Prudence Island
National Estuarine Research Reserve · Portsmouth, Rhode Island
An island of about five and a half square miles in the middle of Narragansett Bay, part of the town of Portsmouth, reachable only by a year-round ferry from Bristol — the largest island in the bay with no road link to the mainland. Roughly 278 people live here year round and the only business is a general store that doubles as the post office. A former naval base on the island is now the Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, and the visit is essentially a walk on a very quiet island.
Homestead Ferry Landing, Portsmouth, Rhode Island, 02872, United States
The island is free to visit and the constraint is entirely the ferry. ⚠ ACCESS IS BY YEAR-ROUND FERRY FROM BRISTOL ONLY — it is the only public way on or off, the timetable is short, sailings vary by season and day, and weather can cancel them. PLAN YOUR RETURN SAILING BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE, because there is NO ACCOMMODATION available to visitors and missing the last boat is a serious problem. ⚠ THE ONLY BUSINESS ON THE ISLAND IS A GENERAL STORE THAT ALSO SERVES AS THE POST OFFICE — there is no restaurant, no cafe and no hotel, so bring food and water. There is no medical facility and no lifeguard anywhere on the island. Bringing a car is impractical and largely pointless; a bicycle is the sensible option. Confirm current sailings with the ferry operator rather than a cached schedule. The former naval base is now the Narragansett Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.