Head out to the Harbor Islands

While I was born on the coast - Bay area of California - most of my life has been spent in landlocked locations - i.e. Germany and Ohio.  Of the many reasons why I love living in Boston, being by the ocean is one of them.   As the weather continues to get nicer I find myself looking forward to revisiting, and finding more, water related tourism attractions.  That being said my next few posts will be on activities I experienced last summer and am anxiously looking forward to doing again.

One place I can't wait to get back to are the Harbor Islands, I had a great time when there and it was easy to get to.  Taking a $14 round-trip ferry ride (I personally would just call it a boat, since ferries to me also carry cars and this one didn't - but what do I know?) from Long Wharf it was a quick trip to Georges and Spectacle Island.

Located at the entrance of Boston Harbor, Georges Island is home to Fort Warren.  Built to defend the harbor and Boston from attackers - mainly the British at the time - the fort has never fired a shot out of anger (i.e. in efforts to defend itself and the city).  Finished shortly before the Civil War, Fort Warren was used to house prisoners of war.  The prisoners has had such a harsh life at the Fort that they complained their uniforms would cease to fit - due to the amount of food they received many began to outgrow their uniforms (imagine complaining about getting to much food).  If you want to learn a lot about the Fort, I recommend taking the ranger guided tour on the island.  It is interesting and highly informative.

Spectacle Island seems to be a lot smaller than Georges Island (I don't really know if it is).  It has two hiking trails and a beach you can swim in.  Since I went to Georges Island first, by the time I got to Spectacle Island it was a bit late so I didn't spend a lot of time there.  I can tell you that the island offers a great view of Boston and the harbor.

A few things you should know before you go - some I planned for and others I learned the hard way.
- When you buy your ferry ticket, you have to buy a time stamped ticket for your return trip so have a general idea how long you are planning on spending on the islands.
- Anything you bring onto Georges Island you must take off (including your trash).  Also, when I was there last the only food available was a hot dog vendor - I love grilled hot dogs so I wasn't complaining.  But you might want to consider packing food and water
- There is a good chance you will get wet on the transfer boat ride between Georges and Spectacle Island   - and probably between the other islands as well.  Riders encouraged the captain to get us wet and he happily obliged - so heads up.
- Before you go check out the islands' calendar for ideas on how to plan your trip.
- Bring a flashlight.  There is no electricity in the fort and it has some dark hallways for explorers to walk down.

Well those are all the tips I have, if you have any others please share I would love to read them and I am sure others would too.