Outside Providence A bevy of culinary and cultural viastas beckons beyond the capital BY Johnette Rodriguez
	Rookies' Guide 2003 Getting out and about Small in size, Rhode Island is rich in places to play outdoors By Nicole Dionne Dig this A hipster’s guide to Providence By Jessica Grose The real deal Providence has more than its share of places for irony-free fun By Alex Provan Outside Providence A bevy of culinary and cultural viastas beckons beyond the capital BY Johnette Rodriguez

Though many newcomers to the state come to work or attend college in Providence, many others land in Newport, Bristol, or South Kingstown for the same reasons. So whether you’re based in the capital of this tiniest of states or not, don’t be fooled into thinking it’s the only place worth checking out. Providence doesn’t have a monopoly on good eateries and historical sites. And certainly no sojourn in Rhode Island would be complete without a close-up look at its western wilderness via the North-South Trail and Block Island, its mini-version of Nantucket. What follows are subjective suggestions of places — from the culinary to the cultural, from landmarks to legends — that shouldn’t be missed.

Let’s start with Block Island and work our way north. To get to the island, just 12 miles offshore, hop a ferry in the Galilee section of Narragansett. Take a bike or rent one on the island and ride north on Corn Neck Road. The rolling hills between gray stone walls and gray-shingled cottages whirl you back in time, and the surrounding water views are breathtaking. Although Block Island is just 11 miles square, you can choose between crescents of sandy beach, mysterious green hollows, and thickets or the rocky coast at the foot of Mohegan Bluffs. Don’t miss the lighthouses at either end of the island, the North Light and the Southeast Light. In 1993, the latter was moved back from the edge of the cliff about 200 feet, since erosion had brought it within 60 feet of toppling into the drink. Block Island ferries: Interstate Navigation Company, operates year-round, (401) 783-4613, or www.blockislandferry.com . Island Hi-Speed Ferry, operates through October 14, (877) 733-9425, or www.islandhighspeedferry.com

Next is Newport, with its string of mansions, left behind by the likes of Astors and Vanderbilts. These Victorian palaces were summer "cottages" for the nouveau riche of the era. The largest and most elaborate are the Breakers and Marble House (www.newportmansions.org), but smaller ones such as the Astors’ Beechwood (www.astors-beechwood.com), Belcourt Castle, (401) 846-0669, and Doris Duke’s oceanfront estate, Rough Point, (401) 849-7300, are also well worth a visit. Be advised, however, that viewing more than one (or at max, two) mansions in a day can set your brain a-spinning. The antidote to all that gilt and glamour is Newport’s Cliff Walk, a 3.5-mile paved path from Easton Beach to Bailey’s Beach. It’s a sensational seaside stroll, offering a peek of the back lawns of several of the mansions.

Across the Route 24 bridge to the east of Newport is the long, skinny piece of Rhode Island that contains Tiverton and Little Compton. Tiverton Four Corners offers one of the most significant small galleries in the country, the Virginia Lynch Gallery, which has featured many artists who have gone on to far-reaching fame, including Dale Chihuly, David Macaulay, Joseph Norman, and Howard Ben Tré. In its 20th year, the gallery, led by its vibrant octogenarian founder, Virginia Lynch, is still in the business of discovering and championing new artists. Since you’ve made the trek to Tiverton, you might as well try one of the award-winning cookies or sandwiches at Provender, right below the gallery. Some popular ones include the Mama Mia, turkey with roasted garlic mayo and roasted peppers; the Dr. Bombay, curried chicken with mango chutney; and the Silly Cheese Steak, roast beef with marinated onions and a Cotswold cheese spread. Virginia Lynch Gallery, 3883 Main Rd., Tiverton, (401) 624-3392; Provender, (401) 624-8084.

