Boston, Massachusetts

At 10 this morning, we cast off the two mooring lines from the rusted industrial sized mooring ball the Plymouth Harbormaster had let us use gratis.

Plymouth Harbor mooring ball

It continued to be chilly, feeling like 33 degrees F, and Peter and I could see our breath when we awoke today.  Cruising is in some ways like tent camping without the hassle of setting up and breaking up the campsite every time you are ready to move on.  Also, we have quite a few creature comforts such as a real shower, a washing machine and a full kitchen, so it's a bit less rustic.

After we zig-zagged our way out of Plymouth Harbor, we were able to raise the full main and the jib and sail on a beam reach on a port tack.  The wind picked up a couple of hours later, with gusts to 25 knots, and we had put two reefs in the main, but it was smooth sailing all the way to Boston Harbor.

Approaching Boston

At 4 p.m., we arrived at Constitution Marina on the Charlestown side of Boston, at the mouth of the Charles River. After we settled into the slip and picked up packages at the marina office (including warm fleece blankets!!!), we set off to explore.  We followed the route of the Freedom Trail on the Charlestown side.  We were too late to tour the USS Constitution and other ships on the Charlestown Dock (part of the National Park Service) on a nearby dock, so we followed the red brick trail through a small part of the town, stopping to admire and learn about Winthrop Square, which was originally the Training Field for the town's volunteer militia.  Around it are stately Greek Revival and Italanate town houses from the 1800's.  Some of the streets and porches are still lit by gas lamps.

Winthrop Square

Old houses with gas porch lights and street lamps

From there we could see the Bunker Hill Monument, which is not actually on Bunker Hill.  The monument is commemorating a battle that was supposed to take place on nearby Bunker Hill, but the venue was changed, against orders, the day before to Breed's Hill, which is higher.  This was a pivotal battle in the early days of the American Revolution because, even though the colonial militiamen lost to the Redcoats, they inflicted much greater harm on the British military.  Before the battle of Bunker (Breed's) Hill on June 17, 1775, the British already held Boston, across the river from Charlestown, but they wanted to gain control of the strategic hills on the peninsula north of the the city to gain defend Boston Harbor.

Bunker (Breed's) Hill Monument

The night before the battle, the patriots, under the command of Colonel William Prescott, fortified the hill with fence-rail shelters and took up sniper positions at Breed's Hill, which was closer to the city than Bunker Hill.  The well-trained and well-armed British made three attacks that day.  Knowing they were short on ammunition, colonial officers ordered their men to withhold fire and only shoot when the enemy was close enough for direct, accurate hits.  Every American schoolchild is taught that someone, perhaps Col. Prescott or his superior General Israel Putnam (I don't remember.), ordered the troops:  "Don't fire until you see the whites of their eyes."

Statue of Prescott in front of the Bunker Hill Monument

Finally out of ammunition, Prescott and his men retreated north toward Cambridge, and the British entrenched themselves on Breed's Hill and burned Charlestown.  The cost of the victory was high; of the 2200 men, the British suffered 1054 casualties (226 dead and 828 wounded), with a significantly high proportion of officers losing their lives.  The casualty tally for the militiamen was about 450, with 140 killed, out of about 2000, with most of the losses occurring during the retreat.

As we walked back to the waterfront, we passed through Charlestown's City Square, located where Charlestown was founded in 1628.  Here,  colonists built a house for Governor Winthrop before he even left England to join them. There were also public buildings, houses and businesses on and around the square.  Recent excavations have revealed the foundations of several of them, including the Three Cranes Tavern and the Long Family residence.  My maternal grandmother was a Long.  Could this be part of our family history?

Plaque in City Square in Charlestown

Peter was hungry and we went to a restaurant recommended to us by the dockhand at the marina.  I enjoyed warm comfort food--macaroni and cheese--with a side of roasted vegetables while Peter had a bowl of New England clam chowder and a lamb poutine.  Since the portions were not super-sized, we indulged in a great dessert, sugared churros with dark chocolate and caramel sauces for dipping.

I am now taking advantage of marina amenities.  Clothes are in the washers and dryers, and as soon as I finish this post, I will be taking a hot shower.  It is actually supposed to be in the mid-60's tomorrow, so we plan to explore more outdoor sites, including the rest of the Freedom Trail, on foot.  There is a Whole Foods nearby, so I can gather more provisions before we leave.  We only have reservations for two nights, but we may have to wait until the middle of next week to start heading south.  Besides, Peter has a few jobs he wants to get done on the boat before we take off, such as fixing the staysail halyard and repairing some rigging.  We could go a bit further north, perhaps to Marblehead, but I think Peter is going to need the stability of the dock and possible access to a chandlery.  So we will see.