Trails & Sails Weekends are here!

It's time to get out and explore! There's no reason not to, because for the next two weekends, it's free.  Thanks to the hard work of the Essex National Heritage Commission and their partners, there will be more than 200 free events throughout Essex County (which includes Salem) on September 16, 17, 24 and 25. 

200 Events.  And they are all free. 

This is the Tenth Annual Trails & Sails, so you may be aware of it.  It is the region's largest celebration of  natural, cultural and historic resources.  You can sail on a Schooner, explore beaches, discover hidden rooms, learn gossip from the past.  And that's just in Salem.

All of the events are listed online at TrailsandSails.org, and printed guides to Trails & Sails are available at Essex Heritage Visitor Centers (including the Salem Regional Visitor Center at 2 New Liberty Street) and participating Eastern Banks.

Essex Heritage is sweetening the pot this year - they have created a Trails & Sails Passport (very cool!), and if you get 10 stamps, you can send your passport in to be entered into a drawing for fabulous prizes.  There's more information on the web site. 

Here's a quick list of the events in Salem this weekend and next.  Make sure to review the event capacities; if they are limited, you may want to get arrive early. 

• (Re)Discovering Salem's Franco-American hosted by Historic Salem, Inc.
• ­17th Century Midwives at Witch House
• ­1812 Privateer FAME: Go Sail! Aboard Schooner Fame
• ­Beach Seining Demonstration hosted by Salem Sound Coastwatch
• ­Guided Tour of Special Exhibit at the Peabody Essex Museum
• ­Hawthorne Hotel Tour
• ­Living Comfortably in the 17th Century at the House of Seven Gables
• ­Lunch Hour at the Gedney House
• ­Marine Lab Exploration Salem State University’s Cat Cove Marine Laboratory
• ­Talk of the Town: Salem 1802 hosted by National Park Service
• ­The Art of the Birchbark Canoe hosted by the Peabody Essex Museum

Not to sound like a broken record, but check out TrailsandSails.org for complete information on the listings, the weekends, the host sites, and Essex Heritage.

Lunch Hour at the Gedney House starts... in 30 minutes!!

You probably wanted more warning on this one - sorry! Regardless, the rain has stopped, and if you're in Salem today, you should head over to the Gedney House. It's a true local treasure.

Here's the scoop: Spend lunchtime touring Historic New England’s Gedney House, located steps away from Salem’s downtown business district. Enjoy a rare opportunity to take a guided tour of this 1665 property highlighting seventeenth-century architectural details, including elaborate framing, original paint treatments, and four centuries of layered architecture.

This free event is a part of Essex National Heritage Commission’s Trails and Sails series. Fifty minute tours will start at 12:00 and 1:00 p.m on Friday, September 17. This is a first come, first serve program with limited space available. For more details about Trails and Sails or to create your personal itinerary, please visit www.trailsandsails.org or call 978-744-0440.

Trails & Sails kicks off this weekend!

Trails & Sails: Two Weekends of Walks and Water kicks off this week. These weekends will feature more than a hundred free events throughout the Essex National Heritage Area, which includes Salem, of course!

Organized by the Essex National Heritage Commission, Trails & Sails is an annual celebration of the Area's natural, cultural and historic resources. And what better way to get people engaged and involved than offer events for free?!

The goal, of course, is to spark interest in and stewardship of the resources and the region, so use the weekend to visit and explore the places you keep saying you've never visited, or do a tour with a new perspective. Organizers suspect, and hope, that once you've gotten a taste of the heritage area, you'll want to come back for more.

Events planned in Salem over the next two weekends include...

