Hikes, Paddles, & Wellness
At the Westerly Land Trust, we love to guide outdoor experiences for our community.
Thursday Hikes:
Click for Hikes September October 2025
Click for November December 2025
Each Thursday, we have either a guided hike (fall, winter, and spring) or a guided paddle (summer). Thursday hikes and paddles are FREE for all and begin at 10am, unless otherwise stated. For these events, you will visit various local conservation properties, including some of our Westerly Land Trust preserves. Walks are between 1 ½ to 3 hours and are open to all ages with the target group being agile seniors.
Event Hikes
Event hikes are generally centered around a theme and include seasonal refreshments. These hikes are FREE for WLT members and $10 for not-yet members. Some of the more elaborate hikes are $5 for WLT members and $15 for not-yet members.
We hope you will join us for these outdoor adventures! They are great opportunities to meet new people and spend quality time outside.
Wellness in the Woods
The benefits of nature for mental and physical health are innumerable. Here at the Westerly Land trust, we are grateful to play a role in connecting our community to the great outdoors for the holistic benefit of body, mind and soul. Wellness in the Woods is a series of outdoor events that was brought on by the pandemic and the increased interest in health and use of outdoor spaces. We are now entering our third year and our wellness programs are continuing to grow. All events are run in conjunction with highly trained and certified individuals/partners such as BarreCoast, Dr. Dierdre O’Connor, Westerly Track and Athletic Club, certified local yoga teachers, and certified mindful outdoor guides. We hope you will join us as we tap into the many benefits that nature has to offer.
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November brings shorter, colder days, but also more time to pause and reflect on the year coming to a close. Soon, we’ll all be in full holiday mode, moving a mile a minute. But until then, allow yourself space to sit and contemplate. How have you progressed toward your personal goals in 2025? What remains on your to-do list before the year ends? 🍂
🌳At the Westerly Land Trust, we find that these internal conversations are best had outdoors, surrounded by nature. Big things feel more achievable when you take notice of the everyday miracles around you.
💚In October, the world lost a conservation giant, Dr. Jane Goodall. As we slide headfirst into the holiday hustle, may Dr. Goodall’s words and outlook stay with you:
“People say to me so often, ‘Jane how can you be so peaceful when everywhere around you people want books signed, people are asking these questions and yet you seem peaceful,’ and I always answer that it is the peace of the forest that I carry inside.”
Witch way to the trail? 🧙♀️🕷️🎃
#halloween #witch #trail #hike #westerlyri #landtrust #nature #outside #october #fall
“All the trees are losing their leaves, and not a single one of them is worried.” - Donald Miller
Take a lesson from the trees: slow down, release what no longer serves you, and trust that growth will come again. 🍂
#nature #mindfulness #outdoors #naturelovers #seasonsofchange #fallleaves #fall #leaves #growth
Who knew stone walls could be so busy? Trail cameras at Wahaneeta Preserve have captured bobcats, raccoons, and even a curious house cat traveling these wildlife highways! 🐾🦝
#wildlife #nature #naturelovers #wildlifephotography #naturephotography #animals #discoverwildlife #discover #conservation
In 2024, the Westerly Land Trust partnered with the Rhode Island Wild Plant Society (RIWPS) to establish a foundation plot at the Barlow Nature Preserve through RIWPS’s ReSeeding RI initiative. After a prolific summer bloom of heal-all (Prunella vulgaris var. lanceolata), volunteers spent countless hours this fall deadheading the flowers and collecting the tiny seeds. 🌸
🌾CCC volunteer Ian Sykes took a break from trail stewardship to harvest seeds, and WLT Board member Deirdre O’Connor separated the seeds from a grocery bag full of flowers—when finished, she had filled a pint jar.
Some of these seeds will be replanted at Barlow, while others will be distributed by RIWPS across the state to help conserve native ecotypic plants and preserve local genetic diversity. Though the task of extracting the tiny seeds was slow and painstaking, it plays a vital role in supporting resilient native plant communities throughout Rhode Island. 🌿🌳
#native #plantnative #plant #seed #volunteer #nature #getputside #flower
It’s hunting season in Rhode Island which means fluorescent orange isn’t just a style choice, it’s the law. 🦺✴️
Here’s what you need to know:
🔸Anyone in a state management area, privately conserved area, or undeveloped state park that allows hunting must wear at least 200 sq inches of solid daylight fluorescent orange that’s visible from all sides
🔸During shotgun deer season (starting in December), that requirement increases to 500 sq inches - for everyone not just hunters!
🔸This requirement runs from the second Saturday in September to the last day of February and again from the third Saturday in April to the last day of May.
🔸If you’re not sure if you have to wear orange, always choose to wear it for safety. Stay visible, stay safe.
Thanks to @rhodeisland.dem for the video inspiration- check out their website for official orange requirements, hunting safety tips, and seasonal details. www.dem.ri.gov/orange🦌🧡
Need some orange? Support WLT’s conservation efforts through the purchase of a fluorescent orange WLT beanie! Follow the link in our bio to get one. 🌳
#westerlyri #rhodeisland #nature #landtrust #conservation #hike #outside #fall #huntingseason #westerlylandtrust
@birdability is a national nonprofit dedicated to making birding accessible, inclusive, and welcoming for people with disabilities and other health concerns, is proud to announce the 6th annual Birdability Week, taking place October 20–26, 2025.
In addition to a full schedule of virtual events open to participants nationwide, for the first time Birdability in Rhode Island has partnered with Rhode Island Audubon, Ocean State Bird Club, South Kingstown Land Trust, and Westerly Land Trust in to offer accessible local programs across the state. Registration for all events is now open; details can be found here.
This year’s event theme “You Belong Here” affirms that birding is for everybody and every body. Birdability Week highlights the joy, sense of belonging, and community ties that result from ensuring all people can share in the beauty of birds and the outdoors.
Join Westerly Land Trust on Saturday, October 25 from 2-4pm at Avondale Farm for Forest Bathing and Birding! This is a FREE event. Follow the link in our bio to our calendar of events to sign up!
#birding #birdability #nature #explore #outdoors #fall #accessibility
Mushrooms led the way at our Fungal Foray🍄
Jess from @dpnaturectr brought the fungi facts as we explored WLT’s Flora Whitely and Cottrell Preserves! 🍂🍄🟫
Did you miss out on the Fungi Fun? Check out DPNC’s Wild Mushroom Festival this weekend!
#mushrooms #fungus #fungi #forage #mushroom
