Trip high point number 9: From Auburn, Maine, we drove south to Jerimoth Hill, Rhode Island's highest point, at 812 feet. (We deserved an easy one after Mount Katahdin!) There's room to pull off onto a wide gravel shoulder on the north side of Hartford Pike, then you have to cross the busy road to access the high point via a short trail.
Jerimoth Hill, Rhode Island
A well-marked, easy path of less than a quarter mile leads directly to the high-point logbook and short stone cairn at the end of the trail. Woohoo! But where were the official survey markers? We knew there were supposed to be two of them, but for some reason, they eluded us.
Summit logbook
Tom and Jana at the pinnacle of Rhode Island!
After much wandering and traipsing through the poison-ivy-draped woods, finally, success! The survey markers are father from the rock cairn than we thought. There are two markers, one on each side of the trail, maybe 20 feet off the main path and about 100 yards before the trail's terminus. Once we spotted them, they seemed obvious. I guess we'd just bee-lined for the cairn on the way in without really looking around. Lewis and Clark we are not.
First survey marker
Second survey marker
Thus began and ended our half-hour visit to the state of Rhode Island. Our trip was coming to an end, and we needed to make some miles. We'd aimed to get as far as Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, tonight and actually made it a little farther, to the fun college town of Carlisle.
Lodging: Super 8, Carlisle-south, Pennsylvania. Decent room for a decent price. Most hotels we'd looked at were pretty expensive this Saturday night, so we were glad to find a good value.
Dinner: Even in a college town on a Saturday night, the brewpubs seem to close early. We rushed to get to one in time and arrived right at 9:00, knowing their closing time was 10:00, but the kitchen was already closed. But those folks kindly directed us to nearby Market Cross Pub, where we were able to eat and drink in a lively atmosphere. Market Cross brews their own English-style beer, and the beef and mashed potatoes were excellent!
Jana enjoys a brew in Carlisle, Pennsylvania