Caurita Petroglyph.

This very scenic and historic trek to the Caurita Petroglyph was led by Mr. Cristo Adonis, the Pyai of the Santa Rosa Carib Community. This trek will lead you through cocoa, coffee and citrus plantations, across many pristine streams with sources high on the mountains, and what appeared to be leks of many very exotic birds. This petroglyph is a historical artifact left behind by our Amerindian ancestors etched into a giant rock on the slopes of a hill in Caurita. A very conservative age estimate of the rendering is ca.1000 - 1500. To the untrained eye they appear to be heads on stick bodies with arms and legs. I also saw what appeared to be a tree and a stream. I would assume that it represented our Amerindian ancestors and their way of life, or maybe their spirit gods, or even some shamanistic phenomena. To date I think that no one has been able to translate what's carved into this rock...
Coming from Curepe you would drive along the Maracas Royal Road to the Acono Road located at 10.69484°N and -61.40681°W. Turn right onto Acono Road and follow this road until the intersection with Caurita Road which is located at 10.69844°N and -61.39841°W. Turn right onto Caurita Road and follow this road until it ends at 10.70006°N and -61.39841°W.
The trail starts at 10.70032°N and -61.38867°W. You would continue on heading 10° along very flat terrain. There are a couple of houses along this area with loose dogs and unfenced property lines so caution. The first stream crossing occurs at 10.70193°N and -61.38711°W. This is followed by another stream crossing at 10.70112°N and -61.38423°W. There is a fair amount of canopy cover along here and quite a lot of birds. There is another stream crossing at 10.70386°N and -61.38270°W. From here the steep climb uphill begins. Keep left at 10.70429°N and -61.38228°W heading 351°. Keep right at 10.70516°N and -61.38224°W heading 165°. There is a very impressive rock formation on the cliff face to the right at 10.70576°N and -61.38133°W heading 351°. To get to it would involve coming off the main trail and hiking up the very steep face of the mountain there. This area also appears to be a very good birding location. There is a split in the trail at 10.70591°N and -61.38191°W. At this point you would continue heading 351°. The other trail leads along to Maracas Bay. There is another stream crossing at 10.70781°N and -61.38293°W. This is followed by an uphill trek that starts at 10.70903°N and -61.38259°W through cocoa trees. This leads into a very large cocoa, coffee and citrus plantation at 10.71060°N and -61.38237°W. The denser portion of the forest trail starts at 10.71311°N and -61.38218°W. Along here the trail narrows out significantly and there are very dangerous cliff drops if one loses their balance or accidentally slips. There is a “shortcut” to the Petroglyph at 10.71622°N and -61.38210°W. It is a very steep climb but not unmanageable by any means. Some might need to have a scout extend rope along here for assistance. We chose to go around by continuing uphill heading 305°. You would turn left at 10.71809°N and -61.38272°W going uphill heading 215°. There is a very large fallen tree at 10.71730°N and -61.38277°W that you can choose to climb over or simply go around. A short trail around this tree was blazed by Cristo Adonis. From here it’s a few feet to the Petroglyph. The Caurita Petroglyph is located at 10.71655°N and -61.38258°W perched on the side of the hill at an average elevation of 436 meters above mean sea level. Upon leaving the Petroglyph we chose to extend ropes and proceed heading 282° downhill to connect to the main trail at 10.71622°N and -61.38210°W.
This is a highly recommended and relatively easy trek. If you go you’d need to take the usual hiking paraphernalia, lots of water, electrolytes, and bug spray. A machete to blaze overgrown sections of the trail is a good idea. One should also treat the Caurita Petroglyph site with some respect as it is considered a sacred site to the Carib community here in Trinidad...
Happy Trails...