Francis C. Carter Memorial Preserve

Trailhead kiosks greet visitors with an introduction to the preserve and its natural features. There, visitors can pick up a trail map, a self guided hike, and a bird checklist.  Visitors have a choice of hiking the wide Narragansett trail that leads to the grassland or hike on the narrower woodland trails that meander through the heart of the property.

In addition, the preserve is open to horseback riding on specified trails.  The parking area at the Old Mill Road entrance is large enough to accommodate horse trailers, and there is a manual water pump to provide water for horses.

What to See: Plants

The grassland provides a nesting area for state-threatened grasshopper sparrows and the adjacent pine barrens support the globally rare barrens buck moth.  The uplands feature black oak, scarlet oak, white oak, pitch pine, black huckleberry, and lowbush blueberry.

What to See: Animals

Birds such as the eastern towhee, scarlet tanager, and prairie warbler live here during the summer, as do several rare moth species. Vernal pools and wetlands within the forest support a diversity of frogs, salamanders, dragonflies and damselflies.

Preserve Guidelines

We hope you enjoy visiting our preserves in any season. We ask that you please observe the following guidelines:

• Stay on the walking trails, using marked trails wherever they exist.
• Respect preserve open hours (one hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset). Overnight camping is not allowed.
• Do not ride horses, bikes or any motorized vehicle through preserves or on the trails.
• Do not disturb bird nesting areas. Between April 15 and September 1, nesting areas may be off-limits to visitors. People or dogs can easily destroy a nest with one misstep.
• Leave your pets at home, for the safety of the fragile ecology of preserves and as a courtesy to other visitors.
• Contact our office in Providence to visit those preserves that have restricted public access because of their very sensitive flora and fauna. These places deserve special respect and are best visited only on guided field trips.
• Do not remove any living materials from a preserve or disturb any vegetation.
• Remove any trash you create and, if possible, any garbage that you see left by someone else.
• When visiting Block Island or Prudence Island in the spring, summer and fall, dress in long pants and socks to avoid deer ticks. After any walk on a preserve, it is a good idea to check for ticks when you return home.
• Be careful! Your safety is your responsibility.

Thank you for your help.