Back across the two bridges to the west of Newport is the sprawling mass of South County (technically Washington County), with its lovely beaches and back roads, as well as many a funky eating place. Beginning at its western edge, in the appropriately named Westerly, is the pizza-and-pasta restaurant of Modesto’s, owned and operated by a Mexican-American family that has a half-dozen Mexican items on the menu. These are overshadowed, however, by their superb Italian food, including 10 specialty pizzas that, judging by the alla putanesca ($8.95 small, $10.95 large), are spectacular. Trust me on this — it’s worth the drive to have whole anchovies, capers, two kinds of olives, and fresh garlic slices tucked into a homemade plum tomato sauce with browned mozzarella on top, plus a scrumptious crust. Other incarnations come with chicken chunks and prosciutto; shrimp and scallops; or, for their Mexican pizza, chicken, refried beans, onions, and jalapenos. You can also design your own, from 20 toppings. Located at 49 Beach St., Westerly, (401) 596-8686, take-out available.

Tucked away in Charlestown is a funky pub called the Rathskeller ("the Rat" to locals). Quintessentially Yankee, with a dash of German, the Rat has been run by the Lenzner family since 1933, and sometime in the ’30s an unknown artist painted scenes of cabaret singers above the wainscoting in the front dining room (the bar’s in the back room). There’s also a string of letters that provoke you to ask about them: WYOADIITY, and when you do, your waitress replies, "Would you order another drink if I tell you?" The dark drafts are yummy, the oysters (fried or in oyster stew) delectable, the portion of hand-cut fries the most generous you’ll find anywhere. The seafood is good (and reasonably priced), but there are also king- and queen-cut prime ribs that hang off their plates, providing two more meals as leftovers. Follow the signs off Route 2 to Old Coach Rd., Kenyon, (401) 783-7839.

On the western edge of South Kingstown is the Great Swamp Management Area, historically important during King Philip’s War in 1675, as the site of a battle that decimated the Narragansett Indians. Its 3000 acres now encompass several habitats, including bogs and swamps, as its name would indicate. Walking trails take you around a large pond that is home to many water birds and frogs, but the area is particularly valued as the best place in the state to see osprey — those large fishing hawks that often build their nests on top of telephone poles. In addition to more than 100 species of birds that nest in the Great Swamp, there are deer, foxes, muskrats, coyotes, rabbits, and minks. It’s a magical place, but if it’s hunting season, abide by posted restrictions and/or wear bright orange hats and vests. For more info, call (401) 789-0281. Turn onto Liberty Lane off Route 138, just west of intersection with Route 110. Follow to the end, take a left, and follow Great Neck Road into the parking lot.

Long-time residents of South Kingstown know that one of the best-kept secrets in Wakefield is the delicious fish and chips at Old Mountain Lanes, known simply as "the bowling alley" to locals. Not only does the flounder (not cod) have a very light breading (as do the clams and the scallops), but if you clean your plate, you can have free seconds on the seafood. And don’t neglect the homemade grape-nut pudding. Plus, where else can you eat supper with the clash and clatter of balls rolling down wooden lanes and pins toppling over and being re-racked? OK, OK, if the sound of bowling isn’t your thing, you can walk through the double doors to Camden’s, pay a bit more for the same food, and, if you’re lucky, be privy to Tuesday night card games in and around the bar. Located at 756 Kingstown Rd., Wakefield, (401) 783-5511.

In the village of Narragansett Pier is a mecca for vegetarians and neo-hippies called Crazy Burger. In keeping with his restaurant’s name, Mike Maxson has come up with wild and wacky variations on burgers, including some with beef, lamb, salmon, chicken or turkey. But there are also five "vertiginous vegan" burgers that combine ingredients like tempeh and tofu with terrific sauces such as roasted red pepper chutney or rosemary-pumpkin pesto. Just remember: you don’t have to show a vegan membership card to order them. Located at 144 Boon St., Narragansett, (401) 783-1810.

Just up the road from Crazy Burger is another mecca, Brickley’s Ice Cream, with 48 homemade flavors that use real fruit, candied ginger, and plenty of chocolate in their black raspberry, peach, banana, ginger, chocolate brownie, and chocolate-coconut almond ice cream. Located at 921 Boston Neck Rd., Narragansett, (401) 789-1784.

