Popular islands include Spectacle, Georges and Peddocks, though ferries also go to Lovells, Grape, Bumpkin and Thompson ... Peddocks Island, one of the largest of the Boston Harbor Islands ...

with a collection of offshore land masses at Boston Harbor Islands National and State Park — which leads us to the natural and educational gem of Thompson Island. When you think of beachy areas ...

and the nonprofit group Boston Harbor Now. Four of the islands are easily accessible by ferry, including Thompson Island, which is managed by an Outward Bound school and hosts outdoor education ...