Mass Audubon Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary, Massachusetts, United States

5Wildflower01945 5:00 PM Jun 21, 2018

Great for all ages for walking, running or sitting and observing the natural world
I entered Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary at approximately 9am on a Thursday morning in June and there were 5 cars in the parking lot. Beside the parking lot and the Audubon center building are a covered picnic table as well as three outdoor picnic tables with an accompanying field and a boulder strewn area for kids to play. The cost to enter the trails (open dawn to dusk Tuesday-Sunday and Monday holidays) is $5/adult and $4/child, Audubon members are free. The attendant at the visitor's center was friendly and informed, gave me a paper map and suggested where I might go for the two hours I had. There is an audio tour available by smart phone but I didn't take advantage of that as my battery was low. The building is larger than it appears and houses classrooms, restrooms, a water bottle filling station, a small store and a downstairs that I didn't investigate. The store is full of nature books on many subjects - trees, flowers, birds, animals, tracking etc. I chose to walk the eastern part of this sanctuary- Marsh Trail, including the All Person Trail to Boundary Trail to Charles River Loop to Glacial Hill Trail and back to the nature center. This took me three hours but I stopped for a while in several places to watch turtles, swallows, water bugs, squirrels, birds and to take pictures. They have chosen to mark the trails with blue- leading away from the center and yellow- leading back. That is a very smart system! The numbered and named posts are at most intersections identifying which trail goes where and, with the map, one should be able to navigate the trails successfully. I did run into a few glitches. 1) On the Boundary Trail there is a sharp curve and I ended up going straight, losing the markings and making it almost to residences and South Street before realizing my mistake. 2) Returning from the Charles River loop I couldn't find the trail going southwest to hook into the Glacial Hill Trail so I walked South Street across until I saw the path. 3) Once I got to #7 on the Glacial Hill Trail, I wanted to go Old Orchard Trail, I thought I took a left but I ended up at #12, meaning I had gone the Glacial Hill Trail??? No idea how that happened. With that said, I loved being there. With the exception of intermittent road noise and lawn mowers, bird song was ever-present. There were some areas that were more buggy than others, mostly in the woods. I found if I squatted, the bugs would leave me alone, making it possible to stop and observe. I did wish I had a light long sleeved shirt, a brimmed hat and a snack. I don't use bug spray but you may wish to if you are walking in the woods. I saw about 7 people, the entire three hours, two runners, two child/adult couples and one photographer. I went the All Person Trail, which is a boardwalk through the marsh, and was glad I did. The turtles were the item of interest at that point, and there were lots of them out sunning, swimming around and jostling for a position on logs. The Marsh Trail is wide but rocky and rooty with a mixture of open sunny trail and woods, very near the marsh. I didn't experience any issues with bugs on this trail, even when I spent several minutes at the dam, in the shade watching a robin wash. The Boundary Trail is narrower and mostly wooded with a couple of open, sunny areas near ponds where I enjoyed watching the swallows nesting, swooping and protecting their homes; and the bees collecting pollen in the flowering plants. At the start of this trail I was walking through fine spider strands, I must have been the first walker of the day. The Charles River Loop is across South Street, which is narrow with few cars. There were several trees down across the loop trail in different places. I didn't have issue with this but some may have difficulty getting over them. There are three tiny spots to get close to the Charles River though much of the trail is overlooking the river from higher on the hill and seeing down the river is better from the higher vantage point. I'm sure this is completely different when the deciduous trees have lost their leaves in the fall, winter and early spring. I did see a swan near where the loop turns back toward the nature center. Once I returned to Glacial Hill trail and passed behind the three residences, I spotted a gazebo-like observation deck and and spent some time watching the red winged blackbirds and others over the marsh/pond. There are several shorter trails in this area and I have no idea which ones I traversed. It's pretty open and there is a lot of bird activity. The trails then go back into the woods and I returned to the nature center, following the yellow blazes, by same path I had used going out with the exception of the All Person's Trail. The parking lot was more than half full when I left at noon- amazing since I didn't see that many people. I will be returning to walk the other side of the sanctuary. It's an absolutely lovely walk through many habitats and reminds me of the trips my family took to different Audubon sanctuaries when I was a youngster. If you found this review helpful, please press thank below.

5Ian B 5:00 PM Dec 9, 2011

Wonderful Trails, great trip with kids
Broadmoor is a large sanctuary that runs along the Charles in south Natick and includes marshland, woods and meadows. The beginning of the trail is across a planked walkway that goes over open water, giving nice views and the chance to see ducks, turtles and other wildlife. None of the trails are difficult and this is an ideal place to take kids for a long walk. There's a beaver dam, owls, the remains of an old water mill - lots to explore. The nature center has a small display on the area, maps, and information on how the whole building, an old barn, is green and energy efficient.