Upon entering Charlestown, after traveling some ways north on rt. 1, Kettle Pond Vistor Center is headquarters to one of several National Wildlife Refuge Complexes. This means it belongs to many collections of land and water bodies managed in this state, preserving wildlife through the efforts of staff and volunteer management.
Monday through Sunday, this location is open 10am to 4pm, with indoor exploration as well as outdoor.
According to a few public displays and information handbooks, (and the word of some locals) RI has a handful of these complexes, and the U.S. alone presently has at least 95 million acres of land connecting people with nature in hopes of maintaining any given ecosystem and and climate responses.
While this area can be said to provide the public with useful and sound eco-friendly information, it has beautiful night atmosphere following sunset views, consisting of trails people can venture connecting to nearby parks.
The trail system (aside from the center/headquarters) is open to the general public and has a total of four frequented trails.
Watchaug Pond Trail is mostly connected with Ninigret Park, about half a mile in length and excellent for biking. Alongside, there is the Toupoyesett Pond Trail, about one-fourth a mile of discovery, lined with stone walls (it is mentioned in trail descriptions that these grounds may have once held sheep farms).
Within the campgrounds of Burlingame Park, one of the trails established right near the center is one that leads to this vast park of 3,100 acres to date.
If we turn and face rt. 1, there is one path by the name of the Ocean Trail, with stunning views. After reviewing some information about the reserve, this one particular direction is estimated to be about 15,000 years old, with ridges that very well may date back to times these shores were coated in ice. And hey! There is this really nifty telescope at the top of this gazebo establishment some ways down the trail, I’ve tried to take some pictures of the full moon a few evenings there and successfully did!.. (Sort of)
It gets windy along this way, and the winding trails themselves serve for an interesting experience, it’s certainly not a flat ground at this point. There is lots of very visible wildlife, and charming birds.
Overall, this is definitely a place to check out, whether your interests lie in hiking, bird watching, sun bathing and seeing the waves go by, and so on- you will enjoy the lush forests only minutes away from the beach.
The address is 50 bend road, Charlestown RI. For more information, click here to check out this brochure.
Below is a Piping Plover, a species preserved in this park as well as a few adjacent ones as well.
Happy Earth Day!!! Plant a tree!
