Date visited: 6/12/2020

This was the first adventure where we really traveled to go on a hike. Up to this point, we had only been visiting the surrounding towns. I decided that it was time to expand, so we headed to Rhode Island for the day. The trail was okay, we did a loop around Carr Pond. The settings were not correct on my camera, and most of my photos didn't come out that well.

Date visited: 9/1/2022

We hiked a 3.5 mile loop trail around Tillinghast Pond. Despite the perfect weather, we didn't encounter another soul on this hike. The trail is well marked, but I did need to limbo under a fallen tree at one point, while Mandy and Lexi were able to just walk under it normally. Due to the drought, the pond level was low. A small section of the loop uses the road, probably less than a quarter of a mile or so. The road is not busy, so it's no big deal. With summer winding down, so are our trips to Rhode Island, at least the after work trips. Also, hunting season starts the second Saturday in September, so we'll be avoiding Management Areas like this one where hunting is allowed until next summer.

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Date visited: 7/27/2022

Arcadia Management Area is vast, 14,000 acres in fact. It spans parts of four towns. I've driven through on Route 165 many times, but this is the first time we stopped and did a proper hike. Reaching the trail around Breakheart Pond requires a two mile drive down a bumpy dirt road. It really feels like you're in the middle of nowhere. We walked the very wide trails around the pond. This is a great place if you are looking for complete escape into nature. About half the loop is in Exeter, while the other half is in West Greenwich. The pictures below are from the West Greenwich section.

Date visited: 12/27/2024

Rhode Island is known for it's sandy beaches, not it's sandy deserts...of course this place really isn't a desert. The locals call it the "Rhode Island Desert", and even Google Maps labels it as such. It's also known as the "West Greenwich Sand Dunes", but it's actually part of Big River Management Area (a different section of the management area than the one we visited on our first ever adventure in Rhode Island, four and a half years prior). There are signs that indicate that ATV's aren't allowed, and orange must be worn during hunting season. There was probably a dozen or so other people we encountered, none were wearing orange, and one was riding an ATV. We walked around the area in a big circle. There look to be a few small trails, and there is a whole series of trails on the other side of Division Street. I actually think the pine trees, along with the dusting in snow in places, made the area look quite scenic. Some of the hills are also used for sledding in the winter, but there wasn't quite enough snow for that. It's not a bad place for a walk in the sand, but I'll take a nice beach over this any day. Still, it was an enjoyable winter walk.

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Date visited: 1/28/2025

This is a completely different section of the management area than we visited on our previous visits. We hiked a two mile loop trail known as the "Shoot The Moon Trail". I have no idea why it is called that. It does appear that this particular trail is geared more for mountain bikes. It was an easy hike, but wasn't as interesting as some of our other recent winter hikes through pine forests. After completing the loop, we hiked a small trail on the opposite side of Hopkins Hill Road that went out to Tarbox Pond. This was the most scenic part of our adventure.

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Date visited: 9/6/2025

This trail is located in the middle of nowhere! Waze had us drive about 20 minutes down some narrow, bumpy roads through two states to get here. The trail head is just over a narrow bridge on a dirt road. The parking area holds about four cars, and it was full. We had to park a bit down the road. Right near the trail head is Stepstone Falls, a small waterfall area. This was definitely the highlight of the trail. It was a hazy and humid day, and Mandy and Lexi wasted no time by getting right into the pool of water near the waterfall. There are all sorts of rocks that make "stepstones" near the waterfall, hence the name! We continued along the trail, that had some very rocky areas, with a few up and downs. It was actually a fun walk, with a number of cool bridges and stream crossings over stones. We followed the All-Trails route which led us to the trail head off Plain Road in Exeter, where we turned around and headed back, completing a nice 3.3 mike hike.

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