As the tiniest state in the nation,
Rhode Island often gets lost in the shuffle, but we apparently made a comeback
in the headlines with our calamari! To be honest, though, I didn’t spend this past summer as usual. I doubt any of us did.
No frequent trips to the beach, followed by sampling the sea’s fried delights
at a different roadside stand every weekend (variety is important).
But while I wasn’t able to loll in the sand as much as I would like, I did
do more hiking than I have in recent memory. I drove around the state with my
family (it only takes forty-five minutes) searching for new-to-me and
long-unvisited trails. Some of my favorites:
Sachuest Point
Right next to Newport’s world-famous beaches is a
secluded wildlife refuge. There are sandy paths to roam, cliffs to admire, and
the sound of crashing waves echoes in your ears during the entire hike. If
you’re there in the morning or at dusk, you’re likely to spot deer. Turkeys are
almost a certainty, as well as a number of other local birds.
The trail network at the Cumberland
Monastery, home to Nine Men’s Misery.
Constructed in 1676, Nine Men’s Misery is believed to be the oldest veterans’
memorial in the nation, erected to commemorate colonists who were killed during
King Philip’s War. The monastery itself is no longer used by a religious order,
but instead serves as the public library. Although it suffered fire damage in
the 1960s, it’s a fantastic building.
These trails are absolutely stunning
when wildflowers are blooming, but I think I’m
even more excited about visiting them in fall. The leaves are just
weeks—perhaps even less—from their peak. Northern New England gets all the
acclaim and glory for its foliage, but Rhode Island’s is nothing to sniff at.
And the best part is you can blink without missing it. There’s time to enjoy
autumn’s robes before they get covered in snow. Though I’ll take my
cross-country skis and snow shoes back for that, happily enough, in a few
months.
I finally ventured out to eat in my
favorite seaside town in August (and yes, I partook of calamari—there’s just no way for a home cook to do it justice). Bristol
was once a center of whaling, fishing, and trade, as well as, sadly, the
trafficking of enslaved people. Many homes date to the eighteenth and
nineteenth centuries, and although its history is complicated, the town’s
architecture and setting by the ocean are stunning. St. Michael’s Church, on
the main thoroughfare, was founded in 1718 by the Society for the Propagation
of the Gospel in London. Much of the downtown area is on the National Historic
Register. It holds the country’s oldest Fourth of July parade each year, down
Hope Street.
Rhode Island is a state rich in
history, which is perhaps one of the reasons I’ve
always been in love with the subject. Writing historical romance was a natural
choice. I write in many different time periods and settings, but two things
remain constant in my stories: a deep appreciation for the past and a happily
ever after.
*Leave a comment below for a chance to
win an ARC of my November release, Protected by the Viking—I’m so
excited for this one, because it’s a Viking shield-maiden doing the
protecting!*
You had me at trails!
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