-
Jan 17, 2025 | 
whatsupnewp.com | Ruthie Wood
The RI Natural History Survey presented its initial findings on the twenty-fifth annual Rhode Island BioBlitz at Middletown Town Hall on Thursday night. This BioBlitz, which took place on June 7-8, 2024, surveyed the biodiversity at the Norman Bird Sanctuary, making the Middletown sanctum one of two repeat locations a BioBlitz has been held (the other repeat being Roger Williams Park). The first time the sanctuary was surveyed for biodiversity was in 2001 at the second annual BioBlitz.
-
Dec 13, 2024 | 
whatsupnewp.com | Ruthie Wood
It’s beginning to look alot like Christmas at Blithewold Manor in Bristol. Garlands, wreaths, and decorated Christmas trees inside the manor house speak to the anticipation and magic of Santa Claus, and all throughout the grounds, thousands of lights and lit decorations shine along the pathways and cascade from tree branches. In the pitch black of night, the manor and grounds transform into something warm and dazzling.
-
Dec 12, 2024 | 
whatsupnewp.com | Ruthie Wood
It’s 5:15 on a snowy December morning. It’s dark, and very cold, but you can hear the soft hoo-hoo-ing of owls. Then, you see it glide across the starry sky and perch in a tree in front of you: the snow-dusted silhouette of a screech owl.
-
Dec 2, 2024 | 
heyrhody.com | Ruthie Wood
Many of our favorite local ice cream shops close before the first frost, but the slush, snow, and Nor’easters don’t intimidate Wright’s Dairy Farm & Bakery. On the contrary, their North Smithfield creamery amps up production each January to make new and exclusive ice cream flavors for members of their Test Batch Club.
-
Nov 30, 2024 | 
whatsupnewp.com | Ruthie Wood
The waterfront was packed Friday evening with what seemed like thousands of holiday merrymakers squeezing onto docks and wharves, on roofs and balconies, and into bars and restaurants that overlook the harbor to get a decent vantage point of the 2024 Newport Illuminated Boat Parade.
-
Nov 18, 2024 | 
whatsupnewp.com | Ruthie Wood
It’s nearly the ten-day countdown to the event that marks the official Christmas season on Aquidneck Island: the Newport Illuminated Boat Parade.
-
Nov 12, 2024 | 
whatsupnewp.com | Ruthie Wood
Despite the unseasonably warm weather this November, the typical growing season in Rhode Island is drawing to a close. Many produce-selling farm stands hibernate for the winter, just as their Christmas tree farm counterparts prepare for the upcoming holidays. This does not mean, however, that it is impossible to buy fresh and local produce.
-
Oct 21, 2024 | 
whatsupnewp.com | Ruthie Wood
As October slowly draws to a close, so too does apple picking season – for most orchards. One farm reigns supreme in season longevity, Rocky Brook Orchard in Middletown, and the secret has to do with species. Greg and Katy Ostheimer, owners of Rocky Brook Orchard, bought the Middletown property about twenty-five years ago, in the late nineties. The land was a farm and orchard then, but it was not a pick-your-own (PYO), and the farm business there had had ceased operations.
-
Oct 19, 2024 | 
whatsupnewp.com | Ryan Belmore |Ruthie Wood
The 33rd Annual Bowen’s Wharf Seafood Festival is in full swing this weekend on Bowen’s Wharf in Newport. Visitors are flocking to the historic wharf to enjoy the “Harvest of the Sea” under beautiful sunny skies. Running Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., the festival offers a mouthwatering array of fresh, local seafood. Foodies can indulge in fish tacos, lobster rolls, stuffies, chowder, fried calamari, clams, and oysters.
-
Oct 18, 2024 | 
whatsupnewp.com | Ruthie Wood
The Sakonnet River Bridge is one of the three main bridges Aquidneck Islanders use to travel off-island. Located in Portsmouth, this bridge connects the island to Tiverton, and it has a special bonus feature distinct from the other two bridges: color-changing lights. The colors of the lights mean something different each time they are lit. has a special calendar that tracks the annual lighting events – what days the bridge will be lit with color other than white, and why.
