Next stop on our troll search of RI took us to North Kingstown. Located in Ryan Park, there is a…read morevery small parking lot, and no street parking allowed, but there is another lot across the street for a different park you can easily park at. From the parking lot, it's just a short walk down the path, and you'll find Iver Mudslider sitting up high on a muddy dirt pile. He's a fun character, and one worth checking out if you're in the area. At first, he looks a little scary, but I think he's just full of energy and excitement. The park itself, didn't seem to offer much more, at least from where we parked. Perhaps it's just meant for hiking, and enjoying nature.

Bit of a walk down a path through meadows then a right at the green painted stone. Such a unique…read morepiece!! Glad we stopped!!

On/Near Goat Island in Newport, this lighthouse can be seen from the mainland and from crossing the…read moreNewport bridge. A causeway connects Goat Island to the mainland of Newport. Still active, this lighthouse is accessible if you want to walk to it from Goat Island.

Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge is a bridge that connects Newport and Jamestown. It is a suspension…read morebridge with four lanes and it opened in 1969. In New England, it is the longest suspension bridge. It is a beautiful bridge and I've driven on it countless times. The views are lovely. There is a toll to get on it. It's definitely a very important landmark for the state of RI.

As most people that drive into Newport, RI this would be the bridge they will see before arriving…read moreonto Aquidneck island. It has a beautiful architecture with two tall towers that light up at night. It is New England's longest bridge at 11,247 feet (3,428 metres) in length. The Claiborne Pell Newport Bridge is a toll bridge. As of 2024, the toll is US$4.00 for cars with a non-resident EZ-Pass, and US$6.00 for cars without an EZ-Pass. The toll for Rhode Island residents with an EZ-Pass is US$0.83, so luckily, I have a RI EZ-pass so that makes it inexpensive to go through. I do get upset seeing how they overcharge the tourists...that to me is just not right....but that is the way it's set up....

We took a self-guided tour of this farm on a beautiful day recently. When we arrived we were…read moregreeted by the farm's border collies. The dogs are friendly and very playful. I got the impression that we could throw sticks all day and they wouldn't tire of the game. They accompanied us for most of our walk around the property. In the barn we met a very friendly guide who told me a little about the farm and game me a map along with a detailed description of what to look for. The farm is part of Historic New England along with a couple other properties in Rhode Island and many in Massachusetts. The admission is $4 for adults, $2 for kids and $3 for seniors. We headed out for a walk through the pastures. We saw the cows and sheep that live on the farm, a cool windmill they use to water the livestock and the most amazing views of the bay and the Jamestown bridge. When we got to the rocky beach the dogs were waiting for us to throw rocks into the water. We collected shells and sea glass before we followed the dogs back to the barnyard. There is a shop with grass-fed lamb and beef as well as restrooms which we didn't use so I can't comment on the cleanliness. The farm is beautiful and the views alone are worth the price of admission.

Really awesome walking trails. It reminds me of the English or Irish country side. If your out in…read morethe Newport area check this little farm out! You might even catch the sheep sheering season!

