Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area

The Kittatinny Ridge is a long, hard spine of ancient rock, and the Delaware Water Gap is the place where the river cut clean through it. Geologists explain it as a case of the river being older than the ridge: as the land slowly rose, the river kept sawing down through the rising rock, wearing a deep notch rather than being turned aside.

The result is a striking piece of scenery, a steep-walled gap where the water runs between mountains that tower on both banks. It has drawn travelers and artists for two centuries, and in the 1800s the gap was a fashionable resort destination, with grand hotels perched above the river.

This valley is the ancestral homeland of the Lenape people, the Delaware, for whom the river is named, and their descendants today include the communities of the Lenape nation. For thousands of years the river was a route of travel and trade and its flats were places to live and farm, and archaeological sites along the valley record that long presence.

In the twentieth century the federal government began buying land here for a large dam and reservoir. The dam was eventually canceled after years of controversy, but the land already acquired became the national recreation area, which is why the park preserves an unusually intact stretch of river valley, old farmsteads and villages included.

The park is a paddler's haven, with a long protected run of the Delaware suited to canoeing, kayaking, and tubing, from lazy flatwater to livelier stretches, best done with an outfitter if you are new to the river. River beaches and access points line both banks.

On land, dozens of trails climb into the surrounding hills, including a long section of the Appalachian Trail that runs the Kittatinny Ridge on the New Jersey side, offering wide views over the valley. Short hikes lead to waterfalls tucked into the folds of the mountains, some of the prettiest in the region, and the historic village of Millbrook preserves a nineteenth-century rural community within the park.

Summer is the busy season for the river, when paddlers, tubers, and swimmers fill the water and the trails see steady use, so early starts and weekdays are calmer. Spring brings high water and roaring waterfalls as the snow melts and the woods green up.

Fall is many people's favorite, when the forested mountains blaze with color and the crisp air is perfect for hiking the ridge. Winter is quiet and cold, the river running dark between snow-dusted slopes, with the trails open to those prepared for the weather.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.