F A Q |
Hours: Sunrise to Sunset 365 Days a Year Entrance Fee: Free Return Trip: RIPTA Trolley or walk north Bellevue Ave. (4.5 miles to 1st beach) Dogs: Leash only, watch for poison ivy Facilities: None Map to Start: Map to End: NOT at Ledge Rd. Parking: First Beach Memorial Blvd . Entrance: GPS: -71.297055 41.475944 or Narragansett Ave. Forty Steps: GPS: -71.297055 41.475944 Best place to view with limited time: Narragansett to Ruggles Ave. Handicap Access: North end only Time to Finish: 2.5 hours if you are in good shape and in hurry Bike: No Baby Carriage: North end only Picnic Area: None Emergency: Cell 911, note numbers stencilled on walk Refreshments: No Information: Newport Parks (401) 845-5802 Liability: Limited -- Public Right of Way over private property Newport's Cliff Walk Commission (401) 845-5300 |
NEWPORT's
South Map and 360 Panoramas Cliff Walk History North Map and 360 PanoramasApril 5, 2013 -- Note from Cliff Walk Commission: Until further notice, the section of the walk from Ruggles Ave. to Ledge Rd. is closed due to damage from Hurricane Sandy. The walk is open from Memorial Ave. past The Breakers to Ruggles Ave., [see North Map] And from Ledge Rd. up to Bailey's Beach. [see South Map] |
| The Cliff Walk along the eastern shore
of Newport, RI is world famous as a public access walk that combines the
natural beauty of the Newport shoreline with the architectural history of
Newport's gilded age. Wildflowers, birds, geology ... all add to this
delightful walk. What makes Cliff Walk unique is that it is a National Recreation Trail in a National Historic District. |
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 In 1975 the walk was designated as a National Recreation Trail ... the 65th in the nation and first in New England. The walk runs 3.5 miles and about two-thirds of the walk is in easy walking condition. |
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| Parts of the southern half of the walk are a rough trail over the natural and rugged New England rocky shoreline. Walkers need to be especially careful and alert in these challenging areas. RI State Law seems to apply to Limit Liability of property owners. [see State Law, Section 32-6] |
| You pass at your own risk on the walk,
which is a public right-of-way over private property. In spots just a couple of
feet from the path are abrupt drops of over 70 feet. Wild bushes and weeds
often hide this danger. As you walk further south you have to scramble from rock to rock and proper shoes are a must. Even with good shoes, fine sand on some of the rock surfaces can be very slippery. One of the main things to watch for is Poison Ivy which grows well in rainy summer weather along some areas of the path. Nevertheless, the walk remains one of the top attractions in Newport and is taken by people of all ages. Current estimates have a quarter million trips made each year. The walk starts at the western end of Easton's or First Beach at Memorial Blvd. and runs south with major exits at Narragansett Ave., Webster St., Sheppard Ave., Ruggles Ave., Marine Ave., Ledge Rd., and ends at Bellevue Ave. at the east end of Bailey's Beach locally referred to as Reject's Beach. |
This aerial overview covers the northern end of Cliff Walk with the forty steps in the middle and the Breakers in the upper left corner. [This is the easy walking part of the Walk.]  |
 At Marine Ave. there is a small natural beach [Belmont] that is often used by surfers to launch their boards when surfing off the "Breakers" on those rare occasions when hurricanes are passing offshore. |
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 Five State of RI designated rights-of-way to Cliff Walk are marked with brass plaques at Webster St., Narragansett Ave., Ledge Rd., Ruggles Ave., and Seaview Ave. |
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| It's not just
rocks! "From Memorial Blvd. to Ochre Point, south of the Breakers, the rocks are Coal Age black shale, sandstone, and conglomerate that has metamorphosed to slate, metasandstone, and metaconglomerate. "The Coal Age (300 million-year-old) sedimentary rock is important scientifically because it alone of the major rock masses in the state contains enough fossilized plant remains to allow geologists to date geologic activity in this region. "Ochre Point got its name from the yellowish (ochre) oxide of iron in the rock, although much of this has since been removed, covered, or eroded. Continuing south, toward Rough Point, one can see Precambrian metasedimentary rocks, which mainly consist of light-colored slate and metavolcanic rock. "Past Rough Point occurs the Newport granite. The granite consists of several types: coarse-grained granite with large pink feldspar crystals; finer-grained, more evenly textured granite that cuts through the first type; and numerous quartz veins that can be seen in almost every rock type in the area." See http://seagrant.gso.uri.edu for more coastal information. |
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A Guide
to Newport’s Cliff
Walk: Tales of Seaside Mansions & the Gilded Age Elite By Ed Morris ISBN: 978-1-59629-438-7 $17.99, 160 pp, 5x7 in., 47 color images + 5 Maps To Order Contact: William Asche, Sales Support The History Press, 635 Rutledge Ave., Suite 107 Charleston, SC 29403 843.577.5971 ext. 112 |
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Friends of the Waterfront, PO Box 932, Newport, RI 02840
v4.2013