Great Swamp Management Area

A swamp
that’s great
for a
lot of
things
Great Swamp Management Area isn’t really all swamp. A part of it certainly is but much of the 3,400 acres is woodland, fields, rocks and water. Lots of different terrains with lots of different plants and animals. I usually avoid hiking in places with the words swamp, tick, death or leech in them but Great Swamp is indeed great.
Although it isn’t all swamp the emphasis is definitely on water. The Chickasheen, Usqupaug, Chipuxet, and Pawcatcuk rivers all run through here and the 2 miles of the northern edge of pristine Worden Pond is included within it’s boundaries. This of course makes it pretty buggy during the warm months but it also makes the area a great place for some quiet water canoeing, yaking, fishing or perhaps wind surfing on the pond.
Besides the water sports Great Swamp is also a cool place for mountain biking, hiking, horseback riding and especially cross country skiing. Not a lot of extreme terrain, mostly gently sloping ups and downs and lots of great views of streams, brooks and ponds. Plenty of trees and rocks to crash into if you’re bike riding and of course tons of mud in the wet season. In the spring huge groups of birds gather around the water and if you’re lucky you might see deer, otters, turtles and even some water snakes.
The area is also famous or perhaps infamous for it’s history. In 1675 Josiah Winslow and his Pequot and Mohegan allies pretty much wiped out the Narragansett Tribe in a devastating battle that cost both sides much pain and blood. The ironic part was that Winslow attacked the Narragansett Tribe so they wouldn’t form an alliance with King Phillip during the Pequot Wars. Of course after being attacked by the English the surviving Narragansetts were so mad they did just that. Great strategy.
Great Swamp is great all year long but I enjoy it most during the quietude of the snow months. Peaceful, serene and ethereal. You have to wear fluorescent orange during hunting season to keep from getting your head blow off but most of the hunters here seem very courteous, reasonable and willing to share with others. Great Swamp is indeed a great swamp but with the emphasis on the great.
A swamp
that’s great
for a
lot of
things