Great hike close to PVD - also a great overlook of the city in the distance! My husband and I hiked about 2 miles here. The different trails intersect frequently, which means you can really make a hike however long you'd like. There was a QR code to scan to get the trail map where we started our hike. Everything was well marked and well maintained. There was also a small boardwalk area to keep you out of a swampy area. Parking was a bit confusing. We parked in the Carltons Trail cul de sac which had both "parking for trail" and "no parking" signs on the same pole. We took the risk and parked because the "no parking" sign looked a little less official. The leaves had just come down from the trees, which made the path difficult to navigate at some points; we kept tripping over rocks on the path that you couldn't see. I may reserve this hike more for spring and summer for this reason! read more

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This is a tough series of trails! Ninety percent of the hike is littered with rocks and roots - mostly rocks. This is entirely on a hill with steep grade changes starting at the very beginning. I gave only 4 stars because there are not enough flashes and there are many side trails not flashed or on a map. There are some amazing rock formations, but not enough to thrill me as the hike was too mentally taxing for a Sunday hike. Be sure to wear serious hiking boots, trekking poles, water and snacks. Trekking poles are an absolute must to help with balance and navigation through the rocky grades. I was guided by the Kostrzewa book, but needed a topo map for actual guidance. I will suggest that for anyone else. I can check this hike off my list of Rhode Island trails. I won't return. read more

Wolf Hill Forest Preserve, a Smithfield Land Trust property, contains approximately 300 acres of land and miles of hiking trails. This parcel runs through the middle of town and is wedged between I-295 and Stillwater Reservoir/Stump Pond. I have read that many of the trails plotted out through these wooded hills are old farm roads from its time as Mowry Farm. The paths are certainly of the meandering sort so its believable. On a recent visit I trekked almost 6 miles through these woods. Parking is easy on Waterview Drive near to the police station. There are some nice sights right from the start of the Mary Mowry Trail that begins in this location. An overlook of the reservoir (somewhat grown in during the spring/summer), a World War II Airmen Memorial, and Mercer Outlook with views of the Providence skyline and an old chimney to name a few. Though this is a great location to get some distance, there were a few features I was not particularly fond of. National Grid has high voltage power lines that intersect the property and though they offer a unique view and differing landscape, it took away from the experience for me. I generally prefer full immersion in a trail and less evidence of humans. If this isn't something that bothers you, then I can see how it would be an interesting change in scenery for others. There are sections of the trail that skirt I-295 so the noise from this busy roadway intrudes a bit as well. The trails are generally well marked but I did find myself off-trail at one point. It was perhaps a happy mistake as I stumbled upon a quarry I wasn't expecting to encounter. I was able to relocate my intended path after a short while and all was well. It might have been the time of year but it was very buggy. Come prepared! read more

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As an inexperienced hiker, I thought this was a good, challenging hike. I wandered off course at the beginning of the red (Ken Weber) trail. Enjoyed the hike tremendously - found it challenging enough for me! Would certainly recommend. read more

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One of the many beautiful forests here in Rhode Island which is surrounded by a beautiful mirror like pristine lake .Some of the trees reach almost 4 stories the trees are all surrounded by a beautiful pristine Mirror like lake. In my opinion a must see read more

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In memory of Ken The Wolf Hill Trail and Forest Preserve is a pleasant area that has lots of ancient stone walls, white birch and red cedar trees, lots of ponds and streams and undulating hills. Unfortunately because of the wetness this is a very buggy place and hordes of aggressive and determined insects and arachnids will be standing in line to get a chance at your bodily fluids. That's one of the reason I prefer this hike in the cold weather. Inside of the the Wolf Hill Preserve is the Ken Weber Memory Trail. To be honest it isn't one of the more exciting hikes in the state but should be done by any serious hiker just because of the name Ken Webber. Ken Weber is the patron saint of Rhode Island hiking and wrote the bible called, "Weekend Walks in Rhode Island". This is the book that everyone that likes to hike has and carries with them on hikes. Maps, photographs, directions and best of all his beautiful and poignant descriptions of what he is seeing while on the hikes. Reading his flowing and poetic prose before going on the hikes makes the actually hiking so much more fun. He saw things that I would have definitely missed. Ken Webber passed away several years ago but fortunately he now has a trail named after him. The Wolf Hill Forest has a lot of other trails and areas to enjoy but time should be taken to walk the Ken Weber Trail if for no other reason except to honor the memory of this great hiker. Walk slowly, smell, look and listen and try to experience nature through Ken's senses. Because of him the woods, hills and streams seem so much nicer. read more

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Had a very nice 4.25 mile hike here. We parked at the round driveway within the development off of Mountaindale Rd. But my understanding is that it can also be accessed from somewhere behind the Smithfield Police Station. The trails are well marked and all pretty much intersect at points. I would recommend studying the map and determining your path before you begin, there will be many times a certain colored trail will have a fork and you will need to refer to the map to determine which direction. There are a lot of roots and rocks, also a good amount of inclines and declines. The green trail does have one very steep area and I highly recommend going up as it can seem scary going down. My only suggestion is better markers for crossing the white trail across the large power poles, yellow and red were marked well but white was not - luckily, the red trail ran parallel to that strip of power poles so we intersected right into the red. I would definitely come back here and I'm quite certain my dogs loved it as well! read more

