Paddling through Providence – October 17, 2021 and October 15, 2022
We began our two-hour tour of Providence from the water where it says Gano Park. That’s on the Seekonk River, which is the lower end of the Blackstone River. We went down and then over to the Providence River, where we went up through the center of the city.
Above and below – Rhode Island’s famous “Stuck-up bridge.” The photo below was taken from under the I-195 bridge over the Seekonk River. Here’s a little about it from Providence Chanel 6.
The Crook Point Bascule Bridge, which is also referred to as the “stuck-up” bridge or the Seekonk River Drawbridge, is a steel railroad drawbridge that used to connect Providence’s Fox Point neighborhood to the City of East Providence across the Seekonk River.The bridge has been abandoned since 1976.
The photo on the left shows one of the many areas along the river where WaterFire takes place. Firewood for WaterFire is stored under several bridges like what is shown on the right. Click on either picture to see a video of WaterFire on YouTube.
In the middle of the photo above, you can see the three gates that can be closed to protect Providence from flooding such as occurred in 1938 and 1955. Here is a little about them from a Corps of Engineers page.
The barrier itself is a 700-foot-long concrete structure, 25 feet high, that extends westerly across the Providence River from Tockwotton Street, near Fox Point, to Globe Street, near the power plant. The structure contains three tainter gate openings that prevent the entry of floodwaters from the bay when closed and permit passage of small vessels when open. Each gate is 40 feet high and 40 feet wide.
Two 10 to 15-foot-high earthfill dikes with stone slope protection, flank each side of the barrier. The eastern dike is 780 feet long and the western dike is 1,400 feet long.
Click here to read the entire page about the gates.
The pictures above were taken on October 17, 2021. The pictures below are from October 15, 2022.
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