Charlestown, Rhode Island
Leaving Blackstone Valley Outfitters, our trip south is obscured by fog and light rain. Starting from the picnic area at Watchaug Pond the trail follows a woods road with a series of houses lining one side of the road. Entering Audubon’s Kimball Wildlife Refuge, the yellow blazed trail leaves the road and penetrates the woods with the pond on your right. Hiking through a pine forest, the scent of pine fills the damp air and fluff on the ground is broken by deer tracks. A short uphill climb brings us out of the trees and in to Burlingame’s campground, now closed for the season. Hiking passed a playground we follow the trail markers to a kiosk and the official starting point for this trail. Returning to the woods the yellow blazes of the Gormley Trail are joined by the blue markings of the North South Trail, Rhode Island’s only long trail. Starting at Charlestown Beach, the North South Trail traverses north for 78 miles joining the Mid-State Trail at the Massachusetts/Rhode Island State Line. Now in a wooded wetland, the trail crosses through it on a series of raised wooden boardwalks and small bridges. The brown of the fallen oak leaves is broken up by the green leafs of mountain laurel and the yellow of the beech tree leafs. At Perry Healy Brook the humans take a break on the seats of a small covered bridge, while Grady my chocolate lab takes a swim in the brook with his pack on. Continuing on, the trail makes a sharp right hand turn just before entering Klondike Road. Hiking through a mixture of pine, hardwoods, boulders, and brooks our footpath widens to an old cart path bounded by stonewalls. For the next mile or so the trail winds it’s way through long forgotten farmland. The stonewalls that once boarded open fields, are now mostly obscured by a mixed forest. When the trail emerges from the woods onto Buckeye Brook Road we turn right and hike about a quarter-mile passed wetlands and a brook before returning to the woods. Passing a large rock out crop area with boulder caves and overhangs we descend into another wetland area only to climb back out along a small brook cascading of a smooth granite ledge. Here we take lunch with the misty fog rolling in and the sound of falling water rushing by our feet. Having our fill, we continue and in short the North South Trail veers off. We are once again following only the yellow blazes of the Vin Gormley Trail. Passing a large table rock the trail crosses a dirt road to a hemlock forest. Shortly we leave the hemlocks behind and hike in the rain along Kings Factory Road. Taking our next right onto Prosser Trail we arrive back at our vehicle. Live the Experience!
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Once known simple as the Yellow Trail, this
8.25-mile trek was renamed in the 1990’s to honor
John Vincent Gormley who maintained the trail well into
his eighties. Located in Charlestown, Rhode Island the
trail loops around Watchaug Pond passing through
Burlingame State Park and the Kimball Wildlife Refuge.