• Marine Lab Exploration at Cat Cove Marine Laboratory (did you know there is a marine laboratory in Salem?). Observe aquatic life and learn of these organisms are used to understand and manage aquatic resources!
• Eye Spy Nature Walk will look for nature's varied shapes and repeating patterns at the Ropes Mansion Gardens!
• Guided tour of the new exhibit: The Emperor's Private Paradise: Treasures from the Forbidden City at the Peabody Essex Museum
• Visit the Derbys - 1770 Style! The ladies of refined taste will be visiting Mr. & Mrs. Derby in the gardens behind the Derby House for an afternoon of genteel entertainment. Join them!
• Sophia Hawthorne's Salem - Join Mrs. Sophia Hawthorne for a tour of hte Salem that she and her husband Nathaniel knew.
• Salem 2010 Garden Tours will celebrate the anniversaries of the Salem Athenaeum, Historic New England's Phillips House, and the House of the Seven Gables.
• Lunch Hour at the Gedney House will give you a lunch-hour peek at one of Salem's architectural and historic gems!
• Hawthorne Hotel Tour - This wildly popular tour will sell out! And the lucky participants will get to see cabin on the roof that is the home to the Salem Marine Society.
• The Witch House Physick Herbs - guided and self-guided tours of this 17th century house will reveal remedy recipes wtih some very shocking ingredients!
• Salt Marsh in the City will be a "walk and talk" led by Salem Sound Coastwatch at Old Creek Marsh.
• Looking South: Salem State University and Lead Mills will feature the history of Salem State University, which began as the Salem Normal School, and a discussion of the Salem Lead Mills and the naturally occurring lead found in the area.

All of the events are free, and some recommend reservations, so visit TrailsandSails.org for the full scoop.

And to learn more about the Essex National Heritage Commission, the Heritage Area, and their Explorers program (it's like Trails & Sails all year long!) visit EssexHeritage.org.

Free Trails & Sails invite you to explore the Essex National Heritage Area this weekend

Ah, fall - there's a chill in the morning air, the leaves are beginning to change, Salem businesses are decking their halls for October, and Trails & Sails: A Weekend of Walks and Water has come 'round once more. This is the eighth year of Trails & Sails, and the weekend has many devoted followers and fans. If you have not yet discovered Trails & Sails, this is your year. And, to make it easy for you, Trails & Sails is now two weekends - not one.

Trails & Sails is organized by the Essex National Heritage Commission, an organization that is based in Salem but that works to promote, preserve, and enhance the myriad historic, cultural, and natural assets in the Essex National Heritage Area. The Area includes the 34 communities of Essex County, Massachusetts, reaching from just north of Boston to the New Hampshire border.

Whether you are interested in sailing the high seas, a cemetery walk, historic architecture, or family activities - Trails & Sails has events to appeal to you. And it is all free. Free, I say!

Prepare yourself to be wooed during Trails & Sails, because Essex Heritage and the sites that are hosting all of these fabulous events want you to fall in love with the sites, the landscapes, and the region. Once you are hooked, they want you to become steward for the sites and ambassadors for the region.

It's not hard to do. This is a remarkable region with a wealth of assets and history. So go, explore, enjoy - and engage. Come back again and again, join the organizations and become and Essex Heritage Explorer. You'll love how much there is to explore.

Here are the Salem sites participating in Trails & Sails Salem, which is a great place to start!


1812 Privateer FAME: Go Sail
Cruise the historic waters of Salem Sound aboard our full-scale replica of the 1812 privateer schooner FAME! Aboard the new FAME, passengers learn about the fishermen, pirates, privateers, traders and men of war who shaped our North Shore. They learn about the fishing trade that prompted Cape Ann's first European settlements... the brave little schooners of George Washington's fleet... the East India trade that made Salem rich... and, of course, the privateers of the Revolution and the War of 1812. LIMITED AVAILABILITY
Location: Pickering Wharf Marina, Salem 01921. 978 729-7600
Website: SchoonerFame.com
Dates: 09-20 Sunday 1:00PM No reservations. Ticket booth opens at 12:30.

