Winter fun- skating sledding surfing birding #GloucesterMA

Last day of January 2021 was a sunny one, cold enough for ponds and craggy coast puddles to freeze over.

photo caption- few scenes from Long Beach, Stage Fort Park, Buswell Pond, Fernwood Lake, Days Pond. No action at Le page

 

Boston Winter at City Hall Plaza

We spent the afternoon in the city yesterday and had such a great time!   While not all of our grand plans for winter vacation will get crossed off the bucket list, skating at City Hall Plaza’s Boston Winter was one that we were sure not to miss.  Kids skate for $8 and adults for $10….skates are available for rent and there is a warm room with benches to store your shoes and lace up.

Some pretty nice outdoor shopping, plenty of places to grab a snack or even a drink (yes, please), and enough ice to accommodate plenty of skaters….all under the city lights of Boston. Kind of magical, really.

We got in there on the early side so we left just shy of the live entertainment rink side. The boys can never quite get enough skating so they skated once, we walked down to Faneuil Hall for lunch and a bit of shopping, and then walked back up the stairs to City Hall to hit the ice again.  During their second run my friend and I figured we had earned a hot mulled wine drink….sounds iffy, but was pretty yummy…and being able to stand outside by the rink in the middle of the city with a drink in our hands (legally) was a nice treat.

The Urban Lodge, conveniently located right next to the ice, has a bar, some comfy seating, snacks, warm blankets, and even a giant sized Jenga game.  There are also plenty of snack shacks serving up other drinks and treats. The shopping is pretty eclectic with a variety of items and maybe a little something for everyone.  In fact, I was thrilled to discover Rusty and Ingrid snuggled into the midst of some other shopping chalets.  Check out their website now, but expect a blog post about their amazing work very soon…now that I’ve been pleasantly reminded how incredible their work is!

The boys probably would have stayed all night, but we were getting chilly.  We took a spin through the phenomenal Boston Public Market (also a blog post for another day!) and headed home.

So happy to have made it into the city….and to have spent the day with good friends.

img_9105img_9045img_9063

 

Skating on Mill Pond, 1943

This morning I drained the water out of the the deck umbrella base. Tonight's temperatures will drop to 21º, Sunday will only warm up to 30º and drop to 19º at night. Monday's high should reach 32º, and be 28º overnight. I just went on a short errand in my car, and the thermometer read 34º. With the wind, it's pretty brutal out there. I mentioned this to the clerk in the store, and then remarked: "Wait 'till winter gets here." It's time to bring in your potted plants for the winter. I'll bring some of mine to the gallery.
This morning I drained the water out of the the deck umbrella base. Tonight’s temperatures will drop to 21º, Sunday will only warm up to 30º and drop to 19º at night. Monday’s high should reach 32º, and be 28º overnight. I just went on a short errand in my car, and the thermometer read 34º. With the wind, it’s pretty brutal out there. I mentioned this to the clerk in the store, and then remarked: “Wait ’till winter gets here.” It’s time to bring in your potted plants for the winter. I’ll bring some of mine to the gallery.