Old Ironsides, The Oldest Commissioned Naval Vessel Afloat!

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Old Ironsides , Still Floating after all These Years!

She is the world’s oldest commissioned naval vessel afloat. Every year she sails out of her berth at the Charlestown  Naval Yard to help Boston Celebrate the 4th of July. Well almost every year. She’s in dry dock to get a bit of a face lift. But hey, if I were 200 years old I hope someone would give me a face lift too.

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Construction

The USS Constitution got her nickname Old Ironsides because cannon balls seemed to bounce off her sides like she was made of iron. Actually her hull is made of Southern white pine. However those wooden sides were lined with copper sheathing to prevent shipworm but apparently it also gave the hull extra strength. The sheathing was imported from England but the copper bolts and breasthooks were forged by Paul Revere.

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Copper does not hold up well to seawater so from time to time the Navy brings the aging ship into dry dock to make repairs and restore as much as practical to her original state in 1812.

A Little History

The USS Constitution was launched in 1797, one of six original frigate class ships to start the new country’s Navy. She is most well known for her actions in the War of 1812. The battle with Guerriere earned her the nickname of “Old Ironsides” and public adoration that has repeatedly saved her from scrapping. Although retired from active service in 1881, there was no rest for this grand lady of the sea.

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Through the years

Since she “retired” she became a museum ship in 1907. In 1934, she completed a three-year, 90-port tour of the nation. The Constitution  sailed under her own power for her 200th birthday in 1997, and again in August 2012 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of her victory over Guerriere.

The Crew of the Constitution

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As a fully commissioned  Naval ship. The USS Constitution has a crew of 60 sailors and offices. These officers and crew are all active duty U.S Naval Personnel.

The Future

The Constitution enter Dry dock 1 in May 2015 for a 3 year restoration  project. The project is slated for completion on July 2017. She will be re-floated the night of July 23, 2017.

Riding the Old Town Trolley

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Old Town Trolley Tours

The rain stopped. There’s a big golden ball in the sky! I think the call it the sun. Its not real warm only in the 50’s but at least it’s dry. I’m heading into Boston to ride the Old Town Trolley.

Old Town Trolleys Then

Old Town Trolley! The Best Trolley in Boston

The orange and green trolleys have been in Boston for a long, long time. I became most familiar with them when my friend Joe spent some time driving for the  company. He started in Boston but eventually began driving for them in Florida in Key West. The trolleys they were using then were “Molly” Trolleys. They had wooden benches and were just 1 story or level. I’m not sure what to call it.

Old Town Trolleys Now

Today’s trolleys look like double decker buses but they aren’t. When you get on there are a few stairs that take you to an elevated seating section. The seats are cushioned seats like you find on a modern bus. Today most of the windows had clear plastic “storm” windows to keep the cold at bay. They reminded me of the window covers used on yachts. The windows in the rear of the trolley were open. The plastic was rolled up.

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The Package

I bought my ticket at the Atlantic Ave ticket booth which is also Stop #1, the New England Aquarium and the Rose Kennedy Rose Garden. I haven’t ridden the trolley in a long time so I was in for a sticker shock. Senior discount and all it came to $39.85! It includes a harbor boat trip, a value of  $21.00. The only problem with that is I didn’t want a harbor cruise. There’s no way to purchase just a trolley tour. The cruise, however, can be used another day.

The Hop on Hop Off Tour

Another perk that I couldn’t take advantage of is the Free 2nd day on the Trolley. If I’d gone into town on Saturday I could have come back and ridden for free today. Next time I’ll know. There are 16 stops to explore and if you were to get off at every one you would need 2 days. According to the map, there’s also an option for 4 additional stops on what they call the Seaport Loop.

The Long and Short of it.

I had wandered into Boston after lunch and I got there by MBTA. In other words I started my excursion late; about 1:30. A bruins Game at the Garden had traffic snarled which made the trolley late to the #3 stop, The USS Constitution. I got off here to see the amazing ship in dry dock. By the time I finished that stop it was almost 3 pm! Time flies so I just road the rest of the time. I’ll start earlier for the hop on hop off part next time.

If you go

To take full advantage of the hop on hop off perk, go early. Make sure you have 2 days in a row so you can use the free 2nd day if you need it. Check on line for discounts especially Groupon. In my book, it’s still the number 1 tour company even if it’s gotten a bit pricey!

Be Careful What You Wish For!

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Be Careful what you wish for!

Friday was about as wet and dreary as it can get in New England in the spring. The prediction was that it would rain all day. As I drove to work I thought what a great day it would be to stay at home and cuddle with the cat. (oh oh , be careful!) Saturday was supposed to be cloudy but dry so I planned another venture into Boston. I thought I could ride the hop on hop off trolley around the city collecting lots of pictures and ideas for future blog posts. I would then spend Sunday drafting those posts for those days when I didn’t have time to get to my computer. Well, I got my wish a day late; on Saturday.

The job that lets you be wrong

I was up early Saturday to bring you up to date on my conflict between my beloved blog  and the job that pays the bills. It was still raining but the weather folks continues to  predict a dry day. Oh yes, its raining now they said,  but it will dry out. It will be cloudy but dry.

