Haunted past

    On the island there are many adventures to be had many different rooms and a long history that haunts the walls. the lady in black is one of haunting story's that is told on the island; she was a lady with courage and an enormous amount of love for her husband. She risked her life to save her husband but in the process she accidentally killed her husband and she was found captured and sentence to be hung from a tree. They say that now she haunts fort warren on Georges island.

the entrance to the cave 

On Georges island there is a cave where it is said that the lady in black lives and she does not like people that come in with flash lights. Before you get to the cave I'm sure most people would say "ill go in no problem" as soon as people lay eyes on the cave they change their minds. The kids that go in  hold on tight to the person in front of them and half of them are to scared and end up going back to the beginning, only few go through the whole cave there first time.

another cave on Georges 

I find the island to be vary enjoyable and lots of open space to play games. It has a place to expand the imagination, body, and mind. Everyone feels differently about the island based on what they have hears but there's no better way to know for sure unless you have gone yourself to the island.

    

 Remember kids always look for new adventures and just keep swimming

 - Jennifer

Staff Day, Barbeque and Hula Hoops OH MY

Hello Harbor Explorers!  This week has been fantastic and jam-packed:  Monday was staff day, then Tuesday and Wednesday I got to explore Georges Island with tons of kids and to wrap up the week, I have tomorrow off!

The week started off with Staff Day, which includes an annual trip to Spectacle Island for some fun in the sun and lunch on Bruce and Patty's boat.  While some staffers headed up to the fields to play (what I heard was) an intense game of kickball, I stayed right on the beach.  A nice swim followed by a ranger-led kayaking excursion with Thi, Sarah, Iris and Jennifer was lots of fun, especially since it was the first time I had gone kayaking this year!  Thi and I got a little competitive but I proved myself the fastest kayaker this side of the Charles River by the end of the day.

Me, Thi and Vinh enjoying the waves

Tuesday and Wednesday I was on Georges Island with All Access.  We had an exceptionally great week -- we took out over 700 kids between the two days!  I also got to see something unusual on Tuesday:  leader extraordinaire David Coffin invoked his barbeque rule while we were out on the island.  According to David, if he can smell barbeque, he can have some barbeque.  While I had never heard of this rule before, the other visitors to the island must have been familiar with it, since they gladly offered him his choice of what was grilling.  David even manned the grill for a little while, but was removed from duty for bad behavior.

David made some friends!

Wednesday we were lucky enough to have the 2013 summer interns for Blue Cross Blue Shield join us on Georges for their day of service.  They helped clean up trash from the beach and trails around the island -- a big thank you to all the kids for their hard work, especially the Save the Harbor staffers that are from Blue Cross!

Hard at work...or hardly working

All in all, a great week out on the harbor islands, and a long weekend for me to enjoy!  Next week the whole staff will be gearing up for our 3rd annual Beach Bash and Splash on Thursday, so more cool pictures and stories to come!

-- Carolyn

Beautiful Sunny Day

Today was my first time at Spectacle Island all day long I was in charge of taking all the pictures going from the sports, the fishing and the sea glass search.  When we finished lunch everyone went to there own activity, first I went with the fishing group and documented the kids that couldn't wait to fish and see what they would catch in the water. Thi was surrounded by kids that were interested about learning how to fish. At the same time kids were looking for green, blue, red, orange and, brown sea glass. The kids really like to find the colorful glass on the beach they enjoy comparing what colors they find and how big the glass is.

Thi working hard 

Then when I walked up to the beautiful meadow where the teams had started a kick ball game both teams where delighted to be playing.  The smile on the kids faces displayed the joy we have created with sports and keeping them active.  Everyone was a good sport and at the end of the game everyone shook hands and was ready to go cool off at the beach with the refreshing cold water in the harbor.

the last run in the kick ball game 

Then out of the blue, while everyone was getting out of the water, big waves came and everyone jumped back in to the water.  It was an amazing day to be at the beach with the heat and all the sports that were played there wouldn't have been a better way to stay cool.