Wolf Hill Forest Preserve - The highlighted route has been great! 5+ miles, blueredgreen(up steep part)purplegreenwhiteorangeyellowblue - Hiking Near Me - Smithfield, Rhode Island

Love this area for hiking. Lots of well colored marked trials....yellow, white, blue, purple, green, orange, red...you name it.. You can mix and match your hiking route as long or as short as you want it. Some big boulders, big rocks, steep hills and cliffs, mostly a moderate hike. During the fall, the colors are just spectacular...... Many great areas to stop and visit...like the Airmen WWII Memorial, the Mercer Lookout, the Quarry - if you find it....lol...-, the water fall (or water trickle), etc..... Just relaxing, just a nice hiking area..... read more

Got in a nice hike out here. We walked all the trails in less than 2 hours though. It wasn't a bad hike and that isn't a bad thing. I actually liked it a lot. BUT just know that most of the trails out here are fairly short, they do all run into each other though, so, connected you can get in a nice hike. But it's nothing monumental or grueling. It's just pleasant. I don't know if it's worth going back to though for me. I would probably have to do all the trails twice to get sore and feel spent. For this hike we took a nice newly paved road out to a tractor that was obviously cutting down trees so that someone could build a few structures. We parked in the little rock strewn lot that could only fit two cars in it because we wanted to start at the lookout point and go down and then up. The lot we parked on was definitely not marked on yelp but I will put a link at the end if anyone just wants to see the lookout point while they're passing by. Right away the hike was cute when we started. You just immediately take off into the woods. We started going up and basically reached the lookout in just a couple of minutes, if that. There were broken beer bottles all over. the lookout was obviously a favorite for nighttime hangs and I could tell why right away. It was very nice up there and there was an old chimney from a structure that no longer existed though the foundation remained. Also, it looked as if someone was planning to have a bonfire soon because a fire-pit was ready with branches in it for another night of fire and beer drinkin' and probably story tellin'. But those are night time secret things. The view from the top was pretty great. We could see the Providence skyline far off in the distance with all the buildings and we could even see the coal cooling towers that lead you off to fall river. If I knew more of the area I could specifically tell you what bridge we saw but sadly I do not because I am not from here. But! We came to hike so that was just a lovely bonus! My favorite part of this hike was actually the power-line path. I don't remember which trail led us down the power line path but if I had to guess it was the yellow trail (or maybe half of the colors at one point or another). It was odd to me though that the pretties part of the hike was actually the part that man had intruded upon. There were smooth large rocks that led down following the lines until you entered into the other side of the woods. I like hiking but I usually like to see something on my hike, anything other than just woods and just leaves. That being said, as we were nearing sunset and on our way back, we saw a very pretty deer around the power lines. He/She may have been the prettiest deer I've ever seen but I've seen a lot of deer so i'm most likely exaggerating but wow, so pretty and so good at disappearing! We only saw one other person on this hike. We hiked at least an hour and a half ON A SUNDAY, which isn't too long really, and we only saw one other person and we managed to do all the trails in one trip without much of a challenge. And I'm not sore today, not at all. All-in-all, it was a nice breath of fresh air. I can see this being a great place to hike if you're close. Nothing more or less than that. The person we saw was friendly and her dogs were awesome and I'm sad we didn't get to walk longer with her. This would be a great place to hike with a family because it's not too long and the trail markers happen every few minutes. Nothing is too steep and you can always just go back a minutes or so to do a loop or something extra. If you want to enter where we did, "the closest parking to the lookout point" just go here: https://www.google.com/maps/place/41%C2%B052'53.2%22N+71%C2%B031'13.2%22W/@41.88144,-71.520344,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x0?hl=en read more

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I have recently become interested in hiking the "hidden trails" throughout RI, southern CT and southern MA. Geocaching has helped me find some excellent rails, bikeways and parks. This was one of them. Wolf Hill is a preserve with extensive, well blazed trails, fun finds like a quarry and a memorial to local airmen lost during WW2 and easy hiking. Visit nearby Stump Pond as well. Steve and I spent a good 3 hours hiking, hunting caches and taking photos one Sunday in Spring (2016). WE did not hike the entire trail system! We left some geocaches to be found at another time and the lookout is on our list for our next hike. Highly recommend getting your hike on here alone or with family. Great for kids! read more

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Lots of street parking and parking at the conservation center. At the center there are bathrooms and some picnic tables overlooking the lake. A very romantic spot for a date day or for the family! The hike is pretty easy and takes about two hours to the overlook and back. There are wild black berries along the trail in the telephone towers that are delicious!!! read more

Don't forget the bug spray! Easy trail and they are marked all the way. Just take picture of map and have fun.

