Carter Preserve

134 Wapping Rd, Kingston, MA 02364, USA

Owned By: Town of Kingston

• Directions

Kingston’s 18-acre Carter Preserve features a 1-mile network of trails. Old bog roads offer views of upland forest, wetlands, and a stream, along with retired cranberry bogs. Hunting is not permitted on this property.

Note: Entrance trail is currently (September 2024) a bit overgrown!

Features

The preserve is named for F. Sherburne Carter Jr. who along with his brother, Lyon, owned Carter Cranberry. It was donated to the town during the development of the adjacent Arbor Hills Estates. The preserve is misidentified on some maps as the F. “Sherbourne” Carter Jr. Preserve. It is also known as Carter Bog.

This land is within the region of the Patuxet Wampanoag tribe, who for centuries have inhabited the area around the Jones River now known as Duxbury, Kingston and Plymouth. To learn more about local Native American tribes, we encourage you to interact with their members. The Mashpee Wampanoag and the Herring Pond Wampanoag share information on their websites.

Trail Description

Look for the entrance trail near the informational kiosk in the parking area. After a short distance, you have the option of continuing to the left or to the right. If you go to the left, you’ll soon be faced with 3 more options — left, middle, and right.

• The trail to the left extends along the edge of a retired cranberry bog, to Old Wapping Road. Complete the loop along Wapping Road for a short (0.37 mile) walk back to the parking area.

• If you choose the middle fork, the trail will lead you through a shrubby woodland. There is a footbridge over a small stream, and eventually the trail ends at Arbor Hills Drive. The total distance is about 0.33 miles. Off this trail is a connector trail that leads to the loop described next.

• If you choose the fork to the right, you’ll soon arrive at a pond with a shed left over from the property’s cranberry farming days. This is the shortest of the 3 trails — about 0.2 miles. This connects with the trail that’s to the right as you first enter the property.

Overall, trails conditions vary. Some are wide like roads. Others are more overgrown or enclosed by trees. Some sections are very rooty while others are clear and flat.

Habitats and Wildlife

This property was farmed for cranberries in the past. Some of the trees observed here include: maple, pine, cedar, oak, birch, beech, and hemlock. There are also wild grapes, ferns, sweet pepper bush, and some poison ivy. According to the Town of Kingston, “there is a tentative plan to restore the stream habitat on the property by removing water control structures, and to turn the bog adjacent to the stream into a sandplain grassland.”

Waters on this property flow north to the Jones River. The Jones River finds it source at Silver Lake, and extends for 7.5 miles through the town of Kingston. Follow the Jones River Watershed Association for more information.