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Photo Description: Photograph of park rangers from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation and from the National Park Service walking into Fort Warren during their training. On the left-hand side is the Guard House and there is a tree on the right of the photo. 

This past month has gone by so fast as our seasonal staff trained in preparation for the beginning of the 2023 season, visited some of the islands we will be staffing, and working diligently on developing tours and programs for you all to enjoy.

We have a mix of new and returning rangers who are currently working on digging deeper into the history of the Boston Harbor Islands and have been working on some new ideas for tours and programs for the season. Throughout our training, we also visited and learned more about Spectacle, Georges, and Peddocks Island.

Photo Description: Photograph of Faries Gray standing and talking to park rangers from The Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation and the National Park Service on Peddocks Island. The Boston Harbor and the Town of Hull are in the background of the photo. 

On our final day of training on the islands, we visited Peddocks Island. During this time, we sat down and had an eye opening and informative discussion with Faries Gray, Sagamore of the Massachusett. During this discussion he shared his experiences with us along with his knowledge on the Massachusett history on the Boston Harbor Islands and how this history still has an impact on Indigenous People to this day. As we move forward into the season, we hope to continue having these conversations and keep shedding light on these experiences.

Free Ferry Weekend Recap:

After our last day of training on the islands, we cleaned the Welcome Center and got some of our programs ready in time for Free Ferry Weekend. Even with the rain showers on the first day, we were thrilled to welcome hundreds of visitors to the islands.

Photo Description: Under an overcast sky, a group of visitors overlook the handrail.

Over the past few weeks, we continued to have a high number of visitors on Georges Island where they attended our tours of Fort Warren and played Civil War Lawn Games on the parade ground. We also had several visitors at the Welcome Center stop by, talk with us, and attend our pop-up programs such as Art Cart and Island Trivia Wheel. 

Throughout the season, We will have a lot more programs and events available on the islands. Whether you have visited the Boston Harbor Islands National and State Park a dozen times or are visiting for the first time, we hope to share our stories and experiences about the islands to you and help you connect to the park in some way. Thank you to everyone who has visited us already this season and to those who will visit later this season!