Public Programs – Summer 2021

CLICK HERE to download a PDF of our 2021 Summer Schedule or visit our Event Calendar. For details about these and other programs, contact Jesse Mechling at 508-487-3623 x 114 or email [email protected].

Guided Seal Walks (Spring/Summer, all ages)
A number of different species of seals occupy New England waters throughout the year, and groups of gray seals and harbor seals can frequently be seen resting in “haul outs” on local beaches.  Join CCS naturalists for a guided hike to a haul out in Truro and learn more about the biology and natural history of the seals and the role they play in a healthy ocean ecosystem. View our Events Calendar for times and locations.

Get to the Bottom Of It! (Summer, children aged 6 – 12)
CCS educators lead families in an exploration of marine life in Provincetown Harbor. From the beach in downtown Provincetown, kids use a special net to collect samples from the shallow waters. Back at SEA Space Marine Discovery Center they learn how to use a microscope to take an up-close look at the tiny sea creatures that live in the harbor. This fun activity teaches students about the basics of food webs, and helps them understand why the smallest animals in the ocean are actually the most important. Times vary with the tide; view our Events Calendar for a full schedule.
Meet at SEA Space in Whaler’s Wharf, 237 Commercial Street, Provincetown. $5 per child. Reservations highly recommended; to register, drop by SEA Space or contact Jesse Mechling, Director of Education, at 508-487-3622 x 114 or [email protected]. All proceeds support the Center’s Marine Education Program.

Junior Entanglement Responder (Summer, children aged 6 – 12)
Since 1984 the Center’s Marine Animal Entanglement Response  (MAER) team has disentangled more than 200 whales, sea turtles and other marine animals from fishing gear. This program offers kids an in-depth, age-appropriate introduction to the MAER team’s work using videos, photographs and tools from actual disentanglement operations. They’ll also head to the beach to try their hand a freeing an ‘entangled whale’. Times vary; view our Events Calendar for a full schedule.
Meet at SEA Space in Whaler’s Wharf, 237 Commercial Street, Provincetown. $5 per child. Reservations highly recommended; to register, drop by SEA Space or contact Jesse Mechling, Director of Education, at 508-487-3622 x 114 or [email protected]. All proceeds support the Center’s Marine Education Program.

The Story of Spinnaker (Year-round, all ages)
The well-known and extensively-documented humpback whale named Spinnaker was entangled in fishing gear at least four times in her short life and freed by the CCS Marine Animal Entanglement Response team on three of those occasions. She dies in 2015 at age 11, likely as a result of her entanglement injuries. Spinnaker’s skeleton was painstakingly preserved and rearticulated, and is now the breathtaking centerpiece of a permanent exhibit at the Center’s Hiebert Marine Laboratory at 5 Holway Avenue, Provincetown. Spinnaker’s story, told through a richly-illustrated self guided tour and by knowledgeable docents,  highlights the strength of collaborative research and response efforts and is a remarkably detailed example of the life of whales in the modern world.
The Spinnaker Exhibit is temporarily closed due to the recent uptick in COVID-19 cases in Provincetown.  Click HERE to visit our Online Exhibition 

Whale Field Walks (Winter/Spring, all ages)
Cape Cod is arguably one of the finest spots on earth to view cetaceans from land. Critically endangered North Atlantic right whales come to Cape Cod Bay each winter to feed, while in late spring and early summer, humpback, fin and minke whales arrive. CCS staff and scientists will lead guided walks to Race Point, Wood End, and Herring Cove to watch for whales as they feed in the surrounding waters, often only a few hundred feet from shore. Information and updates on right whale research will also be available. Must have good walking shoes and be able to walk ½-2 miles. Times vary; view our Events Calendar for a full schedule.

Contact Us

Entanglement Hotline: (800) 900-3622
[email protected]
(508) 487-3622
5 Holway Avenue
Provincetown, MA 02657
(508) 487-3623

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