Last Week's Adventures

Hey everyone in the blog-o-sphere!

It's Thi, back again with more stories. This weekend was packed full of adventures, including the awesome fishing tournament with the Michael Fallon company as well as the Revere Beach National Sand Sculpting Festival. I had the greatest opportunity to be a part of both.

First off, for the fishing tournament, I was placed with my younger brother, Abdi, and Jedi. We were on the Legacy, led by Captain Rick along with Steve. Things were rocky at the beginning, trying to figure out who needed to be where and what supplies we all had to have. After that, we were off! Slowly, we stayed in the inner harbor, putting out only two lines. There was a quick tug on one line, but alas, no luck on catching a fish. We then moved to various other "secret" fishing spots - ideal places where fish should be plentiful and biting. Although we were very patient, we got no bites. On the way back to Fan Pier, the captain let Jedidaia and I drive the boat!! Captain Rick told us all about the rules of the ocean, staying on which side of the red and green buoyed markers in the channel. All in all, it was a great day and a really fun experience. I even got to bring home some of the winning fish!

For the Sand Sculpting Festival, I wasn't working in the youth program, but I had a chance to visit Revere Beach with my older sister this past Monday. They were amazing!! One could tell how much time and effort there was put into the sculptures and it sure paid off. The intricate lines and details were just exciting to see.
It was such an awesome weekend and I can't wait for more adventures!!

Woot! Repping STH/STB

My favorite!

Stay wavy and cool,
Thi Tran

Ideal Day with IDIIL

It's Thi, back at it again!
Yesterday it was surprisingly beautiful! I thought it was going to rain and thunderstorm and rain and rain... but the sun was shining so we seized the chance to go out to George's Island. It was the largest boat load we had taken so far! The numbers were very close to 500, which is absolutely crazy. One of the largest contributors was the IDIIL Education Center with five different sites in Boston and Malden, just to name a few.
I was waiting at the beginning of the gangway, making sure everything was orderly and everyone was getting on one by one when I heard a little voice call out my name. I turn to my right and see Toby!! He was against the guarded handrails and he barely reached the top of it. He melted my heart when he mentioned that he was looking for me.

Toby!!

We went fishing to no avail, so we ended that program a bit early then headed off to the tunnel and the kickball game in the middle of the fort. I went to the tunnel to give the kids who went through an "authentic" experience of the Lady in Black, since she was so busy with all the visitors on the island.
I was very excited to be back on George's Island, seeing all the sites and the amazing almost 360 view.

So pumped to be back this summer and for more adventures,
Thi Tran

Stay wavyy

Familiar Faces in Interesting Spaces

It's Thi here!
Last week, we had a loyal returning group come out from East Boston. These kids and their staff have been coming on All Access Boston Harbor with Save The Harbor/Save The Bay for as long as I remember. I want to do a shout-out to the kids!! They are always so fun and passionate about everything around them, bubbling with questions.
We went to Spectacle Island last week and had the pleasure of taking out this group as long as a few others. On the twenty minute boat ride, I caught myself up with how things have been going with them and it felt so good to be approached and being told "Hey! I remember you!"

Sam taking the hook out of the skate

 After getting re-acquaintanced, we set off for a little competition to see who would catch the biggest fish. Alas, only one skate was caught along with the many green crabs that seem to have gotten more plentiful since last year (uh-oh!).

Daniel!!

Before heading back to the boat, everyone made sure to run into the waves, getting their knees wet as we had all promised David we would do.

What a great day that was!
All the best and stay wavy,
Thi Tran

Green Monsters on Spectacle Island

For our successful first week at our beloved Spectacle Island, Sam and I led the fishing program where we brought kids to the end of the dock and baited the hooks with yummy clams. By the end of the day, we caught a 13" striped bass along with a skate. The kids absolutely loved the skate, accidentally calling it a sting ray beforehand. Along with the fishing poles, we had a crab trap which we all collectively threw out into the harbor...

