places where you won't be able to wipe the wag off your dog's tail - Jamestown RI
The Park
For most of its time in American history these high granite bluffs looking down on the East Passage of Narraganett Bay has led a military life, albeit deactivated for the most part. Colonists built an earthen battery here and when it was known as Dumpling Rock the United States built Fort Dumpling in the early 1800s. As coastal defenses ratcheted up around 1900 the fortifications were beefed up and the fort was renamed in honor of Captain Alexander Wetherill, a local infantryman killed in the Battle of San Juan during the Spanish American War. During World War II the old fort saw its last active duty - as a training center. It closed in 1946; it’s guns hidden in the cliffs never used. In 1972 the State of Rhode Island acquired the property for a park.
The Walks
The canine hiking at Fort Wetherill is mostly on narrow dirt trails out to rocky promontories overlooking the sea. What they lack in distance they more than make up for in aesthetic appeal. At land’s end the short hike is to the remains of the old battery. The only marked trail is a Nature Trail but don’t get excited - it only goes up and down a small hill between parking lots. Don’t neglect it, however, for its views are riveting.
Where The Paw Meets The Earth: Nothing is available to lead you around the 60-acre park. Park at the first of the three parking lots and make your way to land’s end.
Workout For Your Dog - Less than one hour.
Swimming - Some of the best canine swimming in Rhode Island is available in the cove below the middle parking lot.
Restrictions On Dogs - Dogs are free to use the Fort Wetherill trails.
Something Extra
A spur up the hill from the Nature Trail leads to a concealed battery built in the hillside. The guns at Batteries Wheaton and Varnum in Fort Wetherill could launch 1,000-pound shells at a target for over six miles.
Phone - (401) 423-1771
Admission Fee - None
Directions - Jamestown; The park is on the east side of Conanicut Island. From Route 138 travel to and through Jamestown to Canonicus Avenue. Take Walcott Avenue to Fort Wetherill Road and the park.
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