Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park

Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park At A Glance...

• Most of the original 1834 canal is still here, including wooden bridges, bridge tender houses, lock remnants, cobblestone spillways and hand-built stone arched culverts.
• A restored 1790 linseed oil mill and an 1877 gristmill stand beside the canal at Prallsville Mill in Stockton.
• Griggstown has a historic district of 68 structures, including a Dutch Reformed Church built in 1842 and a bridge tender's house built in stone when the canal was dug.
• The Port Mercer Bridge Tender's House, one of the few surviving canal houses, is kept up as a historic site.
• A bird survey found 160 species in the park, and almost 90 of them nested here.
• Todays Sunrise: ,   Sunset:  
• New Jersey Delaware River Region Mercer County

• Activities:

  • Equestrian / Horseback
  • Fishing
  • Hiking
  • Hunting
  • Jogging / Running
  • Paddling - Kayak, Canoe, row boat
  • Picnicking
  • Walking

  Amenities:

  • Restrooms/Bathrooms
  • Boat launch
  • Parking Lot(s)
  • Picnic / Sitting Area
  • Grills / Firering
  • Picnic tables

  Trails:

  • Flat / Easy
  • Self Guided / Nature trail
  • Rail To Trail
  • Crushed rock
  • Natural Surface (Dirt/Roots/Rocks)
  • Walking Paths
  • Water Trails (kayak / boat)

  Park Type:

  • State Parks
  • Historic Area
  • Scenic Areas (overlooks/waterfalls)

  Rules/Regulations:

  • Alcohol Not Permitted
  • Must be Leashed

Contact / Location

A Brief History

The canal was chartered in 1830, largely through the lobbying of New Brunswick merchant James Neilson, and it was built between 1831 and 1834. It opened on June 25, 1834, and cut shipping time between Philadelphia and New York City to two days. The main canal ran 44 miles from Bordentown to New Brunswick, and a 22 mile feeder canal ran from Bull's Island south to Trenton to supply it with water. It had 14 lift locks and was deepened to 8 feet by the 1850s.

Canvass White, who had worked on the Erie Canal, was the chief engineer. Many of the laborers were Irish migrants paid $1 a day, plus 25 cents for each tree stump removed. Boats were mostly pulled by mules, and steam-powered vessels began using the canal in 1843. By the 1860s and 1870s Pennsylvania coal made up 80 percent of the cargo.

The canal last turned a profit in 1892 and stayed open through the 1932 shipping season, a 98 year run. The state took it over in 1936 and kept it as a water supply. The canal and its remaining structures were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, and in 1974 more than 60 miles of canal and a narrow strip of land on both banks became a state park. The railroad corridor from Bull's Island to Frenchtown was added in the 1980s, and the trail became a National Recreation Trail in 1992.

Programs / Education

Programs run year round through the park's naturalist, historian or an affiliated Friends group, and pre-registration is usually needed unless the listing says otherwise.

Trail & Path Info

The main towpath runs from Bakers Basin Road in Trenton to New Brunswick on a natural surface suited to hiking, jogging, horseback riding and biking. The stretch from Mulberry Street to Bakers Basin Road is crushed stone. The feeder canal trail is fine crushed stone and is for hiking, jogging and biking only, with no horses. Sections follow the old Belvidere and Delaware Railroad corridor.

Motorized vehicles and ATVs are not allowed on any park trail. The park offers a self-guided hike called Nursery to Canal, with a printable guide on its website.

Things to See & Do

Walk, run or bike a piece of the towpath, rent a canoe in Griggstown or Princeton, or fish from the bank. The park lists these places to stop along the way: Bull's Island, Griggstown, Port Mercer, Prallsville Mill, Stockton, Six Mile Run and the Trenton Potteries.

At Griggstown, look for the bridge tender's house and the old Longhouse near the causeway on Canal Road. At Port Mercer, the bridge tender's house marks where Provinceline Road once crossed the canal on a swing bridge. At Stockton, the restored mills at Prallsville are beside the canal, and the Bulls Island area has a day use area at the head of the feeder canal. For Six Mile Run, see Six Mile Run Reservoir.

Tips and Tricks

Visitors are asked to carry out their trash, and dogs must be on a leash. Boaters have to carry around the locks and some bridges, so plan for portages. The main hazards on the water are low bridges, locks and steep banks when you get in or out, and each boater needs a Coast Guard approved life jacket on board. Only electric motors up to 9 horsepower are allowed on the canal.

Picnics / Lunches / Eating

Picnic tables and grills are at some access points and near a few historic sites. Informal picnicking is allowed along the canal. Charcoal fires are allowed only in the grills in picnic areas, and open fires are not allowed.

Admission & Guidelines

Entering the park is free. A launch ramp fee applies to canoes, kayaks, boats and personal watercraft from the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day, and daily or annual launch permits are sold at the Bulls Island office, 609-397-2949. The Lambertville launch on the Delaware River is free.

Fishing follows New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife regulations. Hunters need a park permit at Six Mile Run.

Hours / Season of Operation

The park is open from sunrise to sunset. The main office at 145 Mapleton Road in Kingston is open Monday to Saturday, 9:00 to 4:00, and so is the Bulls Island office. Boat launches are open sunrise to sunset year round, and canoe rentals run from May through October.

Directions

The main park office is at 145 Mapleton Road in Kingston, with a Princeton mailing address. The Bulls Island Recreation Area office is at 2185 Daniel Bray Highway in Stockton, where launch permits are sold. The trail is reached from many road crossings along the canal.

The Bull's Island Recreation Area, the Byram Boat Launch and Six Mile Run Reservoir are all part of the park and have their own pages.

Here are 10 places near Delaware and Raritan Canal State Park