McDade Recreational Trail

Dogs Leashed

Features Fall Colors · River/Creek

The McDade Recreational Trail provides visitors with a cornucopia of ecosystems, landscapes, and trail experiences to enjoy, all the while it is exceptionally easy to travel thanks to its crushed gravel surface.

With over 14 parking areas variably spaced along the route, the McDade Recreational Trail provides all users with an appropriate length of trail. Parking areas can be as close as half a mile, and as far as five miles apart.

For those wishing to travel along the trail one-way, the National Park Service funds a free weekend bus service that stops at many major trailheads along the route. To view the schedule, click here.

Be aware that there are no services along the route, so be sure to bring all the food and water you'll need along with you.

While the terrain is variable along the trail, each section exhibits a distinct nature: some are flat ribbons of gravel along the river, while others climb up the valley walls, and some are in between.

Regardless of the section traveled, visitors to the McDade Recreational Trail are bound to have a wonderful and enriching experience along the banks of the Delaware.

Trail Segments are described below:

• From Hialeah Trailhead to Owens Trailhead, the trail traverses gently graded pastoral farmlands, complete with paint-peeling fences and rustic out-buildings.
• From Owens Trailhead to the park headquarters, the trail leaves the river's flood plane and climbs steeply up the valley walls through densely forested switchback turns.
• From the park headquarters to Bushkill Access, visitors will wander along rolling terrain, while keeping eyes peeled for the crumbling foundations of buildings constructed in a bygone era.
• From Bushkill Access to Milford Beach, the trail skirts the Delaware on a thin slice of land before leveling out near Schneider Farm, where it continues along gentle grades to Milford Beach.