Off the Path

America's first submarine dates to the Revolutionary War. Built by a Connecticut inventor, it sailed into New York Harbor in 1776 with a mission to blow up a British warship. It was ahead of its time — maybe a little too ahead of its time. There are a few places you can see replicas of the Turtle — and one of them is at the Connecticut River Museum in Essex.

One of the most successful pirates of all time died at sea in a dramatic storm, leaving all his treasure buried under the ocean floor. Hundreds of years later, a Cape Cod man followed a real-life treasure map to find it — and now you can go to his museum to see real-life pirate booty. Featured song: “Jolly Sailor Bold,” performed by the Ranzo Boys.

Host Davis Dunavin previews his upcoming adventure at sea! Among other things, you’ll hear about quite a few pirates in this series, which is why we decided to call it Off the Plank.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

The "Lost Limner" returns in a new play

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

At least 11 people were executed for witchcraft in Connecticut. And they’re far less remembered than the victims of Salem.

The Institute for Advanced Study doesn’t have any students or classes. There’s no regular daily agenda full of meetings and conferences. The scholars here don’t even have to research any specific topic.