Mapping out Fun at Mystic Seaport

I went to see what Mystic Seaport’s new interactive Map Spot was all about. It’s supposedly geared to kids, but Interpreter Lindsey Pyrke-Fairchild claims that adults like Map Spot as much as the children do. I can see why.

Suzzanah was making a map of her bedroom; Abby and Maddy were mapping their respective neighborhoods; Emma’s imaginative map was of a forest with horses. So, I gave it a try myself, mapping my own neighborhood. A  cartographer I’ll never be, but it was fun trying. Hmm… maybe next time I’ll try making a dream vacation map!

One of the coolest things in Map Spot is the “smart board,” a touch screen with a few games that test your smarts and your speed. The object is to move a state into its proper location on the map in a given amount of time. It can be tricky, believe me! 

Next I teamed up with precocious 18-month-old Hannah to choose where I wanted to visit or live, or pinpoint where my ancestors lived on a wall-sized map of the world. Hannah and I marked our spots with red and yellow magnetic discs. Watch out, world, Hannah’s on her way!

Moving on, the next challenge was making a coastline map of the model island in the glass case. The task – simulate the coastline on the magnetized glass via a beaded necklace-like tool. Not as easy as it looks!

Well, it was time to take a drive, but Driving to Distraction was so popular with both the boys and the girls that I couldn’t get in the driver’s seat! This is a GPS concept with a voice directing you to places in the town of Mystic. It can be a wild ride with the likes of Juan and Jose behind the wheel!

Yelitza motioned me over to the topographical map to help her locate some of the things you are supposed to find. We had to duck down to find shipwrecks, shown through a glass window beneath the map. Interpreter Lindsey votes this her favorite display. 

My Map Spottour ended with Francelis, who was designing a bedroom by moving dollhouse size wooden furniture around on the large grid floor. Francelis could then copy her final “map” onto a paper with small grids, knowing the furniture would fit where she wanted it.

Final conclusion: Map Spot is a great spot! Lots to do with soft-sell teaching and learning wrapped up in fun. Check it out.

Fresh Lobster, Warm Sun, Cool Breezes. Join us!

Crack open your first lobster claw of the season this Memorial Day Weekend at our 24th annual Lobster Days.

Fresh lobster will be served Saturday through Monday under our open-air Boat Shed along the beautiful Mystic River. The weekend’s festivities also feature a touch tank filled with all sorts of sea creatures (courtesy of Mystic Aquarium – thanks, neighbor!), talks about the lobstering industry, games on the Village Green, lobster story time in the Children’s Museum, book signings in the Museum Store and much, much more. 

And in remembrance of those that have served, join us for Decoration Day Monday, May 25, from 12 – 1 p.m. in the Greenmanville Church for a powerful ceremony dedicated to the memory of those lost in the Civil War.  A reverent service led by costumed citizens of 1876 Greenmanville will begin at noon. Immediately following the service, join in a procession for the playing of taps and a wreath laying upon the Mystic River.

No matter your plans this holiday, may your weekend be filled with fun, sun and warm memories. And if you want it to be filled with lobster, well, you know where to go.

For a detailed list of special events and Museum happenings, visit www.mysticseaport.org.

A Brilliant Season

While this cool, wet spring has most of us in New England still in fleece jackets, the Museum’s schooner Brilliant has already set sail for its spring sailing season, featuring two-day sails for adults. Teen sailing voyages, five and 10 days in length begin June 15, and adult sailing getaways begin again on September 11. In anticipation of warmer days and fair winds, we offer a few tidbits about Brilliant‘s gleaming acomplishments.

Year the Brilliant sailing program began at Mystic Seaport: 1953

Approximate number of people who have sailed on Brilliant since her arrival at Mystic Seaport: 10,000

Approximate number of nautical miles sailed in 53 seasons: 160,000

The record-setting number of days it took Brilliant to cross the Atlantic in 1933: 15

Place of Brilliant in the Tall Ships Race from Halifax to Amsterdam in 2000: 1

Number of fleet firsts Brilliant has taken in Nantucket’s Opera House Cup: 2

Approximate number of races Brilliant has won in the last 20 years: 20

Number of those races that the author of this blog post sailed in: 3

Take a Ride with a Movie Star? Maybe.

