This past Friday, Halloween came a little early to the city of Boston with countless children dressed in costumes, candy being consumed, and hundreds of jack-o-lanterns afloat in the Boston Common Frog Pond.
For Boston, however, this has been tradition, with Friday, October 19 marking the 5th Annual Pumpkin Float at Frog Pond. The event ran from 5-8 p.m. and was free for everyone.
Attendees were told to bring a carved pumpkin, 8 inches or smaller so that they could participate in the float. On parallel sides of the pond were two long lines of both kids and adults waiting to give volunteers their jack-o-lanterns to be placed in the pond.
The volunteers would take the pumpkins, place a light inside them, and then set them on small black squares that would serve as little rafts. They then would push the pumpkins into a roped off section in the middle of the pond to float with the rest of the jack-o-lanterns.
Many kids would sit at the edge of the pond waiting to see their jack-o-lantern float past them.
While participants do not get their pumpkins back afterward, since the pumpkins are later composted by the Trustees of Reservations, there were plenty of other activities at the event to compensate.
There were various glow in the dark games, an inflated Pumpkin Bounce, a haunted funhouse maze, and crafts for kids to participate in. One of the crafts was decorating luminary bags that were placed around the edge of the pond.
There was also live entertainment for kids at the event. There was a DJ from 106.7 Magic playing music for the kids to dance to and hosting give-a-ways. Jim Dichter, aka the “Bubble Man,” was also there doing a bubble demo, and even the Frog Pond mascot Freddie came out to take pictures.
The whole community of Boston was able to participate well past just attending. Put on display were carved pumpkins donated by local businesses, teams, organizations, and colleges.
The event was organized by the Boston Parks and Recreation Department in partnership with the Skating Club of Boston. If you missed this year’s Pumpkin Float make sure to check the City of Boston Parks and Recreation city events page for more upcoming activities.
While the event might have been “family focused,” most attendees, regardless of age, were participating, waiting and watching for their own prized jack-o-lanterns to float past them.
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