We came here on July 4 for a moderate hike and were pleased. We ended up on the green trail which gets quite steep at several points. As two (relatively) fit adults, we were ok with it but if you're looking for an easy stroll, skip the green trail for sure. Trail markers were good but there's no map so bring one with you. The trailhead is a little hard to find as well. We parked on Waterview Drive. The entrance for the white trail is on the left as you drive up Waterview. If you get to the condo development, you've gone too far. One downside: it was SUPER buggy. Mosquitos everywhere and all in your face. Bring bug spray. read more

We did this hike on a Sunday afternoon. There are a few different trails. We tried the WWII Memorial Trail but only half of it and some the Leo Bouchard Trail. The Leo Bouchard Trail is pretty flat and short. The WWII trail is rocky and requires a little uphill and was a nice workout. I would suggest bug spray. There is tons of shade, so not to hot. There are some spots to sit and put a blanket out and have a snack in some places. We did stop at the airmen memorial, which is nice. read more

Wolf Hill is a great place to get a good work out in with out having to go far out of the city for a hike. You can definitely get a sweat going if you get on your snow shoes and keep a fast pace (some of those hills seem pretty steep in deep snow). There are miles of trails that you can meander for hours if you please. The trails are well marked and easy to navigate. Parking is easy to find if you park on the road near the conservation center and the police station. I've gone here several times in the Summer but prefer it in the Winter for some solid snow shoeing. The views from Mercer Hill are beautiful and a great place to take in the Providence skyline. It's pretty dog friendly, just make sure to clean up after your furry friend and not sure if they have leash rules for during the Summer. read more

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This is my new favorite walking trail in the Providence area, and I haven't even had a chance to experience it in the nice weather. I am always looking for new places to check out and enjoy the outdoors, so on a recent search, I came across this place. After a failed attempt to find the trail head that most people talked about online, I found the more obvious one - at the conservation center on waterview drive. Here, I was pleasantly surprised to find not only a trailmap, but a trailmap that has the exact distance from each intersection to the next. I have never seen this type of detail before, and so before I even began my walk, I was pretty happy. The trails were all well marked and I was again surprised to find that at some of the larger intersections the map was posted with a "you are here" and again the distances. This made for a really relaxing walk. We came across the WWII airmen memorial the first walk. A week later, we made our way to the Mercer outlook. Both were a nice change to take a breather and enjoy the surroundings. Oh, another pleasant surprise. One of the trails actually has hills - I know this sounds like a lame side note, but for someone who would prefer to be hiking rather than walking, it at least gave me a nice little work out. read more

Thank god for Google Maps! There weren't any maps available at the trail head. I took a picture of the map posted at the beginning and boy am I glad I did. We followed the green path in the beginning, and then when it abruptly ended is where the trouble began. In the 10 years I've been actively hiking, these were the worst marked trails I've ever been on. Google maps saved me from further being lost by being able to access the compass within this app and just heading down paths in the direction of north. Lesson learned, buy a compass now. Anyways, the trails branched off and forked many times, sometimes marked with different color paths, other times the same color. The trail map at the beginning I took a picture of however did not show any of these forks or splits. Twice the trail went in opposite directions and being able to access the compass on my phone saved me from hours of further being lost. We ran into a man and his dog in a quarry who also was lost and trying to find the trail he was on, and later a younger couple who too were in the same predicament and showing the same puzzled look of "which way are we supposed to go". Back to this quarry... There was a nice stream of water that cascaded down the cliffs, unfortunately this was overshadowed by the trash and burned debris on the ground in front of the falls. Also, the graffiti and penis' drawn on the cliffs nearby somewhat hindered the aesthetic appeal of this as well. Overall, the trail was quiet and people encountered were friendly. This wasn't a majestic hike, but was a pleasant hike through some preserved land as the name indicates - giant graffiti phallus's aside that is. If the trails were better marked I would have given this 3 stars. Would I go back and hike this again...not at all. I suppose I'm just spoiled by hiking in northern MA, Maine, and New Hampshire - trees surrounded by high voltage power lines and highways take away from peacefulness of being in the woods. read more

Clearly marked paths. Took a photo of the map as no trail maps were readily available. Enjoyed the walk. My dog is resting now. That makes a successful hike. read more

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Great trail, come prepared with water and spray yourself down with bug spray! The green trail gets a little intense with a steep uphill climb, make sure you wear proper sneakers/trail shoes. We didn't finish the whole thing but plan on coming back soon since it's so close to home for us! Nice hidden gem in beautiful Smithfield read more

Wolf Hill Forest Preserve - Hiking Near Me - Smithfield, Rhode Island

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Great area. Enough options to mix things up with different trails and spend one to two hours. Take the dog all the time. A little busy on weekends but not crowded read more

We completely found this place by mistake. I have never been so excited to find a place as I have here. In fact we went back the next weekend to hit more of the trails. Very well marked which makes me very happy. I always think I'm going to get lost in the woods for days and have to feast on my own arm to survive. I love how the map shows the distance on each section. The green trail with the steep part is steep enough to feel accomplished while not kicking your butt. My five year old son conquered it and it's only his second season of hiking. There is much goodness here and we will continue to go back again and again. We also can't figure out how the boat got in there. We have many theories but would love to know the real story!! read more