Little Joe is 8 years old and weighs 2,000 pounds; Duke is currently at Cape Cod doing a movie shoot with Richard Dreyfuss.

These are horses I’m talking about – Mystic Seaport’s beautiful four-legged creatures who wait patiently near the Village Green, irresistibly patted and petted by almost all who pass by and ever ready to give Museum visitors a memorable carriage ride.

Enjoy a horse and carriage ride during your next visit to the Museum.

Today was Little Joe’s duty day with driver, Jack Winder at the reins. I piled into the wagon with six Butler High School students from Morris and Passaic, NJ: Sarah (with an h), Sara (w/o an h), Katie, Karen, Rebecca and Tyler. For four of them, this was their first visit to the Museum, and their sense of fun and adventure was palpable.

 Jack set the tone as he “giddyapped” Little Joe, explaining that the horse has two speeds – slow and slower! Jack’s narrative- dotted with humor – about the history of village buildings, the exhibits open for exploration and his “Nantucket sleigh ride” question pumped our minds and imaginations.

But it was the possibility of someday getting married at Mystic Seaport that definitely hit a romantic nerve amongst the Butler girls. That may be a fantasy, but one that could well come true. We do weddings here!

Summing up the experience, Tyler commented that the group’s carriage ride now made it easier for them to decide where they wanted to go and what they wanted to explore further. Great, Little Joe and Jack. You’ve done your job well!

For more information about horse and carriage rides, as well as the Museum’s other offerings, visit us at www.mysticseaport.org.

Another Typical Day at Mystic Seaport…

So we started off the day like this:

Finally!

The Planetarium at Mystic Seaport was officially dedicated as the Treworgy Planetarium at Mystic Seaport — honoring long-serving employee Don Treworgy, pictured here in his traditional red suspenders.

Then, in the afternoon, a certain vessel was itching to get back in the water.

Amistad started the day like this.

And ended her day back in the water -- where she belongs.

All in all, just another day at America’s leading maritime museum.

May Flowers

Our copious April (and May) showers have done the trick–Mystic Seaport is positively bursting into bloom!

Museum garden volunteers have been hard at work alongside garden staff Kara Franco and Steve Sisk, as well as our facilities team, and their hard work shows in all the beautifully cared for beds, and the lush, glorious planters now making an appearance around the grounds, now that the risk of frost is past in our coastal climate (three cheers!).

We know—if you’re a gardener, the only place you want to be right now is in the dirt. But if your aching body needs a brief respite, why not spend a few extra moments at your computer, touring through the (always growing) garden section on our site. We’ve got weekly garden tips from Supervisor of Grounds Kara Franco, an online plant list for each of our many gorgeous gardens, a collection of articles on gardening by the sea and some “Garden Delights,” a closer look at some of our noteworthy growers in each season.

If you enjoy learning in the company of like-minded gardeners, you won’t want to miss our continuing Spring Garden Symposium. This month we’re hosting Master Gardener and author Susan Munger. She’ll discuss the ease of creating sustainable gardens and landscapes with the use of rain gardens.

And finally, if you want to join our dedicated crew of garden volunteers, we would love to have you!

Just click here to sign up . (Make sure to check off the gardens/landscaping box.)

Piloting our way

Pilots hard at work, despite the damp weather!

Get any of those spring projects done this weekend? We did!

Fender making

This past weekend, May 9th & 10th, was the 73rd Pilot Weekend at Mystic Seaport. Mystic Seaport Pilots are special Museum volunteers who devote an on-site weekend of service twice a year. These dedicated folk come from all over the country to roll up their sleeves and work side by side with Museum staff on a variety of projects.

What did  75 Pilots accomplish this weekend?

