Date visited: 7/22/2022

When I arrived, I kinda thought this place was pretty "meh". It's basically a stone dust loop through a field behind a strip mall. But we got about half way through and encountered three deer! They were definitely staring me down, but I like to think they were just posing for their pictures. You can see them in the background behind Mandy and Lexi in one of the photos, but I included some better pictures of just the deer as well! Aside from the wildlife, it was a good thing we were here just before sunset. It was one of the hottest days of the year, and there is absolutely no shade on this trail whatsoever. Luckily, by this time of the evening, the temperature had dropped into the upper 70's and the walk was quite pleasant.

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Date visited: 10/7/2022

This beach is also known as "Second Beach". I guess the "First Beach" is Easton's Beach at the start of Cliff Walk in Newport. There is also a Third Beach on the other side of the peninsula that we visited afterward. As for "Second Beach", it's a nice long beach that we walked end to end. It was about 2.5 miles total. It was also quite breezy here, which made it feel cooler than the mid seventies temperature. The waves are strong here, as this beach faces southwest and opens up to the open ocean. The water looked puprlish at the north end, due to the burgandy color sediment on the beach. Toward the end of our walk, we encountered Horseback riders. Dogs are only allowed here from October 1st thru April 30th. They are actually also allowed all year between the hours of 5 and 7:45 AM, but there's little chance of me ever visiting this beach that early!

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Date visited: 10/7/2022

We visited this beach immediately after visiting Sachuest Beach (Second Beach). It was about a minute drive away on the other side of the little peninsula. This beach faces east and opens up to a cove, so the waves are much milder than on Second Beach. It was also much less windy here. This beach is smaller as well, maybe half the size. We also encountered the horseback riders here as well. I'm not sure Mandy and Lexi understand horses all that much! I think they think they are giant dogs!

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Date visited: 9/14/2024

This is the beach area just north of Third Beach. We may have overlapped a section of this beach when we visited that beach two years ago. This time we entered via the entrance off of Third Beach Avenue and we explored the rocks at the north end of the beach. Like Third Beach, this beach is tucked inside a cove so the waves are mild. This worked out well for the dogs, as they were able to easily cool off in the water!

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Dates visited: 9/26/2022 & 9/20/2023

This is a 13 mile trail in the towns of Middletown and Portsmouth. We did not walk all 13 miles! We walked a four mile loop in Middletown. We started at the trail head at the Newport Vineyard parking lot. The trail actually goes right through the vineyard! It's an interesting trail with some varied landscapes, but most of it went through open fields. I wouldn't want to walk this trail in the middle of the summer, as 90% of it has no shade. It's a very nice trail, but I could do without the section that runs alongside Route 138 for a quarter of a mile. There was a shortcut around that section that we should have taken. Other than that, it was pretty great! We'll have to come back and do the Portsmouth section some day.

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We returned and hiked the middle section of the trail that connects the two sections in Middletown and Portsmouth that we previously hiked. This entire section borders the Newport National Golf Club. Some sections of the trail are actually shared with the golf carts. Much of this section is not shaded, so this wouldn't be a great trail on a real hot day, but it was perfect for the day we visited. Parts of this section of the trail are in both towns. The pictures below are from the Middletown section. You can see the Portsmouth pictures on that page.

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Date visited: 9/26/2022

We hiked a short 1+ mile loop trail that straddes the towns of Middletown and Portsmouth. These are the pictures from the Middletown section. You can read more about the trail on the Portsmouth page.

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Dates visited: 1/27/2023 & 8/13/2024

This park is a small area just over the border from Newport, next to Easton's Beach. There is a grassy area with some cool trees that have grown sideways! Mandy and Lexi decided to climb one of them! There's also a public access path to a small beach called Atlantic Beach just outside the park. Pictures from that area are included here as well.

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We passed through this park a second time, this time in the summer, on our way to Atlantic Beach. Other than the grass being a brighter green now, it doesn't look much different in the summer.

Date visited: 8/13/2024

This is the beach area behind Newport Beach House, a venue that hosts weddings and other events. The public can access the beach when there are no events. I guess Tuesday afternoons are not big wedding days, as there were no events happening while we were here. I didn't see any "No Dogs" signs or anything. This beach is separated from Easton's Beach by a small stream, which also serves as the town line between Middletown and Newport. Mandy and Lexi enjoyed cooling off in the small stream. There's a red algae in the water, so the dogs didn't go into the water anywhere near the algae, but it made for some interesting photos. There's a rocky area on the far end of the beach which is very scenic. We had passed through this beach once before in the winter, while visiting Dunlap Wheeler Park, which is adjacent to this beach. It's a different experience in the summer time. This beach area was the highlight of our four mile adventure that also included Braga Park and Easton Pond in Newport.

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Date visited: 8/6/2023

I read an article online about Rhode Island's secret beaches. Well, this one is so secret, it wasn't even in the article. I found this very small beach by looking at Google Maps on my phone. There are exactly four parking spots here, with signs warning against parking anywhere but in the four spots. Fortunately, when we arrived, only three of the spots were filled. There is a very short trail that leads down to the beach. This isn't a sandy beach, it's full of pebbles...hence the name. Mandy was able to cool off, but Lexi wanted no part of the waves. This is a pretty nice place to get away for a few minutes..as long as one of the parking spots is open!

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Date visited: 6/7/2024

This public waterfront access point is primarily used as a fishing spot. Parking is at the end of Taggart's Ferry Road. There's a rocky beach area, with a great seawall protecting an elaborate dwelling of some sort. It made a great backdrop for photos, and is a good spot for dogs to cool off on a warm day.

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Date visited: 6/7/2024

This is not an adventure for anyone scared of heights. The chasm is a naturally occurring geological feature, creating a 10 foot gap between two cliffs. There's a short path that leads to a bridge over the chasm. Due to the narrowness of the bridge, I couldn't get a great photo of the dogs on the bridge, with an angle that shows the chasm. I've included a picture of just the chasm. It's quite a site. There were kids swimming in the chasm while we were visiting. There are also some really short side trails that lead to the edge of rocky cliffs that offer breath-taking views of the shoreline and Nearby Sachuest Beach. There's also a trail that runs along side Purgatory Road, to "Surfer's End", the part of the beach used by surfers. There were a lot of people surfing here on this day. Along the trail is a small grassy area with benches, that overlooks the beach and shoreline, but does not require standing on the edge of a cliff. The small parking area at the chasm has signs that warn "30 Minute Parking" only, as they probably don't want people parking here for the beach. This was the fourth stop of the day, and a nice adventure to end a busy warm summer afternoon.

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Date visited: 9/6/2024

This is a small park with a large grassy area and a playground, but that's about it. We stopped here to get a few extra steps. It's smack dab in the middle of a commercial strip, as you can see from the iHop in the background. It's a good place to stop to let the dogs out to stretch their legs and take care of business, but there is no real long walk here.

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Date visited: 9/14/2024

This is a nice park next to the Middletown Historical Society. The main feature here is the Boyd's Windmill, the only eight vane windmill ever built in New England. The windmill is pictured on the Middletown town seal. The park also features a gazebo, a monument area, a number of benches, and some stone dust and mowed walking trails. A doggie poop bag dispenser is also provided. This is a nice place to just stop and chill out for a bit.

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