Two Weeks on Salt Water - End of Another Great Vacation

Our annual summer vacation at the beach ended today, so packing up to go home trumped paddling this morning. I was able to paddle every day of our two-week vacation. Fog and wind kept me close to the cottage most of the first week. I did get out to a few old favorites the second week including Narrow River, Dutch Harbor, Wickford, Jamestown Harbor and Fort Wetherill. I also led a trip for RICKA on Point Judith Pond during the Blessing of the Fleet. 

South County Vacation from Erik Eckilson on Vimeo.

Wickford Harbor - July 30, 2021

The Castle

With last night’s storm I wasn’t sure what the conditions would be like on the bay this morning, so I decided to head to Wilson Park to paddle the calm protected waters of Wickford Harbor.

Wickford was established in the early 17th century when Roger Williams purchased land from the Narragansett Indians and established a trading post. In 1637, Williams sold the land to Richard Smith who constructed a large fortified house on the site, giving the house its nickname the “Castle”. That house was burned during King Philip's War, and the structure that can be seen from the put-in today was built in 1678.

Wickford Shipyard

Wickford grew to become a major port and shipbuilding center, and today contains a large collection of 17th and 18th century homes. It is a picturesque village whose streets are lined with shops and restaurants, and whose harbor is filled with sailboats and yachts. 

While the backwaters around Rabbit Island and Cornelius Island looked interesting, I headed out into Wickford Harbor and then into Wickford Cove. It was low tide so I was able to paddle under the Brown Street Bridge and into Academy Cove behind the Kayak Centre.

Boston Neck Road (Route 1A) Bridge

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Dutch Island – July 29, 2021

Dutch Harbor from the put-in

After my aborted attempt yesterday, I went back to Dutch Harbor today to paddle out to Dutch Island and the Dutch Island Light. The bay was calm, winds were light and conditions were perfect.

Dutch Island is located in the West Passage of Narragansett Bay and took its name from the Dutch East India Company that established a trading post here around 1636. After the Revolutionary War the island was fortified to protect the West Passage from invasion by sea. In the 1890’s the Army established Fort Greble here. Like Fort Weatherill on the East Passage, Fort Greble was active through World War II and was part of a series of heavily fortified artillery placements that protected Narragansett Bay.

Dutch Island Light

The first lighthouse was completed on the southern tip of Dutch Island in 1826. The original tower was replaced with the current tower in 1857. The lighthouse remained in service until 1979 when it was replaced with a flashing buoy. It then fell into disrepair until 2007 when it was restored by the Dutch Island Lighthouse Society.

I put in at Dutch Harbor and paddled out toward the Dutch Island Light. After snapping a few pictures, I continued around the west side of island before retuning to the take out.

Newport Bridge

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Fort Wetherill – July 28, 2021

View from the put-in

My original plan was to paddle over to Dutch Island, but an iffy forecast and dark clouds to the north had me thinking better of if. I did a quick lap around Dutch Harbor before heading over to Beavertail to take a few pictures. From Beavertail I could see that the bay on the southern side of Jamestown was relatively calm, so I decided to check out Fort Wetherill. 

Fort Wetherill is a former coastal defense battery and training camp located on 100-foot high granite cliffs across the East Passage from Newport and Fort Adams. Shortly after the Revolutionary War, Fort Dumpling was built on this site to protect this strategic access to Newport Harbor and Narragansett Bay. 

View to Mackerel Cove

The site would eventually become Fort Wetherill - part of an extensive coastal defense battery that included Fort Greene on Point Judith, Fort Greble on Dutch Island, Fort Hamilton on Rose Island, and Fort Adams in Newport that protected Narragansett Bay during World War II. 

I put in at the boat ramp at around 8:30. I paddled around out into West Cove but didn’t venture any further out into the bay. Still, the views of Newport and the rocky coast of Jamestown are great.

Cormorant Rock

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Narrow River – July 27, 2021

I needed to get back early for a conference call for work, so I decided to head down to the Narrow River.

The Narrow River, also known at the Pettaquamscutt River, is the tidal extension of the Mattatuxet River. It begins below the Carr Pond Dam at the Gilbert Stuart Birthplace and flows south for approximately 6.3-miles forming the border between South Kingstown and Narragansett before entering Pettaquamscutt Cove and then flowing out into Narragansett Bay.

The Narrow River gets its name from either the long narrow section from Bridgetown Road to Middlebridge Road, or the narrow mouth of the river below the Sprague Bridge where it empties into Narragansett Bay.

I put in at the Pollock Avenue Boat Ramp and paddled up through the “upper” Narrows. This section of the river is lined with boat docks and summer houses. Above and below the Narrows the river opens up again and you can paddle up to the Gilbert Stuart Birthplace or down into Pettaquamscutt Cove and the John H. Chafee National Wildlife Refuge.

