. I helped with cutting up the squid and baiting it on the rods. Throughout the afternoon, there were no fish to be found, but a lot of crabs were caught. We placed them in the touch tanks and invited families and kids to come touch them. Although crabs might not be the most exciting ocean crustacean, we definitely made it fun for the kids. I realized that to most of them, any moving creature can be exciting, especially when the grown ups put in the effort to make it fun and interesting. We taught the kids how to hold the crabs and when it was time to let the crabs go, we ended fishing club with a crab race to see which crab could make it to the ocean fastest. I had a great time at Spectacle Island and I can't wait until my next adventure there!

Sail you later,
Henry

So It Begins!

Orientation and our first days are now completed! I remember going to Georges Island and David doing his best to scare all of us with his ghost stories, 9/10 times he was successful. I went in knowing what I should expect from this trip, prepared to not get wrapped up in his ghost stories, but there was a change in Islands! We took a trip out to Spectacle Island instead, getting to visit this island is always such a treat so I was excited about this change but I'm sure David was sad he wouldn't get to scare anyone that day. It's amazing how certain things come back to you, we went through a ton of information that is going to be helpful at all the sites we work!

This summer I am stationed at Blacks Creek, I was hesitant at first, only because I had never been there before and wasn't sure what to expect. The first days I felt stiff, attempting to figure out what a normal day would look like and what my specific role would look like. We played a few warming up games so that the children would feel comfortable and then we got right into it with our exploring. We were catching crabs and the children were ecstatic about this but we came across a horseshoe crab  and everyone went crazy. I never thought we could catch one this summer let alone at Blacks Creek! What a great way to start the summer off.

Catch ya later,

Ana