9/9/2023 0 Comments Tide little compton riIt was as scenic returning as it was coming. Since I was hiking alone, once I reached Taylor’s Lane I had to turn around and retrace my way back to Town Way. As I headed south and got closer to the Atlantic Ocean, which was visible in the distance between Little Compton and Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge in Middletown, the influence of the sea increased, as did the height of the waves. But the visual rewards along with the interesting geology and opportunity to walk along miles of rural coastline more than made up for the grueling nature of the route. In fact, it was one of the more difficult hikes I’ve taken in Rhode Island. The countless number and variety of rocks littering the shore helped to make this a hard, strenuous walk. Here, they fused together into solid rock under the pressure of the Earth, only to be exposed by erosion all these hundreds of millions of years later. They built up in layers until the accumulations were thousands of feet thick. The sand and pebbles flowed out of the mountains and settle in lowlands during the coal age over 300 million years ago. According to geologists, the sand and pebbles originated in nearby, long disappeared mountains that once existed close by, if you can imagine that. The conglomerates found here are composed of rounded pebbles of various sizes, densely packed and cemented together with sand. Sandstone is just that, stone made up of particles of sand. Just lots of stones here, predominantly Narragansett Basin sedimentary rock, including sandstone and conglomerate. If there were, they would naturally attract your typical beach loving Rhode Islander. There are few houses here, all are set back from the bluff and mostly hidden from view. This is a remote, isolated part of the coast, mostly due to the ruggedness of the shore and because there’s no public coastal access between Town Way and Taylor’s Lane. I saw fewer than 10 people on my trek, some fisherman and a few beach combers out enjoying a sultry, overcast summer day. There’s a coastal access point and legal place to park here too. I then walked south along the rough, rocky shore for a little more than 3.5 miles (5.6 kilometers) to Taylor’s Lane, a town road, also off West Main Road. There’s coastal access here and a legal place to park. I parked at the end of Town Way, a town road off West Main Road, Route 77, in the north end of Little Compton. While the weather wasn’t perfect, it was good enough. One day last week the tides were low at the right time and I went. In subsequent days, the notion of going there became irresistible, so I made plans. As we walked that day, I kept looking towards the other side and thinking how much I would enjoy walking on what appeared, from where I stood, to be a beautiful shore. And more coastline, lots of it, actually, miles of it. Always in view on the other side of the Sakonnet were the towns of Tiverton and Little Compton. For those who don’t know, this is not a river but a substantial inlet of the sea. The views along the Sakonnet River were stunning and spectacular. What a beautiful, rugged coast we encountered. Earlier in the season a friend and I walked the east shore of Portsmouth, going south from Teddy’s Beach in Island Park to Sandy Point. And that’s what I’ve been doing, focusing my attention this summer on the coast of Aquidneck Island, walking its beaches as well as hiking along the rocky coastline, which there’s plenty of on the island. While I enjoy going to the beach as much as anyone, I’m not satisfied to just sit on the sand and splash around in the surf. What better way to escape the heat than to be down by the shore? After all, this is the Ocean State and going to the beach is a time honored Rhode Island tradition, practiced by thousands on hot summer days, who flock to the coast to enjoy the scenery, cool breezes, refreshing salt water and the waves. Considering how hot and humid it’s been this summer, it made perfect sense to do so. I’ve been exploring Rhode Island’s gorgeous coastline recently.
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