Whales lights and…read morehurricanes The Palmer Island Lighthouse is a little light only 24 feet tall. It was built back in 1849 out of rubble and cost less than two thousand dollars to construction. Certainly not one of the great New England lighthouses but still historic and cool. The light was originally built to help whalers get back into New Bedford when the city was once the whaling capital of the world. Moby Dick took place in New Bedford and it has a long and proud nautical history. The city was built on whale oil. The light and it's fifth order Fresnel Lens served until the gigantic hurricane barrier across New Bedford harbor made it unnecessary and so it was deactivated when the barrier was completed in the mid sixties. Palmer's Island was once six acres and even had a hotel and dance hall on it. Lots of wild stories about the debauchery and bacchanalian exploits of the whalers that stopped here. But in 1938 that all changed. The hurricane of 1938 is legendary in New England. Nobody really knew it was coming and the massive waves swept into New Bedford harbor and destroyed most of the town and washed away much of the island. Nothing was left of the little island but the lighthouse. The poor little lighthouse was vandalized and just left to rot until a group of citizens decided to restore and bring the little light back to life. It was repaired and relit in 1999 and now serves as a historic symbol of New Bedford's glorious nautical past. The light isn't easy to reach, it can be walked out to in very low tides but only if you don't mind getting wet. A kayak is a much better choice to get out to the island. Not a tall, particularly lovely or majestic lighthouse. Just a little light that did it's job for many decades and now serves as a reminder of the whaling history of New Bedford.

One of and the first lighthouse on the bay cruise tour. A wonderful inactive lighthouse. One of…read morethe oldest in the country.

To live in…read morea light The Poplar Point Lighthouse is one of the most historically significant lighthouses in the country. In was built way back in 1831 and the tower is the oldest surviving wooden lighthouse still standing. It was discontinued in 1882 because it's location on land made it difficult to see but it is still a wonderful piece of history. The structure is a great example of an integrated lighthouse. One that the tower containing the actually light is blended right into the keepers house. Definitely made it convenient for the keeper in cold or nasty weather. The light originally had a 5th order Fresnel Lens that was removed many decades ago and stand 48 feet high. It has been privately owned for a long, long time and has changed a bit from owner to owner. However it has been restored to beautiful condition and functions as a beautiful home as well as a irreplaceable part of lighthouse history. The lighthouse, house and property recently came up for sale again. The home has 12 rooms. and totals roughly 4,500 square feet. The property is 1.66 acres of water front land right at the entrance of Wickford Harbor. A lovely and stunning house and piece of land. If you happen to have the asking price of 6,450,000 dollars hanging around this is a chance to live in a real lighthouse and own a great piece of history.

While visiting family in Massachusetts this summer, my wife and I took a detour to search for the…read moreDambo trolls in RI. Our first stop was in East Providence, to see Mrs Skipper. A fun installation watching over the waterfront. She was can be a bit difficult to find. The address we found online brough us to the parking lot for a medical center, but instead, we needed to pull into a driveway before this locations, and go down the hill towards the water front and greenway. She's a little off the beaten path, but a fun design, holding an actual steel boat over her head as she heads to the water. Worth checking out if you're in the area. Though, there is signage saying you're not supposed to walk down on the rocks in front of her, though that is where the actual signage for her is located. I think it's more of a liability thing, there is no one there policing where you do and don't go, just proceed with caution.

I enjoy the Thomas Dambo's recycled sculptures and they are now on my list of things to see when…read moretraveling! Mrs. Skipper is on a small rocky peninsula near a boardwalk over the bay. You are not supposed to walk out on said rocky outcrop and a sign at the entrance says the area is off limits. Still, plenty of intrepid adventurers were out there getting a closer look. There is plenty of parking for the Urban Coastal Greenway behind a huge Orthopedic building. Follow the paved trail down to the main trail, turn left and then take your first right. This part of the path is in a bit of disrepair, but I did see a couple of strollers on the path here so it's passable. Once on the boardwalk, you can look off to the south and see Mrs. Skipper perched on her rock. I am sad it's not easily accessible to the little one's. The details though are all there and it's Mrs. Skipper seems to be enjoying her perch.

The hurricane of '38 wiped this lighthouse out, killing the gatekeeper in the process. As our tour…read moreguide said tongue-in-cheek, that's why you don't come in on your day off. This is a lighthouse on the lighthouse tour offered by RI Bay Cruises, although it is really only a small foundation now. The location is actually Narragansett Bay, too, not Manville.

