Hiking Trails to Explore in Rhode Island

Connors Farm in Smithfield is a 2.9-mile loop trail that passes by small brooks and ponds and features a picnic area at the top of a lookout spot. Photograph: Dan Logan/Getty Images.

Rhode Island is not exactly known for its hiking. Topping out at a grand total of 812 feet (we see you, Jerimoth Hill!) it’s more often a drive-through state for serious hikers on their way to the glacier-carved peaks of New Hampshire and Vermont. Still, the state’s approximately 125,000 acres of protected forest — not to mention miles of undeveloped coastline — are ripe for exploring, and its small size ensures everyone has access to trails practically in their own backyard. With a little creativity, any Saturday morning can be a chance to get outside, lace up those hiking boots and reconnect with the natural world.

No one knows that better than Ernie Germani. The East Providence resident rekindled a childhood love of hiking in 2012 after a visit to New Hampshire’s White Mountains got him wondering about the trails back home. As it turns out, there were dozens of places to enjoy the beauty of the Ocean State, many of them within a half-hour drive of his house. In 2013, he founded Trails and Walks in Rhode Island (trailsandwalksri.wordpress.com) to help others discover their new favorite hike. The site features more than 100 spots in Rhode Island and nearby Connecticut and Massachusetts, from small city parks to miles-long conservation areas, plus local resources and suggestions for post-hike noshes and brews. He also runs a local hiking Facebook group and leads treks for the Blackstone Heritage Corridor and the Rhode Island Land Trust Council.

For those new to the outdoors, Germani recommends starting slow.

“Don’t be afraid. Don’t be intimidated,” he says. “Just get out in the woods, enjoy nature, take your time.”

With April’s thaw upon us and winter finally starting to melt away, now’s the perfect time to get outside. Here are five lesser-known hiking spots Germani recommends to beat the crowds.

Moshassuck River Preserve, Lincoln

This former Boy Scout camp in Lincoln has been owned by The Nature Conservancy since the ’90s and opened to the public in 2021. The 210-acre property encompasses three miles of trails with glacial boulders, a babbling stream and hardwood forest. “That is stunningly beautiful,” Germani says. “You have the river itself. There’s an old stone dam. There’s actually a cemetery — you’d walk right by it if you didn’t know what you were looking for.”

Details: Park at 3 Sherman Ave. (next to the Fairlawn Golf Course). Recently installed signage describes the three available loop trails, with a QR code for translations in Spanish and Portuguese. nature.org 

Simmons Mill Pond, Little Compton

An East Bay favorite, Simmons Mill Pond was formed in the eighteenth century when Benjamin Simmons dammed a nearby brook for his mill. Today, the approximately 500-acre management area incorporates six ponds and miles of trails overseen by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management. Handwritten educational signs make it a treasure trove for younger hikers, and Germani praises the work of the local volunteers who maintain the space. “People down in Little Compton, they’re busy. They put up birdhouses and all kinds of things,” he says.

Details: Park at the lot on Colebrook Road and follow one of two main loops around the site. Hunting is allowed in season, so be sure to follow DEM rules on wearing fluorescent orange from April to May and from September to February.

Hemlock Ledges, Exeter

Most people go to Beach Pond — located at the edge of Arcadia Wildlife Management Area in Exeter — for the beach, Germani says, or for fishing in the pond that crosses into Connecticut. But head left out of the parking lot and you’ll find a rocky trail with beautiful views of two states. “Across the street from the beach itself there’s a trailhead, and it wraps around the southern end of Beach Pond, and you can climb up to the overlook and it’s a good view from there,” he says.

Details: Park in the lot at 2875 Ten Rod Rd. and cross the street to the Tippecansett Trailhead. The trail to the lookout is short and steep; continue on for a 3.5-mile loop toward the Connecticut border.

Camp Shepard, Smithfield

Formerly a YMCA camp, this waterfront property is now owned by the town of Smithfield and opened to the public in 2023. Trails include a red loop around Sprague Upper Reservoir as well as a blue trail that passes a small waterfall. “The view from the overlook is beautiful, absolutely beautiful,” says Germani, who calls it one of Rhode Island’s best hiking destinations.

Details: Park at 71 Colwell Rd. and follow the dirt road into the property. The loop around the reservoir is approximately two miles.

Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge, Middletown

This one is, quite literally, for the birds. In 1970, a land donation from the Audubon Society of Rhode Island and land transfer from the Navy led to the creation of the 242-acre refuge, where migratory birds stop on their winter travels. Germani recommends heading there in the winter for bird watching, or year-round for a taste of fresh ocean breezes. “It’s great for bird-spotting,” he says. “The birds that are migrating usually start through there — snowy owls, cormorants, egrets, all of them.”

Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge in Middletown offers waterfront views of the Sakonnet River and is ideal for bird watchers. Photograph courtesy of Ernie Germani/ trailsandwalksri.wordpress.com

Details: Park at 769 Sachuest Point Rd. and enjoy one of several loop trails around the property. Bathrooms and a gift shop are available at the visitor center. fws.gov/refuge/sachuest-point

Further Resources

• Weekend Walks in Rhode Island: 40 Trails for Hiking, Birding & Nature Viewing by Ken Weber
• Walking Rhode Island: 40 Hikes for Nature and History Lovers with Pictures, GPS Coordinates, and
  Trail Maps by John Kostrzewa
• trailsandwalksri.wordpress.com
• exploreri.org
• riwalks.org

Photograph: Kerkez/Getty Images.

Nature Fix

Try out these other local places to hit the trails.

NORTH

Catamint Brook Preserve
Cumberland, cumberlandlandtrust.org

Connors Farm
Smithfield, smithfieldri.gov

Westconnaug Meadows
Scituate, scituateriltcc.org

Tri-State Marker (Buck Hill Management Area)
Burrillville, dem.ri.gov

Wolf Hill Forest Preserve
Smithfield, smithfieldri.gov

Spencer Property
Foster, townoffoster.com

Wolf Hill Forest Preserve in Smithfield features old farm roads and challenging uphill climbs. Photography courtesy of Ernie Germani/ trailsandwalksri.wordpress.com.

EAST

Weetamoo Woods
Tiverton, tiverton.ri.gov

Ballard Park
Newport, cityofnewport.com

Norman Bird Sanctuary
Middletown, normanbirdsanctuary.org

Claire D. McIntosh Wildlife Refuge
Bristol, asri.org

Sakonnet Greenway Trail
Middletown and Portsmouth, ailt.org

Caratunk Wildlife Refuge
Seekonk, Massachusetts, asri.org

The trail at Long and Ell Ponds leads uphill over rocks and boulders to views of the ponds. Photography courtesy of Ernie Germani/ trailsandwalksri.wordpress.com.

SOUTH

Ben Utter Trail/Stepstone Falls is an easy, 3.2-mile trail in Escoheag that crosses multiple streams and passes the remains of an old gristmill. Photography courtesy of Ernie Germani/ trailsandwalksri.wordpress.com.

Trustom Pond National Wildlife Refuge
South Kingstown, fws.gov

King Preserve
North Kingstown, nature.org

Ben Utter Trail/Stepstone Falls
West Greenwich, riparks.ri.gov

Rome Point
North Kingstown, riparks.ri.gov

Long and Ell Ponds
Hopkinton, nature.org

Clay Head Preserve
New Shoreham, nature.org