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As I write this, I am just home from a trip out to Ledge Light. So great! The boat was full of kids and families, along with a smattering of locals who have long dreamed of getting out to the Lighthouse. There is something gratifying about seeing people finally visiting a place they have looked at from shore their whole lives.
There has been a real rush on our $5 tickets to visit inside both Harbor and Ledge Lighthouses. We offer these subsidized tickets so that New London and Groton residents can finally visit their lighthouses. I often say: You built them, you maintained them, you own the lighthouses! And I mean it. Here are a couple of other things you should know.
During the school year, we teach a program about local landmarks. As part of that class, we bring students to visit as many historic sites as we can. But the sites our students most want to visit are the lighthouses—and unfortunately, we can't take them there.
We cannot bring students to Harbor Lighthouse because of a local zoning restrictions, requested by Harbor Lighthouse neighbors, that specifically forbids visits by schoolchildren. And we cannot bring students out to Ledge Lighthouse because our boat trips are available only during the summer, outside the regular school year.
Our solution is the $5 subsidized ticket, which allows students to visit the lighthouses, with their families, at a price that is affordable. Fortunately, Veolia/NL Water Authority has generously sponsored these discounted tickets for the past several years.
This summer, the $5 tickets have finally caught on—hurrah! We offer 14 discounted tickets on each Ledge Light trip, along with 12 tickets at the regular price, because we have to cover the cost of the boat, which is close to $500 per trip. If you're local and cannot afford the full-priced tickets, please take advantage of this rare offer. We have seven boat trips remaining this summer, and our Harbor Light visits are available year-round. Sign up now—you know how quickly the summer goes!
People, of course, are also asking about trips out to Race Rock. We are hoping, hoping, hoping to get a plan together this week. There will be a special email blast announcing the schedule when we do. For now, I'll only say that we have not yet found an affordable way to get people out to that lighthouse. It looks like tickets will be around $125.
It was quiet downtown this Saturday. People are making plans for going back to school and squeezing in vacations while there's still time. As a result, we postponed Sam Nizmela's Sound & Rhythm workshop until Saturday, September 19.
But if you're having a staycation, from August 13 through the 30th, we're having a special End-of-Summer SALE in the Shop. You'll be amazed at what we have—truly something for everyone. How about this large, shark-shaped puzzle, at right, for example?
--Susan
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