They spread one ton of mulch on our peerless gardens

They created one new garden

They planted 45 plants

They dug 22 plants for replanting

They built three floats

They launched eight boats

They deployed 25 fenders

They scraped eight davits from the Charles W. Morgan

They sorted and cataloged 900 rowing magazines

They made four muslin patterns from 1871 pattern books, to be used in the creation of role player costumes

They rehoused 2100 Rosenfeld images

They scraped 50% of the bulwarks on the Charles W. Morgan

They created three rope fenders

They serviced two antique engines were serviced

They scrubbed the decks of five small craft

President Steve White and his wife, Maggie, joined the 75 Pilots who spent a weekend doing service projects for Mystic Seaport.

Scrubbing the decks

Recognize this Shipyard volunteer? It’s former Museum President Doug Teeson, an active Museum volunteer and member of the Pilots.

This hearty crew built three floating docks last weekend!

Supervisor of Grounds Kara Franco and her helpful garden crew.

*          *            *

Our Fall Pilots’ Weekend is October 17-18 and we’d love to have you be part of the crew! To join in the fun, go to  http://www.mysticseaport.org/pilotprogram
or e-mail chris.freeman@mysticseaport.org.

And to all our Pilots, a simple thank you just isn’t enough for all you do. We are so deeply grateful for your continued service and hands-on commitment to your Museum.

You are There!

Have you ever viewed a photograph or painting of such realism that you almost  feel you are right there – experiencing what the artist or photographer has captured on canvas or film?

That’s the sensation you’ll likely have when you visit the mini-gallery of Rosenfeld pictures in Mystic Seaport’s G.W. Blunt White Building at the Museum’s north end.

“It’s a Rosenfeld” is usually all that needs to be said to identify the magnificent images of sailboats and other watercraft that Morris Rosenfeld and his sons masterfully captured on film over the span of their professional lifetimes.

A minuscule portion of the humongous Rosenfeld Collection now complements the Museum’s Rowing Exhibit and Olin J. Stephens Reading Room. Pictures along the stairway and the 2^nd floor gallery are wonderful examples of the Rosenfelds’ talents. 

For instance, there’s the dramatic shot of the catamaran “Delight,” hull way out of the water, that almost intuitively makes you lean back to share the exhilaration of that moment.

Then there’s the beautiful “Flying Spinnakers” – sails filled – their graceful beauty conjuring up a pallet of  memories reminiscent of warm breezy days spent on open waters.

Or maybe the young sailors pictured in “Beam End” will trigger instant recall of your own youthful sailing days.

Whether a photographer, sailor, rower or landlubber, this small, artfully selected Rosenfeld exhibit is a special treat for the soul. Make certain you check it out when you visit Mystic Seaport.

The Museum’s website: www.mysticseaport.org is jam packed with what, when and where information. Check it often so you don’t miss anything!

The Busses are Coming!

Aside from the chirping and nesting birds, the budding flowers and blossoming trees, at Mystic Seaport there is another sure sign that spring is here. The busses are coming! 

As the school year winds down, school trips are the order of the day. Beginning May 4 and running through June 10, schools throughout Connecticut and beyond have scheduled visits to Mystic Seaport. Do the math: 45 kids per bus, multiplied by the number of busses – up to six on any given day – that’s a lot of excited school kids plus chaperones arriving on Museum grounds!

But not to worry!

Mystic Seaport’s 19 acres gobble up groups of this size without hampering the enjoyment of the casual visitor. Actually, the sound of children laughing and enjoying themselves can be infectious and perhaps even nostalgic. When’s the last time you attempted  balancing on stilts or trying to keep a hoop rolling with a stick? It’s fun to watch, even if you don’t participate. Also, hearing a chorus of children singing whaling songs and sea chanteys is a truly unique Mystic Seaport experience. You might just want to join in.

Whether you come in your own “bus” or with a busload of school children, your visit to the Museum of America and the Sea will be a memorable experience, guaranteed.

Visit our website at www.mysticseaport.org to learn about all the Museum has to offer.