Rhode Island Town 25: Coventry - 7/31/2020

Hi everyone, this is Tarynn!  Welcome to our 25th TOWN! Let’s see where we have been. We have been to East Providence,  Bristol, Burrillville, Newport, Foster, Glocester, Jamestown, Lincoln,  Narragansett, North Kingstown, North Providence,  Central Falls, Pawtucket, East Greenwich, Richmond, Scituate, South Kingstown, Warren, Warwick, West Warwick, Charlestown, Cranston, Cumberland, and last but not least Wooooooonsocket!!

Today we are going to explore Coventry!

First, we went to Maxwell Mays Wildlife Refuge. This is a great place to hike and look for animals, and it is owned by the Audubon Society of RI. When we got there we saw many grasshoppers flying and landing around the parking lot. We then got out of the car and started our hike. There were many blackberries and blueberries along the trail. We picked the ones that were ripe and they were sweet. We walked all the way to the pond and back. The pond view was gorgeous. On the way back there were even more blueberries and we saw a young male deer with little stubs for antlers, but it wasn't so young that it still had spots. It did not have any spots. We watched it for a little while and then it turned and galloped into the trees.

At Maxwell Mays in Coventry

Blueberries were plentiful along the trails

Along the trails

Old fireplace near the pond

Pond view

Young deer

Next we went to Read School House. It was a one room school house built in 1871.  It was used as a school until the 1950’s.  We took some pictures and then headed on our way. ​

Read School House, Coventry

After that we went to Spell Hall, the Major General Nathanael Greene Homestead. It was built in 1770. The house was really big and it had a lot of land around it. We walked around the outside of the house and there was a well. People had boarded it up though so no one could fall in. ​

Spell Hall

Nathanael Greene Homestead

The well was boarded up to keep people safe

After looking around, we got back in the car, drove to part of the bike path and saw the Anthony Mills, which is now apartments but was originally a textile mill.  This mill is built along Flat River, and there is a waterfall near it. ​

Anthony Mill - view from the bike path

History of Anthony Village

We were getting hot, so we found a swimming area at a pond and went in the water.  There were some fish and ducks there, and on the other side of the pond, there were even turtles!!!  We stayed there for awhile and talked to the other people who were swimming there as well. ​

Swimming area in Coventry

Handstands!

Freshwater clams

The last thing we did in Coventry was get ice cream.  We went to a great place called Udder Delights.  I got a sundae with hot fudge and mint chocolate chip ice cream.  It also had whipped cream, walnuts, and a cherry on top. It was sooooooo good!!!!!  We left a painted rock at Udder Delights. I had fun in Coventry, especially swimming and eating ice cream. ​

My sundae was soooo gooood!!!!

We left this painted rock because we love ice cream!

Udder Delights

Other places we've enjoyed in Coventry: 

• Coventry Greenway/Washington Secondary Bike Path - This 19 mile paved bike path goes from Providence to Coventry.  It is great for walking as well as bike riding.  The Coventry portion is mostly shaded and goes by some scenic ponds. 
• Trestle Trail - The Trestle Trail is the unpaved rail trail continuation of the Coventry Greenway.  It continues through Western Coventry into Connecticut.  It is wide and flat and is great for hiking.  There are plans to pave this trail to extend the bike path.
• Nicholas Farm Management Area - This hiking area was clearcut and is still in the process of regrowing.  There are some nice trails here, and the North South Trail passes through Nicholas Farm.  Lots of geocaches are hidden here as well.  
• Kelly School of Irish Dance - Our girls took Irish step dance lessons here for several years and enjoyed their time as KSID dancers.  If you can see a KSID performance, do it!​