How To Spend a Day Around Jamestown, RI

Spending a day in Rhode Island is one of my favorite things to do as a Connecticut resident, especially in summer. The tiny state has a host of fun activities! I lived in RI for a couple of years as a kid and it has a special place in my heart. I was mad at my parents for making us leave (I was in 2nd grade, lol). My sister spent her college years there and lived in the state for several years after college, long story short, she is an excellent guide. We grabbed my three kids and hit the road.

Our first stop was at Fort Wetherhill State Park. There are multiple parking lots and we begin by parking at the very first one once you enter the park. There are lots of picnic tables and restrooms. We had a picnic lunch, that we packed with us, and got refreshed and ready to explore. I knew ahead of time that the fort is covered in graffiti and it has become quite the artists place. I imagine someone who did not know that ahead of time would shun at it and not explore. You should definitely explore.

From there we hoped back in the car and drove to the very last parking area, where the “beach” is. Not really one of the nice sandy beaches that Rhode Island has a plethora of, but one that has many cool places to get in the water. The day had a haze over it so the water wasn’t as clear blue as it normally is. We went about two hours before low tide, an ideal time so you can see all the large rocks and not jump in somewhere dangerous.

The water was a great temp, lots of seaweed

Overall we spent two hours at Fort Wetherhill and then drove for about 12 minutes to Beavertail State Park. On the drive there is a gorgeous beach but it’s for residents only. Would have stopped if I could! Once at Beavertail we parked in one of the parking lots close to the lighthouse. Lots of people were sitting on the lawns in chairs or laying on the rocks on a blanket. It’s a great place to sit and be. My kids love exploring tide pools and being that it was low tide there were lots of cool ones.

The lighthouse is a museum but we didn’t go in. There are remnants of older buildings around the site, artillery storage, where cannons use to be, those kinds of things. And FYI, there are bunch of single building outhouses to use and they were very clean.

We spent a few hours at Beavertail, walking along the rocks around the peninsula of the island. Bringing your own dinner and staying there until sunset is the ending to a perfect day but we had to head back to Connecticut. Another suggestion I would make would be to have dinner along the water in Newport. We left Jamestown and grabbed some Dell’s frozen lemonade (my absolute favorite!) and headed back into Connecticut. We stopped for dinner in Mystic, CT. At this amazing seafood joint.