Also in Narragansett is a hot spot that dance enthusiasts from Connecticut and Massachusetts have been flocking to for the past four summers to hear live music and cut a little rug. The Towers that span Ocean Road, the remaining part of a giant casino complex that burned in 1905, has become a year-round venue since a heating system was introduced during renovations. Some great acts for this fall include the salsa band Clave Logic for September 4; the swing group Eight to the Bar for September 18, and Dave Howard and the High Rollers for October 2. You can’t beat the view from this space and the music is bound to get you moving. For something completely different, try the a cappella concert on September 3, featuring the teen group Sound Check, the Little Rest Chapter of Sweet Adelines, and Princeton’s Footnotes. Located at 35 Ocean Rd., Narragansett, (401) 782-2597, (www.thetowersri.com).

Moving up the state, to Jigger’s Diner in East Greenwich, you quickly understand why these intimate eateries have such a hold on Rhode Islanders. Not only was Providence the birthplace of the diner — when Walter Scott sold sandwiches and pie from the back of his horse-drawn wagon in 1872 — but a place like Jigger’s still serves up home-cooked breakfasts and lunches in the best Yankee tradition, including white flint-corn jonnycakes, gingerbread pancakes, and homemade sausages and hash. Their clam cakes and clear Rhode Island-style chowder are a lunchtime favorite. The diner is located in an authentic Worcester Dining Car, with light green floor tiles and re-varnished woodwork on the six booths. Located at 145 Main St., East Greenwich, (401) 884-5388.

To work off some of those carbs, a hike along the North-South Trail might be in order. The trail, which opened officially in 1999, runs from Blue Shutters Beach in Charlestown to the Massachusetts-Burrillville line, a total of 78 miles. It skirts the Connecticut border in places and even dips inside our neighboring state near Killingly for a short stretch. It can be divided into shorter (five-to-six miles) or longer (12-15 miles) hikes, depending on weather, stamina, and enthusiasm. The trail cuts through three state management areas, Burlingame, Arcadia, and George Washington, with terrain as varied as meadow and marsh, beach and boulders, forest and field, and rivers and rills. Here and there, suburbia raises its head, with golf courses or housing developments, but more often, it’s history that pops up, in the way of a long-forgotten village schoolhouse, a scenic covered bridge, or an abandoned cemetery. For maps and detailed route directions about the North-South Trail, check out The North-South Trail, by Cliff Vanover, Great Swamp Press, (2001), visit www.greatswamppress.com, or call (401) 781-8817.

A side jaunt off the trail to Route 5 in Cranston brings you to the Tabor-Franchi VFW hall, Post 239, on the corner of Randall Street and Atwood Avenue, known to its fans as Mike’s Kitchen. This modest haven offers some of the best down-home Italian food anywhere in the state, including their justly famous polenta, a creamy version served with a hearty tomato sauce; lightly breaded and baked fish dishes, with or without marinara sauce; snail or baccala (dried, reconstituted cod), salads; and pastas galore, with or without seafood. You can even try tripe and fried smelts, if you really want to get into the culture. And don’t miss Mike’s versions of squid, sautéed with or without tomato sauce, or fried and served with hot peppers. Mike’s is a noisy place and there’s not a non-smoking room, but the food’s worth it. Located at 170 Randall St., Cranston, (401) 946-5320.

To cap this round-up of things outside Providence, just hop one city over to Pawtucket’s Slater Mill Historic Site, the birthplace of the American Revolution. It was there, in 1793, that Samuel Slater linked spinning and carding machines into a full-fledged assembly line to produce cotton thread. The well-trained guides at Slater Mill give an unforgettable, hands-on tour, making the first factory workers and the work they did really come alive. By 1810, there were close to 90 cotton mills throughout the Blackstone Valley, and immigrants from Quebec, Italy, Ireland, the Ukraine, and Poland poured into the area to work in them. Their story is told at Woonsocket’s Museum of Work and Culture, and it is just as captivating as Slater Mill. Though there is no formal tour, the exhibits are ingeniously interactive and very informative. Slater Mill Historic Site, 67 Roosevelt Ave., Pawtucket, (401) 725-8638, (www.slatermill.org). Museum of Work and Culture, 42 South Main St., Market Square, Woonsocket, (401) 769-9675, (www.rihs.org).