Over all today was a great day to take pictures and see everything that happens on the island when Save the Harbor is there.

Just keep swimming -Jennifer

The Big Fish

 Everything started on Thursday July, 25 at 6:30 in the morning, it was a gloomy morning and we had just arrived at the dock where the boats were waiting for us. The Save the Harbor/Save the Bay team all wondered what was in store for them on the fishing trip. We all separated into different boats.  Then we were off to not go fishing but to catch fish.

Bruce helping me fish

 Not many members of my team have had any luck catching fish and today was the day everyone hoped to catch their first fish, especially me. I have never caught anything and like everyone else i was motivated to catch at least one fish. when the boat came to a stop everyone got there fishing rods ready and got to work. 

  As we were waiting for the fish to take a bite out of the bait the whole group engaged in conversation and got to know each other better. People were laughing and competing on who would catch the first or biggest fish.

my first fish 

 Then all of a sudden people started getting bites and we reeled in as head as we could and excited to see what we had caught some people caught skates another caught a flounder. I personally caught a sea bast and it was the biggest one anyone in the all the whole fishing trip. It was amazing. i was overjoyed by what had just happen. As a result of catching the biggest fish i won a fishing rod.   

   it was cool to try something new and succeed, everyone is good at different things and trying new things is the only way you can find them. 

  keep on swimming -jennifer

Curious Kids

At the Children's Museum today, I had a different experience than I have ever had at Community Boating. The frequent flow of kids at the children's museum was much higher than I am used to. There was one girl that was extremely excited to do everything and try anything new. She started by fishing with a poll that was three times her height. This young girl's interest in the world around and fearless mindset is inspirational to anyone scared to try something new.

The bold young girl did not hesitate to holding the crabs, and she even invited other children to do the same.  She was curious about all the animals, and she was courageous towards the unknown. She wanted to find  new ways to learn about the crabs. She went to the tackle box and found a magnifying glass which she then used to look closer at the crabs and look at the dots on there back.

catching a crab 

There are thousands of way to find new information but its up to you what you want to learn about be creative be curious and never stop learning.
                                                 -keep on swimming
                                                                       Jennifer Ramirez

New Adventure

At Community Boating we set off on a new adventure on the Charles exploring the river from a new point of view by using a kayak. We saw ducks, fish, and gorgeous lilies enjoying the river. We were able to discuss with the kids why its important to keep the river clean, as it is essential to these animals for survival. Being able to leave dry land and experience the city from a kayak is like entering into a different world, one that makes the Charles feel even more magical than it already is.

Me on a kayak 

The kids enjoyed trying something new as well as learning more about their local ecosystem. They realized that when people throw things in the river it makes it less beautiful and harms the animals that call the river home. The kids learned a new appreciation for the river, and the experience for myself was a peaceful one.  It gave me time to self reflect on how I could help keep the river clean for future generations to enjoy for years to come.

All the explorers on the river

I was proud of our team, we all saw an opportunity to try something different, even if we were scared, making us excellent role models to the kids that were also trying something new for the first time. We all learned something different from this new experience and walked away from it with even more confidence knowing we had all taken a risk.

Looking forward to trying new adventures in the future- Jennifer 

The Happy Playful Eels

The first week has brought many great experiences.  This week we have caught about 8 fish and about 10 eels at the Charles River in the morning classes.  The kids enjoy being able  to fish on the Charles River.  Every time they catch fish you can just see the excitement and the pride in their smile.  A young girl got the chance to hold an eel for the first time ever then encourage others to do the same.

Michal's first time holding an eel                                                                    

At community boating the kids are interested in anything they can get there hands on. When seeing all the eels the kids all tried to hold one but it was difficult because of the slimy skin the eels have but with practice they have become great teachers for younger children.

The eels on day 4

This summer is going to be a blast!  I cannot wait to meet new people and find new creatures in the Charles River.  We are having lots of fun and hope to share the experience of the eels with others interested!