Gaia: Track Miles: 6.0mi  Duration: 2:25  Rating: 10/10

This week, our hiking group had a great turnout, with 11 hikers and 2 dogs. We also had three new hikers join us: Dave B, Elizabeth, and Fred (canine). We’re excited to learn more about them and give them their trail names soon!

While we still have many miles of trail to cover in Arcadia Management Area, this was the was our group’s first time hiking from the Frosty Hollow trail head. At 14, 000 acres, Arcadia Management Area is is the state’s largest recreational forested area. Along our hike, we passed by two ponds, Frosty Hollow Pond and Breakheart Pond. Frosty Hollow pond is a small pond with plenty of space for fishing. Stocked with trout just prior to the start of fishing season, it is said to offer one of the best fishing experiences in Rhode Island. However, this pond is limited for anglers 14 years and younger. Breakheart Pond is available to all ages for both fishing and boating.

Since it was hunting season, each hiker wore a safety orange vest before starting the hike. The group set off at 7:00am and hiked the easy to moderate walking trails. Along the way, we encountered several hunters. We wondered if the hunters were thankful or frustrated with hikes passing through while they were hunting. Our chatter and heavy footsteps were were either helping to drive the deer into the woods where they were more likely to be in range or they felt we were scaring them off. After hearing several gun shots and proof at least one hunter was successful, we assumed it was the former.

As seen in the GaiaGPS trail map, the hike consisted of two loops, totaling 6 miles. For the most part, the trails were wide and easily passable making it an easy hike. We came across several small streams with bridges that allowed easy crossing. However, in some areas, we had to test our parkour skills jumping to rocks or large tree branches that lay across the waterways. At one point, we came across a dam where the water on one side was at the top of a small bridge. It was difficult to see how deep the water was, and one of our hikers, Storm, found out the hard way when he slipped off the bridge and into the water! Wallstreet was a split second away from jumping in when Storm got his footing and was able to crawl out of the knee deep water (shoulder height for Storm) and shake it off.

On the second loop of the hike, the group went around Breakheart Pond. The views across the pond were spectacular. On the dam side, we saw a fish ladder that was built into the waterfall side of the dam to help fish migrate back upstream. Fish ladders have to be constructed in such a way that allows fish to pass back up stream into the pond and they are only effective when the water level and velocity of the water are at the right levels. When we hiked past the dam, the water was barely flowing and so we were not able to see any fish using the fish ladder.

The group finished the hike in approximately 2 hours. Overall, it was a great hike for both beginners and experienced hikers alike. The easy trails and beautiful scenery made it an enjoyable experience for everyone.