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Point Judith Pond Again - July 26, 2021

Horseshoe Point

The kids were visiting and morning fog had rolled in, so I decided to stay local and paddle around the cottage. I took a lot of pictures with the zoom lens to get a long view of the waves and riffles on the water - an interesting effect with the fog. Only later in the day did I hear on the news was that the fog was actually another batch of "smoke-fog" from fires in the west. It did "burn off" later in the day - no pun intended.

Oyster famers commuting to work

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The Narrows - July 25, 2021

Cormorant Rock

The day was clouding up fast, and rain was in the forecast, so I decided to head over to the Narrow River to paddle down to the Narrows. The Narrow River, also known as the Pettaquamscutt River, originates in North Kingstown and flows south into Narragansett Bay above the Narragansett Town Beach.

I put in at the Sprague Bridge on Boston Neck Road, and paddled down to take some pictures at the rocks at Cormorant Point before heading back. Above the bridge is the John H Chafee Wildlife Refuge. Established in 1973, the refuge at Pettaquamscutt Cove includes over 550 acres of wetland that attracts bird of all species. I'll paddle that another day.

Approaching the Narrows

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Point Judith Pond with RICKA - July 24, 2021

Marina Park

I didn’t know when I put this trip on the RICKA calendar that it would coincided with the Annual Blessing of the Fleet in Galilee, which would mean lots of boat traffic.

Point Judith Pond, or the Great Salt Pond, is located along the border of Narragansett and South Kingstown, and is the second largest of the Rhode Island’s South County salt ponds. It is a shallow, four-mile long pond located behind the barrier beaches and sand dunes that form Point Judith. The pond is 20 miles around with many pretty islands and coves to explore.

Heading down the pond

The weather was beautiful with a slight wind from the north that shifted to the south later in the day. We had 5 boats with folks who had all done the trip before. We headed out into the Upper Pond from Marina Park, paddled through the Narrows and out into Congdon Cove. From there, we headed down to Gardner Island where we crossed the boat channel and headed over to Jonathan Island.

With a wind from the north we decided to paddle down the west side of Great Island into Galilee. We took a break for lunch at Little Comfort and waited to the boats to start coming through the Breachway. At noon we paddled a little ways down into Galilee being careful to stay out of the boat channel to wait for the boats.

Watching the ships come in

We watched a few boats come through before it started to get too crowded for my comfort. We decided to get on our way paddling under the Great Island Bridge and into Bluff Hill Cove. We continued up the east side of the Great Island Horseshoe Point. Michelle was out and was able to get some pictures of the crew.

From there we paddled up the east side of the pond along Harbor Island before returning to the put-in.

The crew at Horseshoe Point

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Jamestown Harbor - July 23, 2021

Newport Bridge

I decided to head over to Jamestown this morning to paddle around Jamestown Harbor and get some pictures of the Newport Bridge. I put in at the East Ferry Boat Ramp and headed out into the harbor.

The Newport Bridge was completed in 1969 and is the longest suspension bridge in New England. It spans the East Passage of Narragansett Bay from Jamestown to Newport. The main span is over 1,600 feet long, and the road deck is more 200 feet above the water. The towers themselves are over 400 feet tall.

Clingstone - House on the Rock

I followed the boat moorings down to the Dumplings - a grouping of rocks just off Bull Point. The most prominent of the Dumplings is Clingstone or the "House on the Rock". This massive post and beam home was built in 1905 and has been recently restored.

It turned out to be a nice morning with the tide going out and 1 to 2 rolling waves - great conditions for the trip.

Jamestown Harbor from the south

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Potter Pond - July 22, 2021

Snug Harbor Light

It was a bright sunny morning, so I decided to stay close to home and paddle over to Potter Pond.

Poter Pond is connected to Point Judith Pond by a tidal inlet that flows through Snug Harbor and the 182-acre Succotash Marsh. The barrier beach that forms East Matunuck State Beach creates the southern shore of the pond. The northern end is a wooded kettle pond. With the exception of the villages of Snug Harbor to the east and Matunuck to the west, most of the land around Potter Pond is undeveloped.

Succotash Marsh

I paddled down the west side of Great Island into Galilee, and sat at the top of the Breachway to watch the boats come and go before crossing over to Snug Harbor. I then paddled along the inlet into Succotash Marsh. The tide was up, so the sand flats in the marsh were covered with water and you could see the beach house at East Matunuck State Beach. After paddling under the bridge at Succotash Road I entered into Potter Pond. I headed west past the Matunuck Oyster Farm to the Ocean Avenue Waterfront Access in Matunuck to check out the beach before heading back.

