Small Wonder!

August 26-29, 2022

Rhode Island is nicknamed “The Ocean State” which confused me a little!  Being only 40 miles long and 30 miles wide, certainly there are other states we think of when we picture the ocean!  It turns out that Rhode Island has 400 miles of coastline, making its nickname perfectly appropriate! 

To experience a little bit of the shoreline, we drove to Newport and hiked a portion of their Cliff Walk.  While we only walked about a mile of its 3.5 mile path, what we saw was beautiful!  We parked at Easton’s Beach and walked to the iconic Forty Steps before running into a detour due to storm damage on a section of the trail.  We could have easily taken the detour and experienced more of the trail; however, time was a bit of a constraint and we decided to branch off at that point and see a little more of Newport.

Easton Beach!

A popular lunch spot along the Cliff Walk.

The iconic Forty Steps lead you to the rocky shoreline!

About a mile from the Cliff Walk, we came across the wharf and a fun shopping area where we found post cards to mail to the grandkids.  We’re mailing post cards to the kids from every state we visit.  This makes the 36th state we have been to!  The kids’ collection of postcards is getting substantial!  

On the wharf, we also found Smuggler’s Waterfront Bar -- an oceanfront bar with more of that Rhode Island shoreline for our viewing!  It was five o’clock somewhere, so we stopped in and enjoyed a drink!  I tried their John Daly which had lemon vodka, sweet tea vodka and lemonade.  It was a hot, sticky kind of a day and I can’t tell you how refreshing this drink was!

Attending Mass at Jesus Saviour Roman Catholic Church was even more refreshing!  This church was built in the 1950’s and has a strong Portuguese population.  The church continues to carry on the tradition of feeding the poor as modeled by Queen Isabel of Portugal (1271-1336).  Folklore has it that the queen would sneak pensaos out of the castle under her cloak to feed the poor.  When the King became suspicious and demanded to see what she carried under her cloak, she opened it and the food had miraculously turned into a bouquet of roses!  The day we visited, the homily was based on Jesus’ parable of humility combined with a message on hospitality.  Beautiful!

Our final stop in Newport was at Castle Hill Lighthouse.  This iconic Newport lighthouse was popular with wedding couples and photographers alike while we were there!  It really is a beautiful location!  With the setting sun behind the Atlantic Ocean, Rhode Island’s rocky shoreline, and the romance of a lighthouse, it is pretty hard to find anything prettier!

Our final day in Rhode Island took us to historic Wickford Village.  When the British were becoming more and more intrusive in Boston, many of the merchants came to Wickford to set up business.  Today, the area is filled with quaint shopping districts and waterfront benches!  We enjoyed lunch at Wickford on the Water and then strolled the streets, soaking up the serene location.  We had hoped to do a little kayaking but, apparently, it was a popular idea as all of the kayaks had been rented out by the time we inquired.  It really wasn’t a problem as it was delightful to spend some time, sitting on a bench in the marina, watching the sailboats come and go!

Next up:  Connecticut!