Lo and behold, green crabs turned out to be the most plentiful with spider crabs coming behind to a far second. Three girls from a group we had brought out with us helped Sam and I pull up the last cast of the day, having been left out while we went swimming. After the lugging and tugging on the rope, the line was finally brought up and there were at least 20 green crabs!! Most were still scrambling to eat parts of the mackerel and pieces of cod fish, not a care that they were surrounded by curious eyes which only saw alien-like creatures with aggressive pincers, climbing over one another.

We all had so much fun counting the crabs and figuring out their genders. Soon, the girls became the experts - quickly grabbing the crabs and enthusiastically showing their friends and just about anyone around them. I am really glad to have been able to show them what crabs were and told them more about these marine species for them to share the knowledge with others.

Stay wavy,
Thi Tran

Sea Glass Hunting on Spectacle

Another week has come and gone on the Harbor, and the All Access crew made the trip to Spectacle for the last time this season -- though there are still two weeks of trips to Georges and Peddocks Islands before we officially wrap up the summer!  The weather on Wednesday was perfect for a day at Spectacle Island's beach but we did have to deal with choppy water and lots of waves!

Great view of Boston from the beach

Waves aside, the groups that came out with us had a great time playing wiffleball and looking for sea glass.  I stuck to the beach and found some great pieces of glass.  This is the first year that I've found so much pink and purple glass on the beach.  Finding all these great pieces gave me the chance to use my new sea glass identification cards to learn more about the glass:  when certain colors were produced, what they were mostly used for and how rare a given color is.  Both pink and purple are rare; light pink's peak production period was during the Great Depression through World War II, while purple's peak production was between the end of the 1800s to World War I.  For those intrepid sea glass hunters out there, the most rare colors you can find are orange and red!

One of my sea glass finds!

 Paige Academy was probably the first group to jump in the water at the beach, and after I had found as many pieces of sea glass as my heart desired, I joined them in the waves.  Paige Academy comes out with us a few times every summer, and their children are so much fun to have around!  It's been a blast getting to know them and their counselors over the past summers I've worked with Save the Harbor.  This year has been no exception -- the kids were great and everyone had a good time jumping waves and splashing David Coffin and Thi silly.

Some hula hooping fun after swimming

Last week's All Access trips were fairly light -- Tuesday's trip was cancelled due to rain and Thursday was the Kids' Beach Bash and Splash.  I mentioned earlier that there are still two weeks of trips to Georges and Peddocks Islands.  This is very exciting because we've added an extra week of trips, and to a completely new location!  Peddocks Island has old-fashioned summer cottages, fishing off the dock and walking/hiking trails and lots more to explore.

I, unfortunately, will not be able to go on the last few All Access trips because I have to leave for school this coming week.  So this was my last All Access trip -- so sad!  But keep your eyes peeled for my blog posts on the Bash and Splash, as well as my farewell post later on this week!

Until then,

--  Carolyn

Last Day to See the Spectacles

       Wednesday was the last day Save the Harbor would go out to Spectacle Island. Although I was extremely sad, I was excited to see what would happen on the last, surely eventful day.
       Of all the groups that came out, one of them from the Castle Square Youth Education Program were full of staffers that I had known for years! I was really excited to show them around the island and show them how to have a great time since it was their first time out (either on a boat or to Spectacle Island itself). All of the groups came out and we were on our way to the island, conveniently 15 minutes away.

Sheltering Paige Nivea and Kayana

       It was quite windy therefore the waves were large and a bit too choppy for the small children that we had with us. The moment the kids went in, they were instantly driven back out by the "freezing" cold water temperatures. I let them come into my large beach towel and warmed them up, facing away from the wind. I had so much fun on my last day there even though it was a little more chilly than I had hoped for, but it was still an amazing day.
       I just wanted to thank everyone who was able to be a part of my experience of Spectacle Island; these people are included:

Alan, the Island Caretaker, and Max!

And of course, the lifeguards!

       The island rangers were always helpful, but we were not as close this year as years past. Spectacle will always hold a special place in my heart. 

      Always have a blast,

            Thi Tran

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

Hula Hooping with the Staff

       Hey guys, it's Thi! Yesterday was a day of firsts!
       During lunch, we got into the sports equipment and found our tiny hula hoops. Of course, Bridget and I started to find other ways to have fun with the hula hoops since we couldn't actually hula hoop since we were too big of children. I was having a blast jumping rope with the hula hoop.

