Around Rhode Island

Stepstone Falls is Rhode Islands largest and only waterfall. At 10 feet tall it is small, but it is very pretty. When we went the water was very low, so it did not look like it normally does. When the water is higher, the falls flow over these large granite slabs in wide sheaths, but what we saw was the water actually flowing under the rocks in some spots.

The colors in the trees were also very nice.

Stepstone Falls goes over three main drops. Just upstream of it is a pretty little bridge.

It was a very nice spot to spend some time. While we were there, we also found this cute little caterpillar, and this rock that looked like it was eating a tree.

Next, we headed over to Jamestown on Conanicut Island. We visited a few spots on the island including a spot that was featured in a recent movie we really like, Moonrise Kingdom.

We also went to the Beavertail Light. Magnus and Dana enjoyed playing around on the rocks. In the second picture, Magnus is trying to convince Ruth to jump so he can catch her.

The Jamestown Windmill and a view of the Newport Bridge were some other nice spots.

Welcome to Purgatory…

We had a wonderful day in Purgatory Chasm climbing among the rocks and trees. Purgatory is a State Rec Area in southern Massachusetts. It is a quarter mile long cut through some cool rocks, thought to be a remnant of the last Ice Age. The trail is a mass of boulders, rocks, and trees to climb over. It is a really neat place.

 

 

 

We had a lot of fun seeing all the different rock formations and trees trying to grow on them. We were a little worried about how Magnus and Ruth would be making it through Purgatory, but both did quite well. Magnus got very good at scrabbling over the rocks and even offered to help us in some tough spots.

Dana found this cute little guy hiding under a log:

Dana and Magnus had a chance to visit the Devil’s Coffin:

This trail sign shows the kind of place this is. Doesn’t it make you want to visit?

Fat Man’s Misery is a very large rock that has been split. The crevasse was a tight fit for Dana, but Magnus could walk around comfortably. Ruth did not attempt to fit.

Magnus also had fun playing peek-a-boo in the Devil’s Corn Crib

On the way home we stopped by Jerimoth Hill in Rhode Island, the state’s high point. To get to it you park on the side of the road and walk a short distance down a trail and stand on this rock. The top of the rock is 812 ft. above sea level, awesome.

Back Roads New England: My Tri-State Adventure

Saturday, I, Dana, went out to do some exploring. I headed to the SW corner of Massachusetts to see Bash Bish Falls, the tallest falls in the state. It was early in the morning, so the crowds hadn’t shown up yet. I liked this sign near the falls, because you could park in either state to get to it.

Bash Bish is really pretty and about 80 ft. tall, though I think that giant boulder that splits it up makes it look much smaller.

This is a view of the Bash Bish Canyon with New York in the distance.

My next hike winded back and forth across the Connecticut and Massachusetts border, going up a large hill in each state.

The trail passed the highest elevation in CT (2379 ft.) on the south slope of Mt. Frissell , which summits in MA. This makes it the only state high point that is not the summit of a hill or mountain.

 

The view on top of Connecticut:  

The trail soon comes to the point where NY, MA, and CT all meet.

This hike also let me see lots of emerging autumn colors.

After the hike, I drove into western CT to see Naromiyocknowhusunkatankshunk Brook. I found a picture of the name of this brook a few years ago on Panoramio, and have wanted to see it for myself. I spent enough time there to step in its waters and collect some bugs.

I ended my day in Kent Falls SP in CT. It features a series of smaller waterfalls called Kent Falls that drop 250 ft. Here are some of the falls I liked best, including the biggest drop.

Again, the autumn colors made for some pretty photos.

I really had a good time while in western New England. As a bonus, in one of the towns I passed through they were having and antique car show, so all day I was seeing some very old cars driving the small back roads of MA, CT, and NY. It was pretty awesome.