I ran this trip last year with RICKA, and as we approached the inlet leading back to Point Judith Pond we found the incoming tide rushing through the narrow channel – even motor boats were having difficulty getting through. We had to get out and wade our boats through the channel. This time I timed it better (just about high tide) and was able to paddle up the channel with no problem.

Ocean Avenue Waterfront Access

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Upper Pond - July 21, 2021

Boat Ramp at Marina Park

I will be leading a RICKA trip on Point Judith Pond this weekend, so I got up early to check out the put-in at Marina Park.

Unlike Rhode Island’s other large salt ponds (Ninigret, Green Hill, Quonochontaug and Winnapaug) that are coastal lagoons, Point Judith Pond is an estuary where the Saugatucket River empties to the sea. I put in at the state boat ramp at Marina Park. Around the docks to the right is Silver Spring Cove where the Saugatucket River flows into the Upper Point Judith Pond.

Colorful boats in the Upper Pond

I paddled south through the marina and mooring fields before breaking out into more open water. After about a mile I paddled through the Narrows – a narrow channel that connects the Upper Pond to Point Judith Pond. The Narrows curve to the right and everyone has to squeeze through this narrow channel, so you need to careful for motorboat traffic.

Once through the Narrows I paddled across the top of Point Judith Pond to Billington Cove to check out the osprey nest. Then I paddled into Congdon Cove before heading back to the put-in.

Osprey nest at Billington Cove Marina

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North Kingstown Town Beach - July 20, 2021

Launching at the town beach

It was forecast to be the first day of sunny weather, so I took a ride over to Wickford to check out the site of this year's RICKA Picnic - the Cold Spring Community Center at the North Kingstown Town Beach.

Once a year, the entire club gets together for the RICKA Family Picnic. It’s a great time for everyone to get together for some fun. It’s also an important opportunity to recognize the dedicated volunteers that make our club possible.

Poplar Point 

An important consideration in planning the picnic has always been to find a fun location where everyone can participate in a paddle. This year flatwater paddlers will launch at Wilson Park and paddle the protected waters of Wickford Harbor. Sea kayakers will launch at the beach and paddle in Narragansett Bay.

The water was dead flat so I launched at the beach and padded around Poplar Point into Wickford Harbor. A layer of “smokey fog” from massive forest fires in the west gave the sky a gray-brown tinge that resulting in some interesting pictures.

Smoky Fog on Narragansett Bay

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The Islands in Point Judith Pond - July 19, 2021

Jonathan Island

It was another cloudy day, so I decided to paddle around the islands at the upper end of Point Judith Pond.

Point Judith Pond has three large islands – Great Island, Harbor Island and Ram Island. According to the Rhode Island Historical Society, the Hazard family of Peace Dale once owned Harbor Island and Ram Island. Great Island and Harbor Island (Foddering Place) have now been developed and are full of summer cottages. No one seems to know why Ram Island remains undeveloped, but I am glad that it is.

Egret at Buttonwood Point

Ram Island is the largest of a series of islands across the middle of Point Judith Pond including Jonathan Island, Beach Island, Gardner Island and Plato Island. Ram Island is posted no trespassing. Jonathan Island and Plato Island have houses on them. Beach Island is the best place to stop for lunch.

There was a slight breeze from the south as I headed over to Jonathan Island. The wind was blowing small rollers as I paddled past Beach Island and Gardener Island. I paddled up the west side of the Point Judith Pond past Crown Point and Buttonwood Point before stopping for a break at Cummuck Island. From there, I crossed the Narrows over to Pine Tree Point and headed back to the cottage.

Cummuck Island looking down Point Judith Pond

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Around Great Island - July 18, 2021

Horseshoe Point Cottage

For the past ten-years we have been spending our two-week summer vacation at a cottage at the tip of Great Island on Horseshoe Point in Point Judith Pond. I always start off my vacation with a trip around Great Island.

Point Judith Pond, or the Great Salt Pond, is the second largest of Rhode Island’s South County salt ponds. Separated in the south behind sand dunes and barrier beaches, Point Judith Pond is connected to the ocean through the Breachway at Galilee.

View down to the Breachway

Great Island is one of three large islands on the pond - the other two are Harbor Island and Ram Island. Great Island is about 2 miles long and 1/2 mile wide, and full of summer cottages. The day was cloudy and breezy as I headed out. I paddled down around Frank’s Neck and Ram Head before heading into Bluff Hill Cove and paddling under the bridge into Galilee.

The fishing village of Galilee was developed in 1935 when the State of Rhode Island dredged out a harbor suitable for commercial fishing vessels. It was low tide so I was able to take a break on the sand bars that get reveled in the middle if the pond between Galilee and Snug Harbor. After snapping a few pictures I headed back up the east side of the inland to the cottage.

Taking a break on one of the sand bars

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