DeCoppet Property
Posted By auntie on March 5, 2017
6.14 miles; Richmond, RI
So I happened to notice that the Rhode Island DEM quiety opened this newly-acquired (2014) 1800-acre property to hiking, and after I spent probably 2 days researching it and looking for maps or tracks, I finally got some tracks from a friend and set off. It’s quite nice, and really very big. I feel as if today’s 6+ miles barely scratched the surface. I will be back.
Village of Hillsdale
This surprisingly large property incorporates the old village of Hillsdale, and is in fact bisected by the paved and very busy Hillsdale Road. There are a lot of old stone foundations and cellar holes throughout.
Sleep Sofa
Of course, there are always folks who think “empty” property is a dandy place to dump their old furniture. Thanks so much, Sloppy McSlopperson. You really know how to enhance a gal’s hiking experience.
Newly Posted Signage
These shiny new State Management Area signs are just everywhere. And there are quite a few gates with trail maps posted, as well. And although most of the trails through here are old woods roads, they seem to have mercifully escaped the notice of dirt bikers and ATV enthusiasts, so the walking surface is very pleasant.
Beaver River Crossing #1
The track I chose to follow included a river crossing. Um… it wasn’t actually particularly stable looking, and I spent probably 5 minutes just bucking myself to make the attempt. But I did finally “ovary-up” and do it, and it wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be. Naturally, it wasn’t until I was across that I realized I’d have to cross again at some point to get back to my car… D’OH!
Beaver River Crossing #2
You can imagine my relief when I realized that the 2nd river crossing was along the paved roadway. Whew!
As I stated at the start of this post, there isn’t much out there for this property in terms of on-line resources. This Westerly Sun article from 2014 details the history of the land, and talks about the behest to the state, but no maps. You can click on the image above to download my gps track, or you can just take your chances. Since it’s bisected by Hillsdale Road, it’s pretty hard to get lost.
That foot bridge that you crossed, is no longer there. It got wiped out by one of the 4 Nor’Easters we just had this winter. And it’s not where you have marked on your GPS track map. There’s a more stable crossing of the Beaver River, about 1/2 a mile to the south of where you crossed. You need to look for Punchbowl Trail, and head west across the river. It then connects back and crosses Hillsdale road. If you look at your GPS track, where you turned West into the western side of Hillsdale road, there’s a pathway heading east on the opposite side of the road. That’s Punchbowl Trail.
Thank you!
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[…] the boundary of another very lovely wildlife management area: the DeCoppet Property. I’ve hiked here before. There aren’t any published trail maps that I could find, but most of the walking I did was […]