After a long hiatus, the blog is finally back! As my (limited) readership already knows, I attended Brown University for my undergraduate degrees and recently returned for my 10th reunion (!). Don’t worry – this blog isn’t about reunion or Brown (just a few Providence memories at the end!).
For those who don’t know, Brown is located atop College Hill in Providence, Rhode Island (notably the US’ smallest state). It still feels like a fever dream that I lived in Rhode Island for four years – and, in classic college student style, vastly underexplored the state when I lived there despite the free RIPTA bus pass. As a result, many items on my RI bucket list remain incomplete – for example, going quahog-ing (clam digging), which requires a permit if you live out of state. However, I have an extremely indulgent husband and adventurous best friends who don’t mind accompanying me on a variety of ridiculous excursions, especially since we all attended Brown, live in the Bay and generally didn’t have much “catching up” to do at reunion proper. Instead, we found ourselves bundled against the misty Rhode Island chill in June, on a choppy ferry to an island ~13 miles offshore.
As a quick orientation, Block Island is Rhode Island’s answer to Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket to the north and the Hamptons to the south (Montauk is ~14 miles southwest). I also fully admit that I love a good beachy novel (Elin Hilderbrand’s Nantucket-inspired fiction universe comes to mind) and slightly romanticized the idea of an offshore New England adventure.
For those who have never heard of Block Island, here’s a quick overview:
- Named for the Dutch explorer who formally charted the island in 1614 (A. Block) and home to one town (New Shoreham), named after an English town (Shoreham)
- Before European arrival, the island was home to the Niantic people, who are thought to have arrived sometime around 500BC and warred against the neighboring Mohegan and Narragansett tribes over the long course of their occupation
- Mostly reserved for conservation after the Block Island Conservancy was founded in 1972, with the western side of the island protected for birds on the “Atlantic Flyway” (aka the annual migration from Greenland down to South America and the Caribbean)
- Today, it’s largely a place for folks to relax and unwind without modern conveniences (think beachside clam bakes, biking, old fashioned outdoor fun) – as we’d discover, cars aren’t very prevalent on the island (and you have to book a specific, expensive, and inconvenient car ferry if you want to bring one to/from the mainland) so biking and walking force you to enjoy island time
From Providence, it’s roughly a 40-minute drive due south to Point Judith, where the ferry departs. Of course, despite it being June, weather was in the ‘50s and misty rain, so we set off after a quick stop at TJ Maxx to buy jackets. Fortunately, the ferry terminal had a lovely local seafood restaurant with chowder to keep us warm while we waited to depart.
The ferry ride itself is pretty short, roughly ~35 minutes in choppy water with pretty limited views other than the wide open Atlantic. Upon arrival, we walked into the main town (conveniently located adjacent to the ferry terminal) to grab lunch.
We ended up at the National Hotel, a landmark on the island (and a registered US National Landmark). It’s got classic Victorian seaside charm and makes a fantastic fish and chips.
After lunch, we opted to venture to the Southeast Lighthouse, another historic landmark dating back to 1873. After flagging down a weatherbeaten taxi (rusted from all the salt water and wind!), we made our way to the far end of the island. The lighthouse does have a small museum dedicated to coastal navigation and you can pay a fee to walk to the top lookout on days with good weather, but sadly the wind prevented us from venturing up. Since we were on a bit of a timeline to get back to the ferry, we opted just to admire the exterior and the dramatic views over the Atlantic.
As we walked back to the area where we arranged for our return taxi pickup, we also visited the nearby Mohegan Bluffs. The steep cliffside gets its name from a sixteenth century battle between the Niantic and Mohegan indigenous tribes (the Mohegan party lost and were forced over the cliffs to their deaths).
Today, it has a lookout and a walkway down to a secluded beach (which we decided not to visit after the first several flights of extremely steep stairs).
Despite the weather, we still stopped for cold treats as we waited for the ferry on the way back to mainland RI.
Since I try to avoid blogging about places that I live (or have lived, in the case of Providence, New York, and Chicago), I’ll just provide a quick summary of some highlights from our time in PVD this time around:
- Lotus Pepper – formerly a food truck we loved during college, it now has a (well deserved!) brick and mortar restaurant! We legitimately used to eat at the food truck daily – to the point where “Mama Pepper” (as we called her) knew us, had our orders hot and ready as we arrived, and even recognized my voice when I went back two years after graduation while on a recruiting trip for my consulting firm
- Hemingway’s – a Providence fine dining staple and still well worth the fight to get a reservation
- Fox Point / Wickenden Street – our home neighborhood while living off campus senior year. Sadly, most of our favorite restaurants have since changed, but we did enjoy some nice new additions, including Aguardente where we got delicious Portuguese-style sausage and some wonderful locally inspired cocktails
- Federal Hill – great Italian food, bakeries, and shops; again, most of our mainstays have since shuttered, but the neighborhood is still worth a visit if you’re in town
- Providence Place Mall – Bed, Bath & Beyond has sadly closed, but the vibe otherwise is a trip back to 2012
I can’t say I’d prioritize visiting Block Island again (and especially not if it were my first time in Rhode Island), but it was a fun day trip and would make for a nice weekend getaway.