America's Best Idea Sneak Peak
Salem Maritime NHS is pleased to present a sneak preview of the upcoming Ken Burns film The National Parks: America`s Best Idea. A 45-minute preview of the six-episode series will be shown at 4:00 PM in the auditorium at the Salem Visitor Center.
Location: 2 New Liberty St, Salem 01970. 978-740-1650
Website: www.nps.gov/sama
Dates: 09-26 Saturday 4:00PM

Art meets Nature at PEM!
Listen to a story about circles in nature and create a giant collaborative mandala from colorful natural materials for everyone at PEM to see! Visit the new exhibition in the Art & Nature center, Trash Menagerie and discover the many ways in which artists use trash from their environment to create amazing works of art!
Location: East India Square, Salem 01970. 978-745-9500 x. 3076
Website: www.pem.org
Special Directions: First come, first serve.
Dates: 09-20 Sunday 3:00PM

Chestnut Street Stroll
Enjoy a leisurely stroll down Salem's Chestnut Street, often cited as one of the most beautiful streets in America. Learn about how this suburban neighborhood fit into an urban setting in the early 19th century. Presidents have dined in select homes, artists have created their masterpieces, and it has been home to generations of some of Salem's most prominent families. Participants will receive a discount coupon to visit the Phillips House on the day of the walk.
Location: Corner of Chestnut, Summer, and Norman , Salem 01970. 978-744-0440
Website: www.historicnewengland.org
Dates: 09-26 Saturday 10:00AM

Circuit of Salem Woods
Join in on a 2.5 miles leisurely walk over some steep terrain in historic Salem Woods. We will introduce the history of the woods and note some of the flora and fauna of this diverse habitat. If you'd like, bring along binoculars for bird watching and field guides to investigate something of interest along your walk!
Location: 65 Broad Street, Salem 01970
Special Directions: Park at the Olde Salem Greens Golf Course parking lot, 75 Willson Street, Salem MA. The trail head is at the farthest end of the parking lot as you enter from Willson Street. There is a large trail head sign that says Salem Woods/Highland Park
Dates: 09-26 Saturday 9:00AM

Dearest Dove
Join us for a theatrical performance of Dearest Dove: The Courtship of Nathaniel and Sophia Hawthorne written exclusively for The House of the Seven Gables. Witness this historic romance in a 30 minute production featuring Hawthorne's fabled love letters. LIMITED SPACE
Location: 115 Derby Street, Salem 01970. 978-744-0991
Website: www.7gables.org
Special Directions: Parking lot on site for use during visit.
Dates: 09-20 Sunday 2:00PM Sunday 9/20/2009 2:00 - 3:00pm

Hawthorne Hotel Tour
Hidden on the roof of the Hawthorne Hotel is an exact replica of a cabin from the Salem vessel Taria Topan. For over three centuries this cozy cabin has served as the headquarters of Salem's oldest organization, the Salem Marine Society. Join us for a very rare visit to the Salem Marine Society. Learn why this unique site has its own story to tell, and how it has been connected to the Hawthorne Hotel for over 80 years. Event Length: 25-30 minutes
Location: 18 Washington Street, Salem 01970. 978-825-4364
Website: www.hawthornehotel.com
Special Directions: Free parking adjacent to Hawthorne Hotel
Dates: 09-19 Saturday 1:00PM 2:00PM 3:00PM Event length is 25-30 minutes

Junior Ranger Days
Earn your Junior Ranger badge while exploring Salem Maritime National Historic Site. Try your hand at planning your voyage to the Far East including places you've never traveled, decide which trade goods will make you the most money, round up the crew who will join you on this adventure - All during the Golden Age of Sail in the late 1700s! Explore and have fun!
Location: 191 Derby St., Salem 01970. 978-740-1660
Website: www.nps.gov/sama
Dates: 09-26 Saturday All Day Event 9am - 5pm, with tours throughout the day
09-27 Sunday All Day Event 9am - 5pm, with tours throughout the day

