MASK UP AND FALL INTO THIS SEMESTER

A List of COVID-19 Safe Adventures in Massachusetts

by Kaylee Chin

Are you already overworked with a calendar booked for months? Take a break from your busy campus life and enjoy a day of activities and exploration around Massachusetts. Social distancing and masks are enforced at all of these fun fall locations.

Fall has just begun, providing BU students with a multitude of fun fall activities. If you are in the mood for some time in nature and some sweet treats, go apple picking or to a pumpkin patch. Within driving distance from the commuter rail there are multiple orchards to visit.

Visit Berlin Orchards, located at Route 62 and Lower Sawyer Hill Road in Berlin, Massachusetts. Monday to Friday from 1p.m. to 4 p.m., enjoy a wagon ride up to the apple trees. Host a picnic and enjoy your time on the farm. Check their website to see which apples are the ripest this season.

Visit Carlson Orchards, located at 115 Oak Hill Road in Harvard, Massachusetts. This orchard is open between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. every day. They have a wide variety of fruits to pick from, including apples, blueberries, raspberries, peaches, nectarines and pumpkins. If you are not able to make the journey to the physical orchard, you can mail order a gift basket.

Tougas Family Farm is located at 234 Ball Street in Northborough, Massachusetts. This friendly farm includes a drive thru farm store, fully stocked with freshly made cider donuts and fall fruits. They even have a farm themed playground.

“Apple picking was such a great experience and an escape from all the stress of the world lately,” said Katherine Gotard (COM ’23), who went to Carlson Orchards recently. “It was so fun to finally do a normal fall activity, since campus life has been so different and restrictive.”

Nature lovers should take a ferry ride to Martha’s Vineyard or other areas in Cape Cod. Enjoy the relaxing beach and boutique shops. While you are in Cape Cod, take a break from relaxing and get some ice cream at Gone Country Creamery. This ice cream shop is located at 245 Central Main Street in Wareham, Massachusetts. Each week, they creatively come up with new flavors, leaving you wanting more.

Perhaps the most fall activity to do is to visit Salem, Massachusetts. Enjoy stores and events dedicated to supernatural activity and learn about the witch trials. Explore the Salem Witch Museum, dedicated to information about the 1692 Salem Witch Trials. The museum is located at 19 1/2 Washington Square, North Salem.

If you love Halloween and are interested in tapping in the supernatural side of fall, a perfect spooky activity is a ghost tour. Salem Ghosts is the perfect ghost tour to capture all of your supernatural excitement. Your ghost tour begins at 221 Essex Street. This hour-long walking tour guides your group through the most haunted attractions in Salem. If you are brave, you can even rent an EMF Detector to pick up paranormal activity while walking along the tour. An LED meter will light up and alert you of ghost disturbances along your path. There is even a ghoul filled gift shop, Freaky Elegant, for souvenirs. Ghosts never rest, so tours are held rain or shine. The tour structure is different due to COVID-19 pandemic, with smaller groups and maintenance of a social distance.

If nature is not for you, focus on the arts. Mendon Twin Drive-In, located at 35 Milford Street in Mendon, might be the perfect evening for you to enjoy. Check their website for tickets and listings of each film. Enjoy a full snack bar and great film, no matter the weather. Their box office is open Sunday through Thursday until 7 p.m., and until 6 p.m. on weekends.

If you’re looking for some art, check out the Peabody Essex Museum (PEM), located at East India Square in Salem. The museum has reopened to the public Thursday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Appointment slots are timed properly to ensure social distancing. There is even a student discount.

Check out the Harvard Museum of Natural History, located at 26 Oxford Street in Cambridge, open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. This organization has worked very hard to display many of their amazing exhibits online through interactive showings. Book tickets for the physical experience or virtual programs!

If you are interested in combining nature and art, The Franklin Park Zoo has an interactive light show called, "Boston Lights: A Lantern Experience." The zoo is located at 1 Franklin Park Road in Boston. Grab your masks and enjoy exploring 72 acres filled with hundreds of intricate lanterns. Enjoy seeing some of your favorite sights, like animals and flower gardens in beautiful illuminated lanterns. Walk through the 66-foot-long shark tunnel and past a 197-foot-long dragon. There is even a step-and play piano that allows you to join the light show experience.