Although the temperature this Christmas was hovering between 43-46 degrees and not the T-shirt weather of past Christmas mornings, it was still pleasant enough for a walk in the woods. I went for a walk at a place I've had in my back pocket for months. The area is called Long and Ell Ponds Natural Area. The place is a few minutes from Exit 2 on I-95. For me it was a solid hour drive.
I first heard about this area from a website called "only in your state". The website describes cool places to go in the states. What intrigued me was a picture of a ladder going over a steep pitch. I've never been anywhere in Rhode Island that I could say was honest to goodness hiking, so I was hoping this place would be worthy. I know the highest point in the Ocean State is only around 750 feet, so I wasn't expecting any mountaintop views, but I was hoping for rough terrain. I saved this hike for Christmas as a gift to myself. The worst case scenario was I'd go for a walk at a place I'd never been. That was good enough for me, but oh, if it lived up to expectations, then Merry Christmas to me!
I am happy to say I was not disappointed. Almost immediately still within sight of the small parking area the trail gets rough. There are many boulders, glacial erratics, and ups and downs to make the first mile a real challenge. Very quickly you come to ladder up a steep pitch. To make things more challenging today, many places were icy including bald rock faces.One thing that caught me off guard besides the ice and steepness was how green the place was. Almost the entire trail was covered in rhododendron. Apparently they do not turn colors and die in the fall. It was refreshing to see so much green this time of year. It was especially pretty because of the snow.
The first mile goes over four or so summits. In between each summit you drop down anywhere from 50-100 feet and then climb the next one. I was sweating and breathing kind of heavy. After the first mile which is by far the hardest, the trail flattens out on a ridge. The ridge stays a steady sixty feet above Long Pond for another half mile or so. At the end of the ridge you come to a parking area. I could have turned around here.
I kept going. From the parking area which is about the mid-point of the trail, I continued on to Ashville Pond. This part of the trail is much flatter. It is almost smooth and the ups and downs are very gradual. I went as far as a view of Ashville Pond and turned around. I had to be back at my car for 3 pm to be home on time.
The hike back to the middle parking area was easy. As soon as I got there I climbed back up the ridge following Long Pond's shoreline. Then I had to go back up and over the summits again. They are all short verticals but added together, today was hiking and not a nature walk. I made it back to my car with fifteen minutes to spare.
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| Some of the open ledges reminded me of Welch-Dickey |
All in all, this was the most challenging (read; fun) hike I've done in Rhode Island. It wasn't the longest as I probably went four miles. I could have extended this to five if I wanted to do some road walking. There were good views of the ponds.This place probably would be dangerous if there was snow on the ground. The open slabs could get icy very quickly. I don't think I would snowshoe there, in places it is too steep.
I could have made my way down to the shorelines on side trails but didn't have the time to explore. I guess it gives me an excuse to go back
Pictures below
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| A glacial erratic with bright green ferns growing on it |
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| Looking down a steep pitch |
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| I surprised to see a sea of green |
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