A picture of me in action!

        Once I had roped in the elusive Bridget Foley, the courageous Carolyn joined to make it a trio. Our maritime historian just had to join in the fray and squeezed himself into the last few open spaces of the hula hoop. That's FOUR people in a very small hula hoop.

David, me, Carolyn, then Bridget

       I also went fishing with Bridget Foley on her last day out of the office. We had a blast with the Vine Street kids - shout out to Jakai, Rommer and Genesis!!

       I had such a fun time yesterday and I can't wait for All Access next week!


Have fun,

Thi Tran

Swimming in the Waves

       Thi is back at it again, blogging it up!
       On the last day of All Access this week, I had the joy of going with Idiil Learning Center and many other groups as well. But what was special about this day was that when all of us were on the boat and were just leaving the dock at the World Trade Center, a little boy just sat by the fishing rods which I had just de-tangled and fixed. He was Toby! I met Toby and his little brother, Chris, last summer when he first went out with us. We bonded last summer when he showed me his notebook full of drawings and we spent the entire boat ride looking through his awesome drawings.

Toby and I

       The moment I saw him, I had a huge grin on my face. "TOBYYYY!!!" I yelled. I asked if he remembered my name and he actually did! We were reunited! From that moment, my spirits were uplifted and I knew that it was going to be a great day.

This is Toby, loving my bear hug!

       Although I didn't see him on the island that much and instead hung out with the other groups, I saw him again on the boat ride back and we caught up on each other's day.

       I love being able to come back every summer and see the kids that make me want to come back year after year. I always do it for the kids!

          Peace, Love, and stay Hydrated,
                 Thi Tran

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

Technology-Ridden Office

       Little do people know, the moment they step into the Save the Harbor office, they are stepping into a land of marine science in every nook and cranny. We have evolved from our 4 or 5 desktop computers from the summer of 2009 to 5 more Macbooks last year to 6 more Google Chrome books this summer.

Blogging in the office

       The office now has mobile hotspots that allow us to have internet access everywhere we go to blog about the amazing things that we do for the kids we have at the eight sites along the Harbor. I can't believe how accessible everything is now and it has been incredible to see how much more our influence can spread with our new technology. Blogs can be written, edited, and published in a blink of an eye. Emails can be sent within seconds.

The first spider crab in our crab traps!

       For a first hand experience, the moment I click the capture picture button on the camera, I can upload it to our photobucket folder and be used in our blog as soon as possible. So many things are possible now and   everyone can see how we progress through the week with our new field guides so we can identify each and every creature that passes our line of sight.

Pulling up the crab trap!

       Besides the laptops that reside in the office and the Chrome books that follow our Senior staff at all sights, there are also new crab traps and lobster traps that are much more efficient in grabbing up the interesting animals living in the harbor to put in our touch tanks to show the thousands of kids throughout the summer. If kids are interested in chemistry and how the quality of the ocean water changes often, they can use our water quality tests that can be recorded in our logbooks.

With the dipnets and the touch tank!

       Another great device that has come into the hands of our staff are our underwater cameras! They can just be lowered into the water and a whole other world can be seen in a 3" by 5" screen.

       I love our new technology and although we have come all this way and have all of these gadgets, I would love to see how much more equipped we can be in the future! We still have many parts of our program that can be more effective and nudged along until we reach the maximum preparedness to spread our message of loving the harbor and doing our part of the responsibility to keep it clean.

Stay updated,

Thi Tran

A Picture's Worth A Thousand Words

I think this picture sums up how much fun Spectacle Island was this week -- happy kids, happy staffers and a wonderfully cool Boston Harbor in which to swim.  With temperatures in the 90s, the water was the best place to be this week.

Sometimes in the hustle and bustle of the summer, it's easy to get tired or frustrated after days spent in the hot sun with lots of kids.  Sometimes we need a simple, fun day to remember that's what All Access is all about:  kids having fun and doing something new!  I'd never had 5 little girls use me as their personal flotation device, but they loved it and I was happy to be a small part of a day they hopefully won't forget anytime soon.

