SHORE OF DREAMS: A Rhode Island scenic drive
June 23, 2017
Posted by Barrett-Jackson
(Photo courtesy of Visit Rhode Island)
If you’re looking for a scenic and interesting drive in the general area of Mohegan Sun, leave the resort and follow Route 2A to 12 South to I-95 North. Take Exit 3A/138 toward Kingston, home of the University of Rhode Island. In Kingston, take 108 South to Narragansett Pier. This 43-mile drive should take you less than an hour. Narragansett boasts the four best beaches in Rhode Island, plus the landmark Narragansett Towers ‒ all that’s left of the 1883 Pier Casino designed by famous Victorian architectural firm McKim, Mead and White.
The landmark Narragansett Towers is all that remains of the 1883 Pier Casino.
Follow Ocean Road South from Narragansett. You’ll pass dozens of vast Victorian “cottages” ‒ not as opulent as those in Newport, but still solid evidence of Old Money. When Ocean Road makes a big right turn, follow 108 North to Galilee Escape Road to go left on Great Island Road toward the Point Judith/Block Island Ferry Terminal. Near the Ferry Terminal you’ll find Georges of Galilee, a classic Rhode Island oceanfront seafood restaurant that dates back to 1948. Perfect for lunch.
After lunch, follow Galilee Escape Road to 108 North to Route 1 South to 1A South. You can stop at Matunuck State Beach, visit Trustum Pond National Wildlife Refuge and the charming beach town of Charleston. Follow 1A to Weekapaug Road to Atlantic Avenue and famous Misquamicut Beach. From the beach, take Winnapaug Road to 1A to Watch Hill Road to Westerly Road to Ocean House. You’ll now be 38 miles from Narrangansett Towers. Ocean House is the perfect place for dinner or just a relaxing end of day cocktail, sitting on the veranda, overlooking Block Island Sound. An alternate spot is a local hangout, the 1916 Olympia Tea Room on nearby Bay Street.
Like Narragansett, Watch Hill was an upscale Victorian summer resort for discreet wealthy families, as opposed to what was considered at the time the flamboyant nouveau riche of Newport. The New York Times once wrote that life in Watch Hill “revolved around golf and tennis at the Misquamicut Club, bathing and yachting at the Watch Hill Yacht Club and tea or cocktails at Ocean House.” Indeed.