My first destination that day was Spectacle Island – you can see the map above. Thompson Island – one of the first settlements, it’s now owned by Outward Bound as one of the only (the only?) privately owned islands in the Boston Harbor. Thompson Island is also close to shore, one of the first settlements that is now owned by Outward Bound, and it’s one of the only privately It looks like a dozen eggs sitting there. This now holds a wastewater treatment plant for 43 surrounding cities. Did you know that Cosco stands for Chinese Overseas Shipping Company? You’ve probably seen their containers – not sure if the car seats are related. The Boston harbor is big into shipping (uh, tea party anyone?), including products from China and the Far East. This is the longest continuously fortified island in North America. On the boat ride, you’ll pass by Castle Island which looks like it’s attached to Boston (and actually it is – to South Boston – no longer an official island), home of Fort Independence. You can see the beach/swimming area in the front, which has a lifeguard. The view from Spectacle Island into Boston. Planes land on average every 30 seconds, and we saw quite a few overhead on our boat ride. More relevant, though, is that Logan takes landfill from three of the Boston Harbor islands: Governor’s, Noddle’s, and Apple Islands. If you flew into Boston, you’ll likely have come into Logan Airport, also known as General Edward Lawrence Logan International Airport, named after a Spanish-American War officer who had obviously never been on a plane. On the way, they gave us interesting information about the islands, which are a National Park area (though the boats are an outside vendor). The popular Spectacle Island is only a 15 minute boat ride from Boston’s Long Harbor. You can tour the lighthouse on Little Brewster Island on a different boat tour, along with two other lighthouses. That makes our own Sandy Hook lighthouse (built in 1764) the oldest working lighthouse in the United States. The country’s oldest lighthouse was first built here in 1716, though the British burned it down in 1776 and rebuilt in 1783. Not shockingly, Native Americans used these islands before we settlers did, for hunting, farming and other activities. You can visit 12 of the islands. This is part of our Boston series.Įven their recent history is interesting. There are 34 islands in all, 24 with archaeological activity on them. If you have an extra day (or half day) on your trip, consider going. One of the hidden gems of Boston are the Boston Harbor Islands.
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