Here's to another great week on the Harbor!

-- Carolyn

PS:  Here's a picture to brighten up your weekend!  Photo cred:  Bridget J. Foley.

Out of the DOWNPOUR, into the OFFICE!!

       It's Thi, back at it again, blogging it up! I was really excited for the All Access Boston Harbor trip out to George's Island, but boy, was I in for a surprise at the day at the office. The trip had to be cancelled due to the random downpours of raindrops as large as sea snails! Already at the office, I had resigned myself to the thought of staying inside, away from the great fun out on our harbour. Then, there was a quick expedition to the youth room on the other side of the office building.

       The blank walls called out to us, and we knew they wanted to be covered with works from our staff, all ocean- and Boston Harbor- themed of course! Creatures of all sorts flooded my mind, blabbering about to be painted first. Sea horses, crabs, lobsters, sea stars, barnacles, whales, striped bass, herring, and seaweed were already dancing across the white canopies of streamlined sheets of paper.

Kind of like this, but much more realistic

        My hopes were too big for me to follow up on, but most of the Junior Program Assistants (fondly referred to as JPAs) helped paint the 15 or so marine animals that we were going to cut out and tape onto the sheet. Rustic red, yippy yellow, bronzing brown, perplexing purple, bolding black, and the Big Blue were splashed across the 8 1/2" by 11" piece of paper!

Just a squid!

       The end of the day was soon and so the paintbrushes became washed, the painted masterpieces drying neatly in a pile, the very large piece of wavy wallpaper rolled up into a large scroll, and everything else put exactly how it was. We then headed back to the office, wrapping up that part of the day.

       I had a blast just staying inside and just painting again, but I cannot wait for the AABH trip out tomorrow with my first trip with the little bro - Vinh!

          Stay hydrated!
              Thi Tran

Sweet Sandy Days at Revere Beach

       Thi here again, reporting on a great day I had at the Revere Beach Sand Sculpting Event on Friday!
       Arriving at Revere Beach, treading as quickly as possible over the scorching hot sand was only a small introduction to what the rest of the day would bring. There was just so many people enjoying the beach already that I couldn't say no to stepping into the ocean to cool off. And boy, is that what it did. After going past the few feet wide red seaweed blooms, the clear water was so refreshing!
       Back at the tent, I got ready to talk to families with their children, random passersby, or just anyone who wanted to know more about the marine animals in the touch tank. On their first rodeo show were two male lobsters, many green crabs, a couple native red rock crabs, and three beautiful starfish!

A starfish with a humongous clam shell I had found! 

       The kids were just so interested in the animals and it was really awesome to hear some of their stories as well - some came as far as away as Wisconsin to enjoy the beginnings of the sand sculpting! I had such a great time explaining to the people how to tell the difference between a girl crab versus a boy crab, as well as a lobster, how starfish can regenerate an arm if they lose it, how invasive the green crab specie is, and just overall facts of our beloved Boston Harbor.

       I had a lot of fun with some coworkers I didn't really have a chance to work with and I can't wait for the next beach event I can make it to!

Here's a pic of us being silly:

Radio 105.7!!

Thi Tran

Splashed at Spectacle

As thursday rolled around again, I was so excited because on this day every week I am given the opportunity to get out of the office and join Save the Harbor staffers on an All Access Boston Harbor trip.  This is truly the best part of my week.  I get to spend my whole day outside, enjoying the sun, fresh air, and some really great people.  Because I do not currently live in the city, this opportunity to spend the day on Boston Harbor is very unique and exciting.

A great game of catch between the staff

This week All Access is taking each of their trips to Spectacle Island.  Spectacle Island does not only provide its visitors with a scenic view of Boston Harbor, it allows them to learn about the rich history of the island, explore the beautiful landscape, partake in an archaeological expedition of the “Treasures of Spectacle Island” along the beach, hike to the top of the North Drumlin to fly kites and see a 360 ­degree view of the harbor, or swim at the island’s beach.

