|
Enjoy
A 'Stay-Cation' On
Local South Shore Seas
By Marie
Fricker
Senior
News Correspondent
Plymouth
- Martha Daniels of Weymouth shaded her eyes with a pink
visor as she and her granddaughter, Jessica, 10, looked out
from the deck of the Lightning at the sun splashed sea in
front of them. They were among 43 passengers aboard the T
Harbor Express this Saturday afternoon taking the 5:05 ferry
from the Fore River Shipyard in Quincy. The trip had barely
begun when the buildings of Boston materialized behind a
haze of puffy fair weather clouds on the horizon.
“A lot of people don’t realize how beautiful it is to enter
the city by sea,” said Daniels, brushing her windswept hair
from her face. “I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it.” She
and her granddaughter left the boat when it docked at the
Marriott Long Wharf Hotel and walked over to the New England
Aquarium for a day of undersea discovery. Other passengers
headed for the shops of Faneuil Hall and the restaurants of
the North End and one couple connected with the Salem Ferry
at nearby Central Wharf.
Built in 1996, the Harbor Express’s two high speed
catamarans, the Flying Cloud and the Lightning, operate
year-round commuter service connecting Quincy, Hull, Boston
and Logan Airport. The Harbor Express also runs harbor and
sunset cruises throughout the summer season.
The ferries offer a “green” way of getting into the city,
according to Joe Hajjar, PR Ambassador for the Water
Transportation Alternatives (WTA), which oversees the Harbor
Express. “We’re green because you don’t need to spend money
on gas and you can park your car in our lot all day for $1,”
said Hajjar, who encourages seniors to take advantage of the
low fares this summer for outings on the sea. “Seniors pay
$6 for a round trip to Boston and back and I’ve created a
narrated tour for any group of 30 seniors or more. People
catch the boat right here at the Fore River where the U.S.S.
Salem is docked and some of these folks actually worked in
this shipyard years ago, so it’s very nostalgic for them.”
Hajjar says many seniors take the Harbor ferry service just
for the boat ride during the warm weather months. “If they
don’t get off the vessel, we only charge them a one way fare
for the round trip,” he said. “Where else could you get a
nice 90 minute sightseeing tour of Boston Harbor for $3.00?”
South Shore seniors have a myriad of options for spending
some quality time on the sea this summer. They can take the
ferry at the Fore River Shipyard in Quincy to Georges Island
with free connections to Spectacle Island. The catamarans
also leave Hingham Shipyard and Pemberton Point in Hull for
service to Grape, Bumpkin, Peddocks, Georges, and Lovells
Islands. Passengers can purchase two-island or six-island
round trip fares. Discounted senior rates apply to all
vessels and every boat is handicap accessible.
Another offering of the Water Transportation Alternatives is
the Nathaniel Bowditch, a 92-foot high speed ferry, which
departs from Central Wharf each day for a 45-minute trip
along the New England coastline to Salem. “We offer cruise
and dine packages to both Salem and Boston,” said Hajjar.
“Seniors can take the boat ride to either city and get a 10%
discount on major restaurants just for sailing with us.”
Seniors who are looking for a little more action than a
smooth harbor cruise can hop aboard the WTA’s Voyager III
for the New England Aquarium’s whale watching excursions
along Stellwagen Bank. “This is the only boat in Boston that
was purposely built for whale watching,” said Hajjar, “And
we have more outside viewing space than any vessel in New
England. The sightings are phenomenal.” The Voyager leaves
the Aquarium’s dock daily at 10 a.m. from April through
October for a three to four hour trip narrated by marine
naturalists.
For Norwell senior Betty Coleman, 61, traveling by water is
something she did as a downtown commuter for more than 20
years, but now her outings on the sea are purely
recreational. “I used to skip the gridlock of the expressway
by taking the boat out of Hingham,” said Coleman. “At that
time, the ferry was a godsend, but now that I’m retired it’s
just plain fun.”
For South Shore seniors who don’t mind making the drive over
the bridge to Cape Cod, Hy-Line cruises offers seasonal
water shuttles to both Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard from
its Ocean Street Dock in Hyannis. Hy-Line also runs a
one-hour Hyannisport Harbor cruise with views of the Kennedy
Compound, as well as deep sea fishing trips on Nantucket
Sound.
