Block Island sits 12 miles off the coast of Rhode Island. Many people recommended Block Island over Nantucket because it is much less crowded. The island is small (only 7,000 acres) and much has been preserved from development. It was a nice way to relax after touring around Newport the previous day.
The best way to get to Block Island is by ferry. And that is exactly what we did from Point Judith. The trip takes a little less than an hour (on the traditional ferry) and you can buy snacks while on board. Since we weren’t taking a car with us and we were returning the same day, the round-trip tickets were less expensive. Block Island Ferry also departs from Newport and Fall River, MA.
The Town
New Shoreham is the only town on the island and was founded in 1672. Our ferry docked in the Old Harbor along the main street dotted with bicycle shops, restaurants and a few hotels.
Near the statue of Rebecca, Thing 2 and I went into a deli and ordered sack lunches for the beach. DH and Thing 1 rode bikes up to the northern end of the island. The island is only 7 miles long, so this didn’t take too long.
We walked inside the National Hotel which is the quintessential New England hotel with its white clapboard walls and shingled roof. It would be a perfect place to sit on the veranda for cocktails.
The Beach
Thing 1 and I went to the Fred Benson Town Beach since it was closest to the village and we were lugging towels and it offered changing rooms and showers. We set up on the sand and devoured our sandwiches.
Unlike southern beaches, this water was cold! We could only stay in for about two minutes and then we bathed in the sun to warm up. When it got too hot – which it did – we jumped back in.
Mohegan Bluffs & Southeast Lighthouse
Our girls wanted to do some souvenir shopping so we let them roam the town while we rode bicycles to the southern part of the island. After the town ends, several small inns line the two lane rode that climbs up in elevation. I wondered if the hills were going to be worth it. They were!
Just a few steps from the parking lot, we had our first viewpoint of the beach 150 feet below us.
Some say this is one of the prettiest beaches in the U.S. and I can see why. With the backdrop of the high bluffs, you can’t get much better than this. It is so different from the other side of the island which was relatively flat.
We then double backed to the Southeast Lighthouse that commanded more beautiful views.
As I say, “What goes up must come down” and the ride back to the town was almost all downhill and much quicker! We met up with the girls and decided to take the late afternoon ferry back to Port Judith and then on to Mystic, CT for dinner.
