Off the Path

Storytelling Podcasts

For seven years, Off the Path has explored spots from New York to Boston and beyond — everything from quirky roadside attractions to eccentric oddities to places with deep historical significance. This season, Davis Dunavin is going to sea. We’re telling stories of submarines, lighthouses, white whales, sea monsters, and — of course — pirates. In fact, you’ll hear about quite a few pirates in this series, which is why we decided to call it Off the Plank.Dunavin has always been fascinated by ships and the sea — maybe because he grew up in the landlocked parts of Middle America. From old sailing ships to lighthouses, there’s just something special about the places that tell the nautical history of New York and New England.There are stories of famous pirates — Captain Kidd, Black Sam Bellamy, William Fly. There’s a female lighthouse keeper who performed heroic rescues and became a national celebrity. And there’s the story of Moby-Dick — with its deep ties to New Bedford, Massachusetts, once the whaling capital of the world.As for the music, each podcast episode will end with a traditional song of the sea chosen and performed by the Ranzo Boys, a New York City-based folk trio. Some are shanties, some are ballads, but all of them tell sailors’ stories or celebrate aspects of life on the high seas.

Location:

United States

Genres:

Storytelling Podcasts

Description:

For seven years, Off the Path has explored spots from New York to Boston and beyond — everything from quirky roadside attractions to eccentric oddities to places with deep historical significance. This season, Davis Dunavin is going to sea. We’re telling stories of submarines, lighthouses, white whales, sea monsters, and — of course — pirates. In fact, you’ll hear about quite a few pirates in this series, which is why we decided to call it Off the Plank.Dunavin has always been fascinated by ships and the sea — maybe because he grew up in the landlocked parts of Middle America. From old sailing ships to lighthouses, there’s just something special about the places that tell the nautical history of New York and New England.There are stories of famous pirates — Captain Kidd, Black Sam Bellamy, William Fly. There’s a female lighthouse keeper who performed heroic rescues and became a national celebrity. And there’s the story of Moby-Dick — with its deep ties to New Bedford, Massachusetts, once the whaling capital of the world.As for the music, each podcast episode will end with a traditional song of the sea chosen and performed by the Ranzo Boys, a New York City-based folk trio. Some are shanties, some are ballads, but all of them tell sailors’ stories or celebrate aspects of life on the high seas.

Twitter:

@WSHUPublicRadio

Language:

English

Contact:

203-365-6604

Website:

http://www.wshu.org/topic/path-new-york-boston#stream/1

Email:

offthepath@wshu.org

Episodes

The legend of Sleepy Hollow lives on

10/27/2023

In 1820, Washington Irving wrote a short story steeped in the ghostly folklore of New York’s Hudson Valley. Its simple premise and terrifying climax has spooked and entertained people for two centuries. It was set in North Tarrytown, but Irving called it Sleepy Hollow.

Duration:00:06:44

A 'close encounter' in New Hampshire

9/1/2023

Barney and Betty Hill claimed they had an encounter with aliens more than 60 years ago. Their story became the launching point for alien abductions in popular culture. And it happened — supposedly — late one night on a lonely road in New Hampshire’s White Mountains.

Duration:00:21:27

The Desert of Maine: An ecological odyssey at a tourist spot

8/10/2023

The state of Maine has deep forests and rocky shores. It also has one small stretch of sandy dunes in the town of Freeport — that looks more like the Sahara than northern New England.

Duration:00:07:11

Christina's World: The "enigma" and friendship behind a classic American painting

8/4/2023

Andrew Wyeth’s 1948 painting “Christina’s World” shows the reality of life for his longtime friend, a woman with a disability, on her farm in coastal Maine.

Duration:00:12:00

"Appreciate the Mundane" at a museum for umbrella covers

7/20/2023

A small museum on an island in Maine boasts the world’s largest collection of a specific kind of artifact: umbrella covers. Not umbrellas — just the covers.

