Some claim the meaning of the name Caratunk is 'rough and broken' while others say it's from an Abnaki Indian word meaning 'forbidding or crooked stream'. Certainly the rough and brokeness of nature and the existence of a crooked stream apply here at this 200 acre gem called the Caratunk Wildlife Refuge. It is located on Brown Avenue in Seekonk, MA off Rt. 152. This Audubon Society of Rhode Island property plays host to hundreds of birds, a muskrat pond and, of course, the crooked stream that cuts through it, just to name a few of it's many wonderful assets.
Listing 13 features on the Caratunk Trail Map, with it's 6 miles of trails, you can spend hours visiting just a few of them. The muskrat pond, located across two fields populated with dozens of birdhouses at the near edge of the property, is a must see on a first visit. Looking across its typically glassy surface, from one of only a few openings in the pond's tree-lined edge, you may be fortunate enough to spot a disturbing rift. Look more closely and you'll see that rift become a trail across the water. You can then spot the head and back of a muskrat making a beeline to the mangrove like growth on the opposite side of the pond. To that tangle of branches it heads to hang out, dry off and nibble on whatever greens it's found as it scavanged the waters for food. Though their dark wet cat-sized bodies blend with the color of the bark, nonetheless their balled up shape gives them away with no leaves to hide them. Be sure to bring a camcorder to capture all the action.
Another area of the sanctuary that is teeming with activity is on the trail leading to the pine woods, the feature closest to the entrance of Caratunk. This trail begins above a stream that rushes down to where you can see it widening out in the distance through the trees. As you start out you hear the chirping of songbirds and from the trails vantage point
above the stream you see their frenetic fluttering in the branches of saplings barely able to hold their weight. Undetered, they continue this flight of fancy, feasting on unseen insects.
Once through the Pine Woods you have many trails to choose from. One takes you over to the Muskrat Pond, another loops past a boulder train and a monument rock or follow a trail along Coles Brook on over to the Ice Pond. Be informed though, as you can see if you've followed along on the map, that there is quite a bit of territory left to cover in Caratunk. So, you will find yourself being drawn to return again and again.
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