Closer to home are the many options provided by Boston
Harbor Cruises during the summer months. Seniors are
entitled to a discounted fare aboard the Salacia, the
largest and fastest passenger-only catamaran in the U.S,
which offers 90-minute service from Boston to Provincetown.
The cat holds up to 600 people and travels at speeds up to
40 knots, which is faster than most speedboats.
Bonnie
Powers, coordinator of group sales for the cruise company,
says seniors make up a hefty portion of her passenger list
on nearly every trip she offers. “Boston has the Freedom
Trail and other walking tours, but seeing the city by sea is
a totally different kind of experience,” said Powers. “We
have quite a few senior groups aboard our vessels, and we
welcome them with open arms.”
Boston Harbor Cruises offers a full slate of seafaring
excursions for all age groups this summer. Among them are a
90-minute sunset cruise that includes a narrated tour of
Boston Harbor, as well as an up-close look at the USS
Constitution as the ship fires her cannon and lowers her
flag in its ceremonial signaling of the day’s end.
Another senior-favorite, according to Powers, is the Charles
River and Locks Tour, which features a narrated 90-minute
trip through Boston’s inner Harbor and the Charles River.
Passengers sail by the USS Constitution, the Bunker Hill
Monument and the Old North Church before traveling along the
Charles to enjoy sweeping views of the Boston and Cambridge
skylines, Esplanade Park, MIT, Harvard, Beacon Hill and the
Back Bay.
For lighthouse lovers who are eager to venture beyond the
boundaries of the South Shore, Powers recommends the
Northern Lights tour, which includes close-up views of Long
Island Head and Deer Island Lights, Boston Light, the oldest
lighthouse station in America, and nine other lighthouses on
the North Shore. The tour ends with a sail by Thacher
Island, the site of the only operating twin lighthouses in
the country.
“For
people who are fascinated by lighthouses, the Northern
Lights tour is a must,” said Powers. “This is one of our
most popular cruises for seniors, and they often bring their
grandchildren.”
For those who’d prefer to remain in more familiar waters,
the Plymouth County Board of Tourism promotes a number of
nautical excursions on its Web site - seeplymouth. com. Bob
Avila, director of sales for Captain John Boats, Inc., now
in its 62nd year of business, is a former marine who has
lived on the water all of his life.
“I am a boating enthusiast from childhood, so it isn’t hard
for me to sell our product,” said Avila, who promotes the
Plymouth area cruises run by his family-owned company.
Captain John Boats offers deep sea fishing trips, whale
watches, a Provincetown ferry and narrated Plymouth harbor
day and sunset cruises.
“Our fishing trips on the Captain John and Son and the
Captain John and Son II are a huge hit with seniors,” said
Avila. “I would say that two thirds of the people on our
full or half day deep sea excursions are over age 55. We get
a lot of fathers, sons and grandfathers, and the people come
from all over New England.”
If fishing is not your game, Captain John boats also offer
Plymouth Harbor cruises aboard the Pilgrim Belle, an
authentic Mississippi style paddle wheeler that takes
passengers on a narrated tour past Plymouth Rock, the
Mayflower II, Plymouth Beach, Clark’s Island and the
beautiful Gurnet Point Lighthouse. “It’s an awesome trip for
anyone who wants to learn a little local history,” said
Avila. “And you also gain some insight about our own
Plymouth fishing and lobstering industries.”
Speaking of lobstering, the “Lobster Tale,” a 45-foot vessel
owned and operated by Captain Paul Quintal and his wife
Jean, offers a hands-on lobster excursion on Plymouth
Harbor, as well as an interactive Pirates Cruise where
passengers battle an enemy pirate ship, and weeknight ice
cream and wine-tasting cruises.
“We have a number of senior groups that charter our boat
during the summer months,” said Jean Quintal, the captain’s
wife and first mate. “The great thing about our cruises is
that they are very relaxing for people of all ages. You can
help out and haul in the lobster traps on our lobster
excursions, or just sit back and observe. And we’re never
more than a half a mile from land, so it’s a smooth sail the
whole way.”
South Shore seniors have a wide selection when it comes to
day cruises this summer, but WTA Ambassador Hajjar believes
his T Harbor Express is still the best deal around.
“I like to call our ferry rides a ‘stay-cation,’ said Hajjar.
“Many seniors can’t afford the gas to take road trips
anymore, but they can pay a buck, leave their car in our lot
for the day and set sail for adventure right in their own
backyard. It doesn’t get any better than that.”
|
|