Narragansett, Rhode Island

I spent two nights at Fishermen's Memorial State Park and Campground in Narragansett, RI. I needed to buy food and cleanup the car.

Narragansett Library

I wanted to escape the wetness and drove a few miles to the Maury Loontjens Memorial Library in Narragansett, RI. The library has a quiet space with desks and a view onto the street. I spent a few hours in the library.

During my visit, I discovered the Cool Beans Cafe a block away. They have good coffee and chocolate croissants. They also had blackboard walls with customer graffiti. I spent a little time looking at the what people had written or drawn.

Groceries

After the library, I found the Stop-n-Shot to stock-up on a few groceries and ice. It took a little bit of effort to actually find the store. Google maps kept taking me to the stop-n-shop gas station which turned out to be a couple blocks from the grocery store. I then tried finding grocery stores near me. And it took me to the gas station again. I knew that the stop-n-shop grocery stores were usually close to the gas stations. So, I just drove around until I found the store in the shopping plaza across the street with not signage.

Stop-n-shop has a really great natural Cranberry Trail Mix with Cranberries (Sugar, Sunflower Oil), Peanuts (Roasted In Canola, Peanut And/or Sunflower Oil), Raisins (Sunflower Oil), Walnuts, Almonds, Sunflower Seeds, Pumpkin Seeds. I stocked up on this. I keep it on the passenger’s seat and grab a handful as I drive.

Black Point Trail

With the food stowed in the cooler or one of the many boxes I have, I was headed for my hike by the ocean. All the trails in the area were rated easy by AllTrails The Black Point Trail nearby is on my list of things to see in Rhode Island. The clouds had cleared and some sun was coming through.

I headed south along the ocean and came to the trail head. There was parking for about 15 cars and two spots were open. An agent from the fisheries was parked and was giviing feedback on fishing in the ocean. A few people were asking questions about baits, fish that were running and specifically strippers.

I took a loop and walked a while before I came to the ocean. I found a warn path through the bushes that led towards the ocean. It was very rocky, not a place to swim. I could see 7 fisherman scattered across the rocks. They weren’t on a short, but rather up 8-10 feet above the ocean. I stayed a while, but none of them were seeing much action.

As I was about to leave, I noticed an old very rusted iron fence. I have no idea what the purpose of this fence was. It wasn’t located near anything, and I could image anyone wanting to walk down these rocks to the ocean. Clearly the fences was very old and perhaps something existed here before. None the less, I found it to be an interesting subject.

Black Point Trail: Rusted Fence

It was getting later in the afternoon, and the sun was get lower in the sky, casting interesting shadows and creating a lot of contrast. As I was shooting the following photo, a woman behind me said, I don’t mean to startle you. I replied, no worries and stumbled to the side.

Black Point Trail: Sand Fence

Her name was Francesca and she lived across the street. I presumed she was on here way for her daily afternoon walk on the beach. There were only a few people on the Scarborough State Beach at this time of year. We chatted a lot about travel, our kids and events happening in the world. She and her husband were both school teachers and both had recently retired. She had lived in China with her him and traveled to Japan. She loved the people in Ireland and Italy. We both agreed that traveling changes you in many ways and provides an appreciation for other cultures. We had spoken long enough that the sun was beginning to set and the mosquitoes were finding my exposed arms to be a delightful treat.

Francesca: The gentle soul

My car was about a mile away and I was heading back along the water. The colors in the sky were rapidly changing as the sun sank into the horizon. The moon was quickly rising in the east.

Black Point Trail: Moon Rising

As the sun was setting, there was a calm that came over the ocean. The waves weren’t as loud and the wind died down.

On the path, I passed four young fisherman and asked them what they were fishing for. They told me they had been there for six hours fishing for strippers. I told them about what I watched yesterday on Ocean Ave in Newport. They said that fishing is a lot of luck and being in the right place when the fish are running.

Black Point Trail: Sunset