Duration:00:07:07

The "Lost Limner" returns in a new play

7/13/2023

Duration:00:09:29

Chicken Farmer I Still Love You

7/6/2023

There are six words spray painted on a rock along a highway near Newbury, New Hampshire. How they got there is still a mystery. Davis Dunavin took a drive up Route 103 to see the mystery rock — and maybe get some answers.

Duration:00:12:14

The view and the visionary behind the Appalachian Trail

6/23/2023

The Appalachian Trail stretches more than 2,000 miles from Maine to Georgia. It was the brainchild of an idealistic forester who drew inspiration from a mountain top in Vermont.

Duration:00:13:07

Inside Robert Frost's legendary stone house

6/9/2023

The beloved poet bought a home in Vermont — where he wrote some of his most famous poems, weathered family tragedy and picked lots of apples.

Duration:00:15:40

Off the Path: Trailer

5/24/2023

Host Davis Dunavin is back on the road as he previews his next set of adventures on a new season of Off the Path!

Duration:00:02:09

Herb Lore: Why it's okay to eat off the ground in New York City

6/7/2022

Most New Yorkers might be a little skeptical about eating something they found on the street — if it’s not from a food cart. But one New Yorker has made it his life’s work to convince his neighbors that nature’s bounty is accessible even in the heart of the city.

Duration:00:08:43

Herb Lore: How witch hazel made its way into everything

5/17/2022

Take a look through your medicine cabinet — from skin cream to body wash and deodorant. Many of these products share an ingredient: witch hazel. And the witch hazel industry has deep roots in the Connecticut River Valley.

Duration:00:07:17

Herb Lore: The nearly 400-year-old fruit tree that keeps giving

4/27/2022

The first colonial governor of Massachusetts planted a pear tree in the 1600s. It’s now believed to be the oldest cultivated fruit tree in the Americas.

Duration:00:08:37

LGBTQ Stories: How "Family Week" helped gay families find acceptance

3/22/2022

A few LGBTQ families met up on the tip of Cape Cod one summer in the mid '90s. Their fun beach week had a bigger impact than they expected. Family Week — as it’s called — has helped redefine ideas of marriage and family for more than 25 years. And it still takes place every summer in Provincetown, Massachusetts.

Duration:00:05:11

LGBTQ stories: Andy Warhol's unlikely spirituality

2/24/2022

One of America’s most beloved artists kept a secret. Andy Warhol — pop artist and gay icon — was also a lifelong Catholic who went to mass regularly at a church in New York City’s Upper East Side.

Duration:00:07:51

LGBTQ stories: The 'Sip-In' paved the way for gay rights

2/4/2022

A few years before the Stonewall riots, a protest took place at another New York City gay bar, just about a block away. It didn’t draw as much attention, but in its own way, it was a milestone for gay rights.

Duration:00:05:55

Folk Songs: Opening up traditional music to new audiences

1/18/2022

Musician Nicole Singer, the organizer of Youth Traditional Song Weekend, which took place online this month due to the pandemic, is trying to bring young people and non-traditional audiences into folk music.

Duration:00:05:29

Folk Songs: Sea Shanties are the sound of New England's nautical history

12/16/2021

Sea shanties have enjoyed some renewed attention on social media. A lot of them have strong ties to New England’s maritime culture and whaling industry.

Duration:00:06:54

Folk Songs: An 'Exceedingly Good' Night of Music

11/23/2021

A group singalong has hopped from bar to bar in New York City for years — and in the age of the pandemic, it lives on Zoom. It’s called Exceedingly Good Song Night.

Duration:00:07:23

Folk Songs: A folk dancing camp for the people

11/4/2021

There’s a camp in the woods of Massachusetts where traditional styles of folk music and dance from around the world are kept alive. It’s the oldest continuously operated folk dance camp in the United States. It’s called the Pinewoods Camp.

Duration:00:06:14