• Ryan Park
• Oak Hill Road, North Kingstown, RI
• Trailhead: 41°33’37.42″N, 71°28’33.61″W
• Last Time Hiked: December 29, 2015
• Approximate distance hiked: 3.3 miles
• Easy.

Ryan Park in North Kingstown offers a little bit of everything for everyone and it is easily accessible just off of Route 4 along Oak Hill Road. There are two entrances along Oak Hill Road. For this hike I used the entrance by the cluster of ball fields and then followed the roadway to the boat ramp. (Follow the signs for additional parking until you reach the first dirt parking area on the left. There is a sign by the boat ramp calling it off as a waterfowl hunting area.) Near the boat ramp there is a boulder with a pink blaze on it. This is where I started this hike. I followed the narrow root bound, pink blazed path as it winded through an area with ponds on each side. After crossing a short boardwalk I came to the bridge the crosses a narrow of Belleville Pond. Both the boardwalk and bridge can be slippery when wet. Continuing, I then came to the first of the a couple trail blaze changes. I continued straight now following the green blazed trail. Soon this trail led me to the yellow blazed trail. The yellow blazed trail to the right I would take later on this hike, but for now I continued straight/slightly left now following the yellow blazes. As the trail approached a line of houses the trail started bending to the left. Here the yellow blazes ended and the trail was now blazed orange. After a few hundred feet I was soon upon an old railroad bed. The trail would eventually lead out to the LaFayette Road park entrance. Along the way there is an old cemetery on the left. Most of the headstones are tumbled and destroyed. The two that remain have dates of 1827 and 1865 on them. There are also a couple small stream crossings. From the northern park entrance I then retraced my steps back along the orange trail, onto the yellow trail, to the intersection of the green trail. Instead of following the green trail, I continued straight following the yellow blazes. I passed a couple small ponds along the way. Soon I was at another intersection. To the right were double yellow blazes. I continued straight following the single blazed yellow, stopping occasionally at the small spur trails that led to a duck filled cove. The trail soon comes to a dam and waterfall and two bridges. Along this stretch are sweeping views of the pond. The trail then ends at a gate. I turned right making my way along a dirt road. To the right is the pond and to the left is the men’s softball field. Keeping right at the end of the parking lot led me back to where I had parked. The map provided does not show the trail blazes that are actually along the trails.

Trail map can be found at: Ryan Park.

A snowy morning along the yellow trail.