Recently I did the first of two posts especially suited to people who love being active outside https://www.activeadultsdelaware.com/blog/posts/2024/06/12/delaware-is-full-of-great-hiking-trails-part-one/. It focuses on several wonderful Delaware state parks in New Castle County that offer walking and biking trails, along with many places where you can swim, fish, and just relax in a peaceful natural setting.
This week I’m spotlighting several more, within an easy drive of the new and established Kent County https://www.activeadultsdelaware.com/neighborhood/central-delaware/ and Sussex County https://www.activeadultsdelaware.com/neighborhood/coastal-delaware/ communities featured on the Active Adults Web site.
First State Heritage Park https://destateparks.com/History/FirstStateHeritage is one of Delaware’s most unique places because it puts our state’s history front and center of every experience. It’s located in downtown Dover, our state capital, and features tours of our Legislative Hall, the Old State House, the Biggs Museum of American Art, the Delaware Public Archives, the Victrola Museum and the historic John Bell House, where you’re greeted by interpreters in 18th Century clothing. On the Web site are details about many different walking tours that give you the opportunity for exercise while learning about our past.
Killens Pond State Park https://destateparks.com/PondsRivers/KillensPond will immerse you in nature around its signature 66-acre pond, where you can fish for bass, crappie and sunfish. There’s an elevated boardwalk that opens up beautiful sites, along with benches for wildlife watching. If you love kayaking and boating there’s a launch for easy access to the pone. There’s also a waterpark with slides, a main pool and baby pool, and a tot lot. And if you’re super outdoorsy there’s a wooded campground.
Trap Pond State Park https://destateparks.com/TrapPond is another great fishing spot for bass and other freshwater species amid Baldycypress trees. You can rent kayaks, canoes, boats and paddleboards and take guided tours of the cypress swamp and see historic cemeteries and a church dating back to the 1800s. There’s also a nice campground with tent and RV sites, cabins and yurts, and a Nature Center where you can learn all about the biodiversity of this vast nature preserve.
Holts Landing State Park https://destateparks.com/HoltsLanding is another prime nature spot and is located on the Indian River Bay. You can walk along a salt marsh, a beach and a maritime forest and on the Seahawk Trail, which is ADA-accessible and a great way to experience various ecosystems. It’s another park with a fishing pier and boat ramp, and a nice place for outdoor concerts in the summer.
Down near Delaware’s southernmost tip, Fenwick Island State Park https://destateparks.com/Beaches/FenwickIsland has three miles of spectacular ocean beach on one side and access to the Little Assawoman Bay – a wonderful spot for kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding – on the other.
Delaware Seashore State Park https://destateparks.com/Beaches/DelawareSeashore is also located way down south. It features six miles of ocean beach and 20 miles of bay shoreline, along with the inlet that connects the Indian River and Rehoboth Bay to the Atlantic Ocean. It’s a beautiful place for nature lovers, who can spot all kinds of nesting birds and terrapins, with over seven miles of biking and hiking trails, and also features a space for special events and an educational center.
Cape Henlopen State Park https://destateparks.com/Beaches/CapeHenlopen is one of most popular places in Delaware. It encompasses a vast peninsula with shoreline on the Delaware Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. There are wonderful beaches, including one with a changing room, restrooms, a snack bar and plenty of parking. There are also so many other things to experience – including Fort Miles, where U.S. service members protected the nation during WWII, miles of trails for biking and hiking, campgrounds and a nature center. It’s a vast natural treasure and a refuge where you’ll see vast vistas of marshes, ponds, the ocean and wildlife without a building in sight. It’s also going to be protected forever thanks to Delaware’s elected leaders and beloved by many volunteer organizations that protect its pristine setting.