A broken lighthouse…read more Rhode Island doesn't get a lot of hurricanes but has had some whoppers. The monsters in 1938 and 1954 changed the coastline and caused literally billions of dollars in damage. The one in 1938 even managed to break in half a nearly indestructible cast iron light called Whale Rock Light. Whale Rock is a treacherous reef that was responsible for the destruction of many ships over the years. Laying right in the middle of the west passage of Narragansett Bay it was difficult to avoid and miss in bad weather so in 1882 the authorities finally decided to mark this deadly spot with a sturdy and stout cast iron "spark plug" light. This design was popular in severe areas because it was thought to be able to withstand anything nature could throw at it. Of course people underestimated the fury of exactly what nature was capable of. The light serve well until 1938 when an unprecedented and unbelievably powerful cat 3 hurricane slammed into the bay without warning. Sustained winds of over 120 miles per hour and gusts of almost 200 miles per hour literally shook the ocean and hurled it toward the shore. They didn't give official names for hurricanes back then but the colossus of 38 has been called The Yankee Clipper, The Long Island Express, The Great Hurricane or simply The Beast. Over 600 people died in New England and probably another hundred or so in other states. A 25 feet storm surge hit in places like a giant tidal wave and parts of Providence were under 35 feet of water. Millions of trees were destroyed and thousands of houses and buildings were laid waste. The destruction was sudden, complete and unimaginable. The intrepid and faithful lighthouse keeper was the 40 year old Walter Eberle, a father of 6 who was no stranger to the sea. He was off duty but knew a big one was brewing and bravely went out to the lighthouse to relieve his less experienced assistant who went back to shore. Walter stayed at his duty at the light as the waves and winds grew. He probably had to go up to the top of the structure but might have believed that nothing could actually destroy this lighthouse. Unfortunately he was wrong. The next morning the lighthouse was gone and Walter's body was never found. Over the years the the remains of the lighthouse were examined to determine why it failed. No reason was every found except for the fact that the storm was just so incredibly powerful that nothing could stand in it's way. Just a short distance north of Whale Rock five more people died in Prudence Island Lighthouse and the entire island was completely wiped out. Today a new hurricane called Irene is taking aim at Narragansett Bay. I have heard some of my neightbors along the water say that they aren't worried or scared because it will probably "only" be a cat one when it hits. Sometimes it is wise to be afraid, sometimes very afraid, it what keeps you alive. Perhaps people forget exactly what the ocean and wind is capable of but what remains of Whale Rock can be seen out in Narragansett Bay if anyone needs to be reminded. Perhaps this storm will turn out to be nothing more than just the usual histrionics of the modern media. But the again perhaps Irene will decided to get nasty and unleash the fury of her some of her predecessors. Perhaps people along the coast have nothing to worry about or perhaps now is the time to be very worried. We shall see.

While crossing Toll Bridge leaving Narragansett Beach Rhode Island on our way to Warwick Rhode…read moreIsland, we passed by this beautiful small Lighthouse of Rhode Island! You have to take a boat out to it! Built on 1899 this area is considered Jamestown RI !

If you've ever crossed the Jamestown bridge you've seen this lighthouse. In fact, this is the…read morelighthouse to the side of it. 2nd one on the lighthouse tour. Easily distinguishable by its bright orange stripe, it can be seen from a distance even without the light.

I can't imagine a time when Providence didn't have this bridge to connect the city like this! It is…read moreso beautiful and I love all the events that they have!

A beautiful addition to the city of Providence! Every time we visit, we would make a stop there…read more This bridge was renamed to the Michael S. Van Leesten Memorial Bridge in 2020; it opened in August 2019. It was built on existing piers from the old highway, I-95. The bridge goes over the Providence River and connects two neighborhoods, Fox Point and the Jewelry District. There's a park nearby, called District 195; events are hosted at this location. The bridge was beautiful to walk on day and night. There were railings, benches, tables, and chess tables; at night there were LED lights that brighten the area. A wonderful area for walkers and cyclists. The view of the city skyline was breathtaking. One evening we were there, we saw the star-link satellite flying by, it was awesome. The downfall was, this bridge cost the city $21.9 million when the original budget was supposed to be $2 million. People were opposed with building this bridge because RI had the highest amount of bridges with structural issues. In the end, the bridge was built and it's become a popular attraction and landmark.

I am still not sure why this trail has "10 mile" in the name when it's only 3 miles long, but I try…read moreto not think too hard about it. Anyways, I decided to come here for the first time on a weekday afternoon and it was very pretty and peaceful, well maintained, and the perfect running distance for me. I parked on the street outside the carousel entrance of slater park, towards the Pawtucket country club which is where the trail splits. To my left was about half a mile of trail and to my left there was about 2.5 miles of trail. To the left there wasn't much to see, but there was a lot of green, so it was pretty. At the end of this chunk there is a big parking lot. To the right the trail does have more to see, especially since it cuts through slater park, there is a river, and even a dirt bike riding area. At the end of that is also a parking lot and a baseball field. The terrain is mostly flat but there are some tiny hills/slopes that can be challenging towards the end. I was able to see a red cardinal and a couple other birds.

Very nice paved trail that is well maintained, has clear markings and boasts peaceful scenery…read more I would rate the trail as easy, there are some inclines and declines but none that are extreme or difficult to navigate. The entire trail is 3 miles one-way. There are approximately 3 trailheads and 2 additional entry points.

Very small landmark where the first Puritan settlers landed in Portsmouth, RI. There is parking at…read morethe entrance and a very short walk where you will find a shaded glade with a running brook and a small waterfall, memorial benches scattered throughout, and an herb garden in memory of the late Anne Hutchinson and Mary Dyer. Very peaceful little spot!!