Saturday Morning TV

At 9 am I put on the morning lineup of children’s programming. Its a whole series of nature programs starting with Jungle Jack Hana and wrapping up with Rock the Park at noon. I do enjoy Saturday morning TV. I settled into my recliner and was immediately joined by Rocky. He curled up on my lap, nice and warm. I could feel more than hear his purr rumbling away. It wasn’t long before I was sound asleep with him. I’m quite sure we had a duet going with both of us purring. When I woke up I checked the weather again. Same forecast, cloudy and dry. A glance out the window showed the wettest “dry” I’ve ever seen. I’d like to have a job where I could be wrong like that!

Still Raining

After lunch I ran some errands and did the weekly grocery shopping. By the time I left the store it was raining even harder. I could get the camera out and try to take some storm photos but I really didn’t feel like trying to keep the camera dry. As 4 pm rolled around and it was still raining I chalked the day up as a total loss. Hopefully the weather will be better Sunday. I can’t help but remember my wish Friday morning to have a dreary, wet day to stay home and cuddle with the cat. Just goes to show, you have to be careful what you wish for.

Its all about the Work

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This is almost a real time conversation! There have been many, many changes at work over the past year. One thing they did was move some of the more basic clerical work from my position creating an unlicensed position to take care of that piece of my job. I wasn’t sorry to see it go. It was a dull, boring , repetitive task.

When they took this away they said it would allow a better distribution of the work load so that we wouldn’t be working around the clock any more.

Nice idea in theory but then a little department call “Analytics” got involved. Every month they sent reports saying people in my position were not working to capacity. They came up with ridiculous targets. Well, I hit their ridiculous goal and looks like now that the momentum is rolling I am going to far exceed the maximum they set.

My job is like a pipe line. While you are filling it up your numbers are too low but once you hit your numbers you’ve opened the flood gates and can’t shut it off. Last week was the week after Easter so these number crunchers predicted it would be slow. It was not. The result is that I had to choose between work and a personal life. That was not supposed to happen under their reorganization. Don’t get me wrong. Its a good job, pays well and allows me to have the life style I want, It just gets very intense this time of year,

What does that mean for my blog? Basically I’m writing this boring post at 6:30 am so you can be in the loop about what is going on. I don’t know if I can maintain my daily blogging schedule. I’m certainly going to try.

Today is very gray and cloudy. Not the kind of day that inspires adventures but I’m going to try to get out and about anyway. Looks like we’re going to have a good whale watch season this year too. Cape Cod is buzzing with all kinds of whales already and it’s still early in the season. Captain John’s Whale Watching counted over 20 humpbacks on a recent trip! So there’s lots of activities in the personal pipeline too. I can only ask that you bear with me on this tough patch.

Are any bloggers that follow me interested in doing a guest blog? If so shoot me an email at aroundustyroads@comcast.net. I’ll be happy to return the favor when my work life returns to normal.

Dusty Roads Travel Blogger

 

Please come to Boston

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Please come to Boston for the Springtime

That’s the first line of a Dave Loggins song. I can’t help but think that its a fitting intro to today post. I want to tell you about Boston in the springtime. My visit to Boston last Saturday  was to celebrate the opening day of the Swan Boats. We’ve had such horrible weather lately but  Saturday shook it off  and was a perfect spring day.

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Swan Boats in the Public Gardens

After taking my time wandering down from the Park St T station I arrived at the Public Garden Lagoon. The Swan Boats were doing a brisk business. I sat down near the loading dock to watch the activity and for the first time I noticed a sign that read Swan Boats since 1877. That’s a pretty extraordinary track record. But that wasn’t the only big achievement.

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It’s a Man’s World

One year after the Boston Swan Boats are founded by Robert Paget in 1877, he passes away.  Robert was only 42 at the time of his death and he left his young widow, Julia, and four children. Julia must have been a very determined woman because business women were  very rare in those days. So rare in fact that for many years she had to collect signatures from local business men attesting to her ability to run her business.

Two Swan Boats 2017

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In 1914 Julia’s youngest son John assumed the helm of the business.

The Paget Legacy

John introduced the larger boats that cruise the lagoon today. Each boat has 5 benches allowing more passengers than the smaller 3 bench boats. The current fleet consists of six boats, the oldest of which was built under John in 1910. In 1952 John  passed the reins to his son Paul.

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Paul ran the company through the 50’s – 90’s. Today a 4th generation of Pagets  preserve this beloved Boston Tradition.

Through the Years

There have been many events to mark the storied history of the Swan Boats.

  •  1977 marked the 100th anniversary.
  • 2002 First ever Swan Boat crew reunion hosted for employees from the 1950’s through 2002.
  • 2008 Paul Paget drives a Swan Boat at age 86
  • 2011 Designated Boston landmark

Today the future looks bright if the crowds lining up is any indication. Somehow I can’t imagine the Public Garden Lagoon without the Swan Boats circling duck island on a beautiful, spring day.

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2017 Season
Saturday, April 15 to Sunday, September 17, 2017