Lunch Hour at the Gedney House
Spend your lunch hour touring the Gedney House. Take a tour of the Gedney House, a stunning example of a Colonial American house, estimated to have been constructed circa 1665. The house is significant for its structural carpentry and for surviving early paint and decorative finishes. Take a peek into one of Salem's architectural and historic gems that very rarely opens it's doors to the public.
Location: 21 High Street, Salem 01970
Website: www.historicnewengland.org/visit/homes/gedney.htm
Dates: 09-25 Friday All Day Event 12-1 and 1-2

Marine Lab Exploration
The Cat Cove Marine Laboratory is operated by Salem State College to promote the sustainable use of aquatic resources on the North Shore and elsewhere. Instruction, outreach and research activities are pursued by Laboratory staff. Fish, clams and other "critters" are spawned and reared as part of instructional, restoration and enhancement efforts. Participants will observe aquatic life and will learn how these organisms are used to understand and manage aquatic resources.
Location: 92 Fort St, Salem State College, Salem 01970. 978-642-6703
Website: www.salemstate.edu/biology/aquaculture
Dates: 09-18 Friday 3:00PM
09-25 Friday 3:00PM

Sophia Hawthorne's Salem
Join National Park Service Historian Emily Murphy as she portrays Nathaniel Hawthorne's wife Sophia on a 90 minute walking tour of historic Salem to celebrate Sophia's 200th birthday. This outdoor walking tour will visit spots familiar to the Hawthornes during their lives here in the early 19th century. Meet at the Hawthorne statue, Hawthorne Blvd.
Location: Hawthorne Blvd and Essex St., Salem 01970. 978-740-1650
Website: www.nps.gov/sama
Dates: 09-19 Saturday 10:00AM 2:00PM
09-26 Saturday 10:00AM 2:00PM

Tales From the Sea
Explore maritime art through objects that celebrate the grandeur of the sea and express seafaring life.
Location: East India Square, Salem 01970. 978-745-9500
Website: www.pem.org
Dates: 09-20 Sunday 10:00AM
09-27 Sunday 10:00AM

Walk Harmony Grove Cemetery
Join Historic Salem Inc's Sunday Walking Tour of the Harmony Grove Cemetery, Sunday September 27, 2009. The tour will be led by Margie Lavender, administrator of Harmony Grove Cemetery. Meet at the Cemetery Chapel at 1pm for this 90 minute excursion. This tour is free as part of the Trails and Sails Program.
Location: 30 Grove Street, Salem 01970. 978-745-0799
Website: www.historicsalem.org
Special Directions: Meet at the Cemetery Chapel
Dates: 09-27 Sunday 1:00PM

Trails & Sails

This weekend the Essex National Heritage Area will celebrate its sixth annual Trails & Sails: A Weekend of Walks and Water. This fantastic weekend of free events throughout the region provides you with an opportunity to explore the natural, cultural, and historic resources north of Boston.

There are fifteen events scheduled in Salem, and you can search for Salem, or any of the 34 communities in the Essex National Heritage Area. If you didn't know Salem was a part of a national heritage area, or if you are unfamiliar with the national heritage area program, visit EssexHeritage.org to learn more. I can summarize it by telling you that this region of Massachusetts is truly remarkable for its great contributions to the early settlement, maritime, and industrial eras in American history. The Essex National Heritage Area was designated by the U.S. Congress in 1996 and today it works in partnership with the National Park Service to provide programs in interpretation, education, preservation, and heritage development.

Trails & Sails weekend is an annual opportunity for the public to get re-acquainted with the region and its amazing history. There are fifteen events in Salem - from a Schooner sail to a Chestnut Street Stroll to Marine Lab Explorations. Take this opportunity to do some free exploration in Salem and beyond this weekend!

Participating Salem sites are:

• Derby Square Tours
• Historic New England
• Historic Salem, Inc.
• Salem State College
• Hawthorne Hotel
• Friends of Salem Woods
• Peabody Essex Museum
• Salem Maritime National Historic Site
• Schooner Fame
• Pioneer Village
• The House of the Seven Gables