Category Archives: Massachusetts

Boston Light

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Boston Light is a lighthouse located on Little Brewster Island in the outer Boston  Harbor.

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The original lighthouse was built on this site in 1716 making it the first lighthouse to be built in what became the United States.

This first light house was held by the British during the American Revolution and subsequently burned down by the American forces, not once but twice. When the British withdrew in 1776 they blew up the tower completely destroying it.

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In 1783 the new lighthouse was constructed with a 75 foot tower, the same as the original. In 1856 the tower was raised to its present height of 98 Ft. A new lantern room was added along with a 12 sided second order Fresnel Lens.

In 1998 Boston Light was automated but is still staffed by a resident Coast Guard Keeper. The current keeper is Sally Snowman who, along with volunteers from the Coast Guard Auxiliary act as interpretive tour guides for visitors.

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The current light still uses the 2nd order Fresnel lens, one of only four left in use and the only one in Massachusetts. It flashes white every 10 seconds and is visible for 27 nautical miles.

To reach the safety of Boston Harbor, ships had to navigate the dangerous channel through numerous rocks, shoals and islands so Boston Light was an important navigational aid.

In more recent times the channel has been dredged  and larger vessels have shifted to the North Channel marked by Graves Light.

Boston Light is designated a National Historic Landmark and is the second oldest working lighthouse in the US today.

A Winter Wildlife Cruise

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My Friend Nancy sent me a notice about a Winter Wildlife Cruise of Boston Harbor. There wasn’t a lot of information on the web site. In fact it didn’t even mention the date or dates. On a phone call I was told it was a one day only cruise, a special arrangement.

I wondered what Wildlife they were referring to but booked the cruise anyway. I figured it would get me out of the house. Stop my winter hibernation.

I dressed in my warmest winter coat, sweatshirt and a scarf. My upper body was warm but my legs clad in jeans left something to be desired.

 

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I had to be at the pier at 10:30 to board. The cruise was scheduled to start at 11 am. Turns out this was also the day of the Woman’s March in Boston and it was rumored that 70,000 woman had RSVP’d that they would attend. It made me wonder what the traffic and parking would be like. I debated all down RT 24 if I should try the MBTA or drive. Driving won out and I arrived at the Harbor Garage at 8:30 am giving me 2 hours to kill.

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By The time I got parked my torso was sweating bullets but my legs were still cold.  I decided to wander around the Aquarium area. Other than a few joggers or dog walkers, there weren’t too many people out and about.

It was a pretty overcast morning.

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I met one woman walking her Lab. Pretty dog but her muzzle was getting gray. That dog dragged her over to me and started licking my hands . The owner was so apologetic but I just laughed and told her not to worry, animals like me. My “Pet Whisperer” persona strikes again!

I wandered over the the Rose Kennedy Greenway which isn’t green this time of year but took a long distance shot of the “Fish” window.

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I also grabbed a shot of the Old state House as through it were peeking around the bigger building in front of it.

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There were wooden benches here (the benches on the wharf were metal…cold) I did some people watching until a little after 10 AM.

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Finally it was time to head back to get lined up for boarding.

 

The Winter Brrrr

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This past weekend we finally got a heavy snowfall. So far the winter hasn’t been too extreme. The weatherman keeps referring to 40 degrees as “seasonal”. Hmm I seem to remember it being much colder than than but I suppose they have the records. Anyway, this weekend we got a storm that ranged through southeastern MA. The mountains and NH only saw about 2 inches compared to our 1 1/2 – 2 ft.

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I am born and raised in the north. I grew up in the Adirondacks but as much as I have fond memories of snowball fights, sledding and snow shoeing I just can’t seem to get excited about it now.

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I saw my younger brother a few weeks ago and he was talking about getting out cross country skiing. Made me feel cold just listening to him. Still maybe I can force myself out to do some snow shoeing. Its only cold until you get started then you work up some internal heat as you tromp along.

Still if given the choice of of a brisk winter day or spending the afternoon snorkeling among the tropical fish, I’ll take the fish any day!

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What am I doing living here!

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That pretty much sums it up.

Photo #2

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I’m still sorting through the Whale pictures. I went on quite a few whale watches this summer so there are a ton of pictures. I eliminated all of the flukes and tails because I have lots of those so they lack that “special” quality I’m looking for.

This one is another surface feeding humpback. I like this because of the boat in the background and the shoreline. It gives you as reference point for size and the relationship to the shore. The water depth is relatively shallow where these whales are feeding.DSC_3183 copy

Check out all of the gulls flying around hoping for an easy dinner.