Calf Pasture Point

Today I decided to run the road, beach, and trails of Calf Pasture Point. Currently managed by the Town of North Kingstown, this area was once part of the Quonset air base. Access is at a new parking lot off of Davisville Road. The "trail" starts as an old paved road. I like to follow it all the way out to the beach (approx 1.25 miles). Then I like to run the length of the beach and turn around at the point of Allen's Harbor and retrace my steps. This totals about 2.5 miles. The beach varies quite a bit with the tide. There are a few streams that drain the wetlands just behind the beach. Most are easy to jump over or not running at all at low tides. High tide is another story. The first, and widest stream, can be too wide to jump, which I found out the hard way one chilly, snowy afternoon in December. I thought I could make it, but I sank in too far when I went to jump and landed right in the water up to my knees. I was soaked, but kept on running anyway. I found an easier crossing point that I could jump on my return. At the tide's highest point, the stream is simply too wide. If I do run here, I make a note to check the tides beforehand. On my return to the road I veer left into the woods down an old dirt road and make a 3/4 mile loop. Finally, I hit the road again and return to the parking lot for a total of 5.75 miles. This can easily be extended by utilizing the Quonset Bike Path which begins (or ends) at the same parking lot.

The weather today was fantastic - sunny and 36 degrees with some wind. I felt really strong and my first mile was fast (for me!) 6:40. I felt a little slow on the beach as I had a hard time finding firm sand to run on. As usual there was a skittish flock of 25 Brant in the bay. Loads of shells on the beach - clam, lady slippers, and razor. No humans. Pretty tough wind heading back. I decided to explore a side trail I noticed two runners coming in on earlier, but it dead-ended into a neighborhood of new gigantic homes. Overall, a nice easy run at a good pace - 43:11 for 6 miles.

Post run, I cooled off to a little Reverend Horton Heat and stopped for a coffee before I headed back to work.