PROVIDENCE, RI – Save The Bay is pleased to announce the expansion of its winter seal
tours and nature cruises into Fall River, Mass. for the first time. Departing from the Borden Light Marina at 1 Ferry Street in Fall River:
90-minute tours-
Saturday, March 21 and Sunday, March 22 at 1 p.m.
Saturday, March 28 and Sunday, March 29 at 10 a.m.
Each trip can accommodate 30 people, and if registration fills each day, Save The Bay may open up a second trip immediately afterward.
Aboard one of Save The Bay’s education vessels, guests will cruise the lower Taunton River and Mt. Hope Bay on the look out for seals and such early spring wildlife as migrating Longtail, Goldeneye and Scoter ducks, among others. Save The Bay’s expert guides will help visitors spot the winter seals resting on rocks and winter birds, and discuss the history and environmental issues of the region. Binoculars are available on board the boat.
Seals in Taunton River? “Seals use the entire Bay, and wherever the fish go, seals are likely to follow,” said Save The Bay Captain Eric Pfirrmann. “But truly, these are our first-ever tours on the Taunton River, so they’ll be voyages of discovery for all of us.”
The new seal tour location is in keeping with Save The Bay’s 2020 Strategic Plan, which calls for expansion of the organization’s environmental education outreach into the Taunton River Watershed, Fall River and Mt. Hope Bay areas. “These areas are critical to the health of Narragansett Bay,” said Pfirrmann. In fact, 60 percent of the Narragansett Bay watershed lies in Massachusetts. The Taunton River is the secondlargest source of freshwater flowing into the Bay, a critical spawning habitat for many Bay and ocean fish, and the only major river in the Narragansett Bay Watershed that has never been dammed. “And Fall River is the second-largest community on the Bay and its third-largest port, so it makes sense to offer our programs there,” he said.
“Save The Bay’s mission is to protect and improve Narragansett Bay. We may be located in Rhode Island, but our mission certainly extends well beyond our state borders. Our work depends as much on the people of western Massachusetts as it does the people of Rhode Island,” Pfirrmann said.
Save The Bay has also begun exploring funding opportunities to bring school day and after school programs to the community and reaching out to Fall River schools for curriculum-based environmental education programs. Resiliency High School will be joining Save The Bay for marine science cruises in May.
“Adding seal tours to our outreach in the Fall River area is a natural extension of our work to protect and improve Narragansett Bay. They are a wonderful way to connect the people of Fall River to the natural resources of Narragansett Bay and the waters that feed into it. We’re very excited to bring this opportunity to the Fall River community for the first time,” said Bridget Kubis Prescott, director of education at Save The Bay.
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