There isn't too much in Saunderstown that's the same as it was in the 1960s. The road I grew up on…read moreis still dirt, but the pasture next to my childhood home, once filled with gentle music from the bells on Mr. Newcomb's sheep, is now occupied by a mini-mansion. My childhood home expanded and looks like a Cape Cod on steroids. The once mostly abandoned summer homes on Narragansett Bay are winterized and occupied. It is unlikely that quite so many families harvest quite so much from the bay as we did....quahogs and mussels and steamers and flounder, or that doors are left unlocked for days, weeks, years, or that mothers don't worry much if, on a summer's night, a 9 year old is so busy capturing fire flies that it is a long time after dark before they come home. I am hopeful that children still get to have a childhood in Saunderstown, that they are encouraged to go barefoot all summer, to be outside all day with few in and out privileges, to climb on the rocky shore, to learn to swim and sail in the cold bay waters, to play tennis and climb trees and ride bikes with wild abandon, to cross neighbors yards in noisy tribes, declaring an ancient right of way gives them the right. I am even more hopeful that the Willett Free Library, my childhood sanctuary, remains a welcoming and treasured place for every kid in Saunderstown - a remarkable village comprised of a post office, a yacht club, a church and a library. Reading and learning and self teaching are earnest New England occupations, and the kind librarians of the 1960s thought very carefully of all of their patrons as they added each volume to inventory. I can still see Mrs. Taylor, one of my favorites, lovingly caressing a book, thinking of the homes in the village it would visit, knowing who should be sure to get it next. I can taste the excitement and anticipation on each dash to the library, trying so hard to remember to slow my pace to respectable library standards before going up the front stairs, not flinging the door open or letting it slam, to gently place the returning books on the counter, and to politely greet the librarian and fellow readers before diving into stacks. I am pretty sure the spirit is alive, as the website for the library says "Our flag depicts a sailing ferry built by Stillman Saunders. At his home, a "Circle for Mutual Improvement" was formed in 1885; the beginnings of this library. When the flag is flying, the WFL is open". I didn't know that the library started in somebody's house, but it is not surprising, as story hour and reading never began and ended at the library in my childhood; it was alive in the home of Anna and Winslow Ames, with Anna's loving story circles for carefully selected, well behaved children, at bedtime every night in almost every home, ...in books traded from one house to another....words have always been woven through the village, spoken and written, the Willett Free Library being just one of the many places where books were honored.

If only there were 10 stars. This tiny place is the hub of the community. Its library service is a…read moresliver of what goes on here: concerts, cooking classes, a kids' postcard club, Italian lessons, yoga, art exhibits, adventure lectures, live streaming, movies, guitar lessons, crafts, story hour for tots. A cozy, comfy setting with working fireplace and native plant garden in the back. Private library open to the public, OLIS member, meets all RI state standards, including handicapped access. WiFi available. Open 1:00-6:00 M-F; 9:00-12:00 Sat. Closed Sun. All state library cardholders welcome, but do join the Willett anyway ... your support is vital.

We stopped by to see the mill in Touro Park though finding a nearby parking spot is hit or miss…read morethough worth the effort.

The Old Stone Mill (also known as the Newport Tower, Round Tower, Touro Tower and Viking Tower) is…read morethe centerpiece of Touro Park. It's nearly circular at 22 - 23 feet in diameter and it is 28 feet high. The tower is supported by eight cylindrical columns that form the stone arches. The tower dates back to at least 1741 and there remains debate that it could even be a church build between the 11th and 14th centuries or maybe even was built by Chinese who discovered America in 1421. My favorite is the theory that it was built by medieval Scottish templars a hundred years before Columbus. But all of those stories have been debunked by carbon dating and other methods. Still, fun to imagine. The tower is surrounded by a fence so you can't actually touch it or go inside one of the oldest structures in the town. [Review 18649 overall - 69 in Rhode Island - 2171 of 2022.]

Not to be confused with South Queensdown which is where I go with Barbi regularly if you know what…read moreI mean. So this is one of RI's most beautiful towns, and there are many beautiful towns here. Not far south of Providence, right on the water, with a good 30k people or so living here, including one of my best friends from college. Amazing food around here, very unique. What a wonderful corner of America this is. Not cheap, in fact quite expensive, but gorgeous, right by the water, lots of boats, and somewhere I'd consider living myself.

Coming from Aquidneck island, we drove over the Mount Hope Bridge to get to Warren…read more The bridge opened in 1929, so it's been around for a long time. It underwent more than $15 million in renovations between 1998 and 2004. Still today, it needs lots of maintenance and repair. It is in working order, but hopefully it will stay active with the proper care.

The history presented is very interesting. We didn't realize General Washington and many other…read moreprominent historical figures crossed to Aquidneck Island from this spot. The history display is presented chronologically and provides some interesting details. Cost: FREE! Time budget: 10 minutes