David constantly used the football to splash me

Even though the island offers so many great options, the only thing I could think about all day was jumping in the water.  It was so hot out that day in Boston that I couldn’t wait to cool off and swim at Spectacle’s beach.  The staff and I started up a game of catch with each other and the kids.  There was one little girl named Amina that was just a little too short to participate on her own, so I decided to give her a little help.  Anytime she got the ball, we would work as a team to complete the perfect pass, with me lifting her up to get her to the right height to throw to another kid.  She has some great football potential!

Some of the children were a little apprehensive about swimming so Thi and Carolyn offered their help and gave them piggybacks in the water.  However, the demand for these piggyback rides grew quickly, and Carolyn was soon overloaded with children climbing on her backs.  Many of us experienced similar experiences.  When I taught the kids how to use the frisbee to splash and pour water on David, it was soon used against me.  Next thing I knew, two kids were climbing onto me, and I was sinking. Even though I got through that without going completely underwater, once I saw David coming in the water, I knew my streak of keeping my hair dry was over. As soon as David saw that I was still dry, he made it his goal to dunk me underwater. He quickly succeeded. Despite the outrageously hot weather, it ended up being a perfect day at Spectacle Island.
-Bridget

Funtastic Day at Frisbeach!

Hey, Thi here! For the first week at Spectacle Island, it has been amazing so far!!

     On Tuesday, the crew and I headed out and quickly spread to cover the different activities such as fishing, fun on the beach, searching for treasures of Spectacle Island (sea glass, ceramics, etc.), and playing sports in the fields of the North Drumlin.

View of Boston from Spectacle Island!

      But today, Wednesday, we were in for a treat! The freshly ordered frisbees were brought out to the island and boy, did the groups love them. Right after lunch, we headed out to the sandy beaches and got ready to all run into the the awaiting cool ocean waters. The moment our feet touched the chilly wetness, frisbees were in the air, casting away to different pairs of hands. Their screams of enthusiasm filled the air and it was just amazing!

FRISBEACH with the campers

     Past 1, most of the groups had left to dry off and explore the rest of the island, but one part of a group stayed. Kalyn was just a young'un from the city of Winthrop and he could swim very well. He even showed off how to do the backstroke! It was an experience to see a kid at such a young age enjoying the oceans and beaches we all love so much. Kayln was so much fun to swim with and to play keep-away with (with Carolyn in the middle). Even when his mom came by and asked if he wanted to leave to see the other parts of the island, he adamantly said no and that he wanted to stay in the harbor. I'm so glad to have made such an exciting friend and happy we could enjoy something we both love together!

Kayln and I!

     Peace, Love, Boston Harbor.
     Thi Tran

Fun In the Sun At Frisbeach

This week with temperatures hitting the 90s it made for a great week to head over to Spectacle Island. I have never been to Spectacle Island so I was looking forward to a great week of fun in the sun and of course Frisbeach. On Tuesday, alongside Carolyn, Bridget, Manny DeJesus, and Kiauna, I decided to play a game of kickball with Paige Academy. After only about fifteen minutes or so, we decided we had enough of the heat and it was time to head to the water and join the rest of our staff.  That was the right decision because it surely cooled us off.

The All Access crew escaping the heat and cooling off in the water

Today after hearing it was supposed to be the hottest day of the week, I decided to take Frisbeach to the water. When we arrived at Spectacle Island,  we ate our lunch and then headed off to the water to play some frisbees. I started off Frisbeach with help from Thi, Carolyn, Hung, and Karrisha.

Teaching a girl from the Jordan's Boys and Girls club how to throw a frisbee.

We started playing with the new Save the Harbor frisbees with Winthrop Park and Recreation, Jordan's Boys and Girls Club, and with East Boston YMCA. We provided each group with Save the Harbor frisbees. Now Frisbeach will go with them back to their summer programs. Looking forward to more
fun in the sun at Frisbeach!

A girl works on her frisbee throw

So Long from Frisbeach

Frisbee Guy - - aka Davis

Hey! Who turned on the heat?

