Boating & Water Access: Block Island, RI
Block Island is a ferry-only island roughly twelve miles off the Rhode Island coast, and its entire relationship to the water is shaped by that fact. There's no bridge and no way to drive on or off -- people, cars, and freight move by ferry or by private boat, and the island's two broadly documented harbor areas, Old Harbor and New Harbor on the Great Salt Pond, are the general anchors of that boating world. This page stays at the level this research pass could actually confirm: general harbor geography, the island's single-town governance under New Shoreham, and the offshore wind farm boaters and visitors will actually see on the water. It does not invent specific slip counts, marina names beyond those two broadly known harbor areas, mooring fees, or a current ferry schedule -- where a specific number would normally go, this page says plainly that it wasn't confirmed.
Two Harbors: Old Harbor and New Harbor
Block Island's boating life centers on two broadly documented harbor areas: Old Harbor, on the island's east side near the main village and ferry landing, and New Harbor, the more sheltered anchorage inside the Great Salt Pond on the island's west side. Both are widely referenced across general travel and boating sources as the island's main harbor areas, and that general distinction -- an exposed, village-adjacent harbor versus a sheltered pond anchorage -- is safe to state without pinning down specifics neither this page nor most public sources currently document in detail.
This page does not name specific marinas, state a slip count, or quote mooring or dockage fees for either harbor. Those details change season to season and operator to operator, and this research pass did not independently confirm current numbers for either location. Anyone planning to bring a boat to Block Island should contact the Town of New Shoreham's harbormaster directly for current mooring availability, transient dockage, and fees before assuming any particular cost or capacity.
A Notable Seascape Feature: The Block Island Wind Farm
One thing boaters and visitors will actually see on the water that sets Block Island apart from most other Northeast beach destinations: the Block Island Wind Farm, five turbines standing offshore and visible from parts of the island and its surrounding waters. It was the first offshore wind farm built in the United States, going online in 2016, originally developed by Deepwater Wind and now owned and operated by Ørsted -- a history corroborated independently across Ørsted's own project materials, Smithsonian Magazine, and multiple engineering and trade sources, on top of general public reporting.
This page treats the wind farm as a geographic and identity fact, nothing more: the turbines are a visible part of the seascape for anyone out on the water near Block Island. No property-value effect, positive or negative, tied to that visibility is claimed here, and none was confirmed in this research pass.
Getting to the Island: Ferry and Private Boat
For most visitors, the Block Island Ferry is the established, well-documented way onto the island, with routes generally known to run from Point Judith and Narragansett, Rhode Island, and seasonally from additional ports. That much -- that a real, ongoing ferry service exists and is the primary organized way most people and freight reach the island -- is safe to state as confirmed. What this page does not do is quote a current schedule, trip length, or fare for any specific route, because ferry timetables and pricing change season to season and this research pass did not independently verify current, specific details. Confirm current schedules and fares directly with the ferry operator before planning a trip around a specific departure.
Private boat is the other real option for reaching Block Island, and boaters familiar with open Atlantic and Block Island Sound conditions do arrive under their own power as a matter of course. That crossing should be planned around real offshore conditions -- wind, swell, and the genuinely exposed water between the mainland and a twelve-mile-out island -- rather than treated as a short, sheltered hop. Current NOAA marine forecasts and up-to-date nautical charts are the right source for that planning, not general familiarity with the area.
What This Page Could Not Confirm
No specific marina name beyond the general Old Harbor and New Harbor references, no slip count, no mooring field size, and no dockage or mooring fee was confirmed for Block Island in this research pass, and none is invented here. No current ferry schedule, trip length, or fare was independently confirmed for any specific route, though the existence of an established Block Island Ferry service running from Point Judith and Narragansett, with seasonal service from additional ports, is well documented. No property-value effect tied to the wind farm's visibility was confirmed, and none is claimed. Treat the general statements above -- two main harbor areas, an operating ferry service, a visible five-turbine offshore wind farm since 2016 -- as the confirmed pattern, and verify anything more specific directly with the Town of New Shoreham's harbormaster, the ferry operator, and current NOAA marine forecasts before relying on it.
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Get a Free Agent Referral →Independent research. No ads. No sponsored listings. Block Island's two main harbor areas, Old Harbor and New Harbor on the Great Salt Pond, are broadly documented across general travel and boating sources as the island's primary harbor geography; this page does not state a specific slip count, marina name beyond those two general areas, or mooring/dockage fee for either, none of which were confirmed via full-text source verification this research pass. The Block Island Wind Farm -- five turbines, online since 2016, originally developed by Deepwater Wind and now owned and operated by Ørsted, the first offshore wind farm built in the United States -- is corroborated independently by Ørsted's own project materials, Smithsonian Magazine, and multiple engineering and trade sources; no property-value effect from its visibility is claimed. An established Block Island Ferry service running from Point Judith and Narragansett, Rhode Island, with seasonal service from additional ports, is well documented, but this research pass did not independently fetch current schedule, trip-length, or fare specifics for any route -- confirm those directly with the ferry operator before travel. The entire island is governed as the single town of New Shoreham, Rhode Island. This page does not state a current population, median home price, listing count, or exact conserved-acreage figure for Block Island -- none were confirmed this research pass. This page is independent research, not navigational, safety, or legal advice; for current mooring availability, dockage fees, ferry schedules, or marine conditions, contact the Town of New Shoreham's harbormaster, the ferry operator, and current NOAA marine forecast sources directly before relying on anything above.