US lakes & pondsUS lakes & pondsSurface area: The USGS National Hydrography Dataset outline (NHD Permanent ID 127660656).
The red circle marks Melville Ponds.
Towns and counties: U.S. Census Bureau boundaries overlaid on the USGS lake outline.
Official RIDEM pages. Rules and fees change; check before you go.
Numbers on the map match the list at rightbelow.
Shoreline: USGS National Hydrography Dataset (NHD Waterbody, Permanent ID 127660656), public domain. State outline: U.S. Census Bureau TIGERweb. Points: RIDEM fishing access & boat launches (RIGIS). Dashed trails: © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Interactive map: Leaflet with © OpenStreetMap contributors. Not for navigation.
OpenStreetMap shows about 0.9 mi of public hiking and walking trail within about 40 m (130 ft) of the Melville Ponds shoreline. Together the trails go all or nearly all the way around Melville Ponds, staying close to the water.
No trailhead is mapped for these trails. The closest public access site is Lower Melville Pond, 50 ft from a shoreline trail (RIDEM access data).
The dashed brown line on the lake map shows these trails. We include paths, footways and marked trails that OpenStreetMap doesn't mark as private, and leave out roads, sidewalks and snowmobile corridors. Mapped trails can still cross private land or close for the season, and not every trail is mapped, so follow posted signs.
Trails: © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database License (ODbL). Map data as of Oct 9, 2026. Trail lengths count only the parts within about 40 m of the USGS NHD lake outline.
We found 2 campgrounds and RV parks within 15 miles of Melville Ponds, 1 of them within 5 miles. Distances are straight-line from the nearest point on the shoreline, so driving distance is longer.
All campgrounds & RV parks in Rhode Island
Green tent icons on the lake map mark campgrounds near the shore, and the interactive map shows the closest 12. Amenities are listed only where a source records them; call or check the campground's website before you go, since seasons and rates change every year.
Campground data: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL). Pulled Oct 12, 2026.
Live from the National Weather Service API for the lake's coordinates (41.5917, -71.2785). The nearest station may be several miles away. NWS forecast for Melville Ponds. No live water-temperature sensor is shown because we haven't found a public one for this lake.
Based on solunar theory, an estimate. Major periods (about 2 hours) center on when the moon is directly overhead or underfoot; minor periods (about 1 hour) center on moonrise and moonset. The 0–100 activity score rises during those periods and gets a boost near sunrise and sunset and around the new and full moon. Weather, water temperature and pressure often matter more. Sun and moon times are calculated in your browser from the lake's coordinates with standard astronomy formulas, shown in ET (America/New_York), and accurate to within a few minutes.
★ = stocked recently (see Stocking). No machine-readable species survey is published for this water; the list shows stocked fish only.
RIDEM lists Melville Ponds as a trout-stocked lake or pond. Note from RIDEM: UNK.
Pulled Oct 10, 2026.
1 public access site listed.
| Site | Town | Owner | Type | Parking | Fee | Uses | Map |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lower Melville Pond | Portsmouth | — | Shore fishing access | gravel lot | — | Fishing The pond is a ten min. walk from parking lot. This area is stocked with trout several times throughout the year. | 41.5910, -71.2791 |
RIDEM fishing access & boat launches (RIGIS)
Fees, hours and rules change; confirm with the site owner before you go.
Straight-line distance between lake centers. All Rhode Island lakes & ponds · All waters in Portsmouth