- The cliff walk path is not a circle. However far you go, you must come back. I’d strongly suggest you NOT tell the kids this, though, or they might quit before getting to the fun parts! There is a trolley that stops at certain points and can get you back to where you parked, but you need to check the schedule and be sure you can make it work–and you’ve got to make it to one of the stops to get on.
2. There is one public bathroom available and it’s fairly close to the beginning of the walk. It’s pretty clean and it’s easy to spot. Do. Not. Skip. It. You will not see another one for a long time… in fact, you won’t see another one until you turn around and come back and see that one again!
3. The first section is paved and easy to travel. You could even have a stroller on it. Dogs on leashes are permitted. But after that first section, you get into more interesting terrain and dogs and strollers will want to turn around. Be prepared–once it isn’t paved, you are no longer on a nice stroll by the ocean. You are going to have to put some effort in. You never have to CLIMB, but you do have to balance and think through each step you will take. The rocks can get slippery, and some of them do shift around a little.
4. There are no food trucks or places to get snacks. I expected to find something of that nature, because there are side streets that come right up to the walking path for most of the cliff walk. Perhaps in the summer there are, but in October, there was nothing at all. Which means, you really need to pack a backpack with snacks and bottled water. I brought some bottled water in my large purse, but came back to bite me. I was off balance on the rocky sections and struggled a bit. A backpack would’ve made it a lot easier to get across some of those sections. Bring a backpack and load it up with water, protein bars, nuts, and whatever other easily portable fuel your family likes. There are no picnic tables, so you are going to want things you can eat on the go!
5. It’s hard to see the mansions that make their homes along the cliff walk path. Landscaping keeps the yards pretty private. In order to see them well, you’ll have to pay for a tour!
6. The sun reflecting off the water means you are more likely to get sunburnt–even in October. Bring plenty of sunscreen! Be sure to get one that is safe for the ocean.
7. Dressing properly is important. Closed toed athletic shoes are of the utmost importance. You can NOT navigate the rockier sections in sandals and anything with an open toe could lead to tripping or scraping your toes. Also, dress in layers. Even on a cooler day, you may end up feeling really warm from all the exercise. I wore athletic pants like I would wear to the gym, which was comfortable and allowed me to move around easily.
8. There are numbers on the ground along the way. At first, we thought they matched the numbers on the maps posted along the route–there were 15 points on that map so we thought when we got to 15, we were done. Not so much. We ended up getting to 30 before we turned around. We aren’t 100% sure what the numbers are but best we could guess, they were mile markers. Marker 15 meant 1.5 miles, etc. Pay attention to them, though. They help you remember where different things are along the way so you know how close you are on the way back through the Newport Cliff walk. They also help the kids on the way back to know how much longer they have!
9. The times when you see chairs, take a moment to sit and rest–there aren’t many and the rest is needed if you want to make it the whole way! There’s also a cool tree that is great place to stop and rest on the Salve Regina campus. It’s been my favorite tree my whole life!
