der_kluge said:
My family is going to be in Rhode Island Memorial Day weekend. My wife's great aunt lives in Westerly.
For those from the area, is there anything to do there? Is the beach any good? My wife's thinking she can hang out on the beach the whole weekend. I'm thinking it's likely to be cold, and devoid of sand. But neither of us have ever been.
Can someone give me a rundown of what to expect there?
Well, it's definitely NOT devoid of sand. There are actually some very nice beaches around there:
www.misquamicut.org
However, it could still be a little chilly for hanging out at the beach. Memorial Day weather can be hit-or-miss around here. The air temps may be in the low to mid-70s, but the water temperatures at the beach are still hovering around 60. If the wind is calm or off the shore, it can be nice. But if it's blowing off the water, it can get down right cold at the beach. Cold fronts still come through this time of year, dropping the temps well below average. High today , for example, was 63.
As for other stuff to do, it depends on your interests. It's a pretty area for just walking around, doing the tourist shopping thing, etc.
-- Westerly is right near the Connecticut border, and there is a huge casino about 20 minutes away (
www.foxwoods.com).
--Mystic, Conn. is home to the nation's largest maritime museum (
www.mysticseaport.org), amazing collection of historic ships, boats and a waterfront village with living history type stuff circa mid-1800s.
-- You can catch a ferry to Block Island, which is very pretty, though its main attraction is also the beaches.
-- There are extensive wildlife management areas in that area of Rhode Island with great hiking and hunting, though I couldn't tell you what's in season.
-- Amtrak has a station in Westerly and you can always catch the train to Boston for the day -- about an hour and a half ride.
Carl
