Something to sea Connecticut museum fulfills boyhood wishes

Ever since my mother gave me a wooden model of the whaling ship Charles W. Morgan when I was a teenager, I’ve wanted to see the 113-foot vessel at Mystic Seaport in Connecticut.

The ship model, which proved a little too intricate and daunting to build then, had heightened an interest in whaling already provoked through reading the American whaling classic novel “Moby Dick.” So, when my wife asked where we should go to use a soon-to-expire promotional coupon for two free nights at any Marriott, I eagerly suggested visiting the Morgan, the last existing whaling ship of its kind. As we researched the area we discovered many child-friendly activities for our 4- and 6-year-olds on Easter weekend so we packed up and drove south.

Spring is beautiful in Connecticut. The hills, that stand drab throughout the winter because there aren’t many conifers to add color, come alive with buds. And as you pass many well-kept old houses, you are treated to views of greening lawns that are interrupted by granite ledges. The granite is a reminder of the challenges faced by colonists trying to farm New England. These areas of green and granite often feature beautiful daffodils and other early flowering plants. Spring had sprung a few weeks earlier than in eastern Maine.

We got off the highway south of Worcester to wind our way toward Groton and Mystic. There were many of these so-called “naturalized” lawns to admire.

Mystic itself stands on New England’s southern shore on Long Island Sound. The Mystic River makes a harbor. Mystic has a counterweighted drawbridge that spans the river. From the bridge, we looked upriver that first evening in town and saw the masts of Mystic Seaport Museum’s ships poking up around its boathouses. The town’s main street is touristy, with shops selling antiques, knickknacks, hand-painted earthenware and other items.

Mystic’s buildings and church spires make for a pleasant setting, although the main street reportedly can be thick with pedestrians on some weekends as people escape Manhattan, just a few hours away.

As one comes into Mystic from the west, Mystic Pizza is on the left. The restaurant gets a lot of mileage out of its prominent role in the 1988 movie “Mystic Pizza,” the film that put Julia Roberts on the map. Both children were tired from the trip so we decided a quick dinner at the cinematic icon was in order.

The pizza joint, with its walls plastered with photos of Roberts and her co-stars performing the pizza-making act, offered some unusual toppings but wasn’t anything special. Its pizza was unremarkable. Connecticut does have a pizza destination that’s earned its stripes during a half-century serving seafood Napolitano pizzas cooked in coal-fired brick ovens: Pepe’s Pizza in New Haven.

At the Mystic Marriot Hotel and Spa in Groton, the girls dropped off to sleep quickly. In the morning, they enjoyed an early morning swim in the hotel pool.

The original plan was to tour the museum and then visit the Mystic Aquarium in the afternoon. But we soon found out the seaport museum covers 17 acres and is quite extensive. It easily held the attention of young children for the better part of the day.

Our first stop was the Grand Banks cod-fishing schooner L.A. Dunton. A crew of Mystic Seaport workers demonstrated the difficulty of hoisting anchor using a windlass powered by four crewmen. They dropped the anchor into the 16 feet of water at the dock. Then four crew members sang a sea chantey as they pumped up and down. With each stroke from head to knee, the chain moved slowly upward. It was clear to see that it could take the better part of a day to haul in an anchor that had been dropped in the North Atlantic.

Not far away, the Charles W. Morgan stood with a few sails unfurled. For a ship that sailed the Pacific for as long as two years in search of whales, the three-masted bark was much more compact than I expected. It measures 113 feet long, nearly 28 feet wide and 17.5 feet deep. The ship sailed from 1841 to 1921.

The crew that had demonstrated anchor hauling had moved to show how whaleboats were manned and maneuvered to harpoon whales. Each man’s role on the oar-driven boat was described.

Unlike some museums, most guides or “interpreters” at Mystic rarely wear period costumes. An interpreter onboard the Morgan explained that historically accurate clothing can cost thousands to make and raises challenges in staffing: Should a woman be excluded from whaleboat demonstrations in the name of historical accuracy?

The children loved the period houses, church, bank, clockmaker and other stores that dot the campus around a town green. Their short legs got a reprieve from walking by taking a horse-drawn carriage tour of the grounds.

To break up the historical exhibits, the museum featured an art station and a small children’s museum. Both were highlights for the girls. At the children’s museum, Colleen proudly told the interpreter in the building that it was no match for Bangor’s Maine Discovery Museum. “Yes,” he replied, but does that museum have everything you find at the Seaport?

During the day we also spent 45 minutes in a small planetarium, viewed numerous buildings with exhibits showing different crafts from the period, and had lunch at the museum restaurant. When we finally filed out, it was late afternoon.

The next day we went to the Mystic Aquarium early. Once inside, you come to a large swimming area, built in what looks like an old quarry, for beluga whales. These large, white whales (adults can be up to 15 feet long and weigh more than 3,000 pounds) can be seen from above and below through a thick glass wall.

The aquarium features all manner of life from the North Atlantic, as well as penguins, frogs from around the world, and baby alligators. It offers regular live shows during the day featuring four sea lions. The oldest and largest had served as a special operations animal for the Navy.

The aquarium, like the seaport museum, is so extensive it requires the better part of a day – especially with all the individual events featured within each facility.

While visiting the area it is worth a drive to the town of Stonington, just east of Mystic, to see some wonderful colonial architecture. The houses are packed onto a point and lined around a square in a village whose townsfolk twice repelled British troops during the Revolution. Driving through the town, one comes to the point where there is parking and a sea view. Beach lovers will find sandy destinations along the coast farther to the east.

Now that I’ve seen the Charles W. Morgan in person, I need to dig out that old model from storage and see if it’s still as intricate as I remember.

If you go:

. Driving time from Bangor: Six hours.

. For information on dining and lodging, call Connecticut information line (800)-CT-BOUND. Online information on Mystic: www.mysticmore.com and www.mysticseaport.com.

. Mystic Seaport ticket prices: adult $17, children 6-12 years $9, under 5 free.

. Mystic Aquarium ticket prices: Adult $16, age 60 or older $15, children 3-12 years $11, under age 2 free. www.mysticaquarium.org.