Well if there has to be a heat wave let it be the week we go to Spectacle Island, thank you very much. Before we left for the island this morning we met with all the kids under the Bank of America Pavilion tent and I asked how many people thought the harbor was really dirty? About 150 kids and staff raised their hand. After I told the story about the clean up of the harbor I asked the question again and about 5 people raised their hand. Everyone agreed they were going swimming today. How could you not -- it's 145 degrees. Okay. I might be exaggerating a little. I do that sometimes but it was wicked hot. How hot was it? It was so hot Thi fell out of her shoes.

The aforementioned Miss Tran AKA Thi Money

On the boat ride out to the island we handed out two cases of plums which were juicy and delicious. One girl looked like she needed something to do on the boat so I sent her off to count all the doors on the boat. There were 25. She got the answer right so she got to drive the boat for a few minutes. Fortunately she didn't hit any islands.

Once everyone had lunch and brought their trash back to the boat so the bay-gulls wouldn't get it, groups went off in different directions. Some went to play kickball or frisbeach with Davis the master frisbee man. Other groups went straight to the beach to swim. And one group came with me to look for the treasures of Spectacle Island.

We found some amazing beach glass (yes we put it all back) on the non-swimming beach. We found a light green knob off the top of a glass tureen which was absolutely stunning. I've never seen that color beach glass before. But the sun made a lot of the glass too hot to handle so the simple solution was to head over to the swimming beach and toss ourselves into the drink. No argument there. 

David Coffin

PS:  Happy birthday Carolyn!

PPS:  Bridget is hilarious, and I'm sorry I splashed her on Thursday.

The Home Run Slugger Takes on Georges Island

What a busy week it's been!  After all the preparation and meetings, the 2013 youth programs officially started on Monday -- and what a great first week it was!

Monday was spent in the office, making sure that everything was ready to go on Tuesday for the first day of All Access.  The first week was spent at Georges Island, the infamous home of the Lady in Black.  The dark tunnel was a very popular destination, as it is every year, but this year the team has added some new attractions for our groups.  Senior Marine Educator Davis has brought wiffleball and kickball to the Islands and has had great success so far -- the Junior Program assistants have proven their skills on the wiffleball diamond and the kickball field has already seen some nail-biting finishes to games.

Home run!

Another new addition to AABH is fishing from the docks -- seasoned staffer Thi Tran led children from different groups to explore the waters around Georges and hopefully reel in a big fish!  No luck this week, but we still have the rest of the summer to catch something.

The beginning of the summer programs is always a little hectic, but I think that overall it went great!  I've always been a little partial to Spectacle Island because of the great sea glass, but this week at Georges was awesome.  I'm proud to report that my wiffleball skills have improved since middle school and Ahmed dubbed me Carolyn "Home Run Slugger" Burkett.  Hopefully I'll continue to live up to my new nickname!

See you out on the water Harbor Explorers!

-- Carolyn

Crabbing our way to the top!

       Thi here!
       On the last day of the week at George's Island, after a great downpour in the morning of and during the boat ride out to the island, a couple of the Junior Harbor Explorers and I decided to go crabbing since fishing wasn't very successful. After lunch, Karrisha, Manny and I went to the rocky shore to catch some crabs and were joined by the Paige Academy! Some of the kids were new to such an environment and were so amazed to see crabs and living animals in the salty ocean water.

       Some of the kids, including Nivea and Gizelle, had never held a crab before and worked up their courage to hold a smaller Asian Shore crab and not the aggressive green crabs. What I noticed was that there were many Asian Shore crabs along the shore and not that many green crabs. We then moved to the new dock. But I had forgotten to bring the bait!! I had prepared the pollock all morning and filleted it and skinned it. I was so sad that I had made such a huge mistake since I had so many kids ready to catch huge crabs with no bait.

     I had another plan though!! With the invasive crabs on hand, I told the kids that I had to kill them to help out our native crab species and although some were very sad, they knew it had to be done. After dropping the crab trap into the water and waiting a few minutes, there were so many large green crabs!! They were even almost 4 inches across it's carapace.

I had so much fun this week and I can't wait for next week on Spectacle Island!

Thi Tran