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Print Friendly MapAlso known as the Creek Road Trail from its origin road in Delaware, the PennDel Trail extends north from a connection with the Pomeroy and Newark Rail Trail in White Clay Creek State Park. The scenic park features over 37 miles of hiking trails through wooded valleys just north of Newark, home to the University of Delaware. The majority of the trail in Delaware features a gravel surface over level terrain, with occasional short paved stretches near road crossings. In Pennsylvania, the trail turns to a hiking-only dirt path north of the park office, so equestrians and cyclists should plan to adjust accordingly.
Most of the trail parallels White Clay Creek, with the Pomeroy Trail directly across on the eastern bank. At Hopkins Road, the other trail ends, but the PennDel continues north with the stream out of sight to the Pennsylvania state line. At the state line, the trail begins to follow an old railroad corridor along the banks of the creek, passing through Pennsylvania's White Clay Creek Preserve.
Near Wedgewood Road in Delaware, a bridge along the creek provides lovely water views and a connection to the Pomeroy and Newark Rail Trail. Trail users can continue south on that trail to trek all the way to the university and downtown Newark. In Pennsylvania, trail users can make a connection to the Charles Bailey Trail to extend their hike on that rail-trail along the creek's opposite bank.
In Delaware, parking for the PennDel Trail is available with the park entrance fee at the White Clay Creek State Park Nature Center off Hopkins Road (to the north). Additional parking can be found farther south along Wedgewood Road near the trail bridge over White Clay Creek.
In Pennsylvania, free parking and restrooms are available at the White Clay Creek Preserve office at 405 Sharpless Road, and at a parking lot further north on Sharpless Road, as well as a lot at the trail's northern end on London Tract Road in Landenberg.
We walked here for our first time and the family went went 3 hours. Trails are well maintained, nice river scenery, and clean! There is a sign about ticks, and we found 5 on us, but that was the only negative.
Generally flat, gravel/small rock trail along the creek. Enjoyable trail run for all seasons.
We rode our recumbent bikes from South Bank Road near the Old London Tract Church (in PA) south through White Clay Creek park then on to the Pomeroy and Newark trail and finally the James F. Hall trail. There were a few rough sections and a couple of short steep hills but it was a fun ride. The trail has many signs where trails intersect the Creek Road Trail. We did notice that the "Creek Road Trail" is not listed on the signs. An adult with a group of school children helped us to find our way at the newer bridge that crosses the creek. By connecting to the other 2 trails we were able to turn the ride into a 15 mile adventure, still kinda short but pleasant.
I have done this trail as it is close to home for me. The State of Delaware has done a great job on this trail over the last year. One thing the trail goes just over a mile into PA and comes out at the White Clay Pa Park office at Shapless Rd. Landenbeg Pa. so the trail is 3.3 mile and is a great ride with just one street crossing.
The Tri-Valley Trail is the northernmost, and most remote, of the three rail trails that have been constructed in the Newark area. Situated entirely within the boundaries of the White Clay Creek State Park in the state's northwest corner, the trail begins on Hopkins Road, almost directly opposite the entrance to the nature center. It follows an abandoned road south along the west bank of the creek for about a mile, then abruptly turns east, across a large, impressive footbridge that spans the creek. Once on the east bank, it merges with the Pomeroy Trail, a new rail trail that extends south to the outskirts of Newark and will continue through the city to connect to the James F. Hall Trail in the very near future. At this junction, the Tri-Valley Trail turns back north and forms a concurrency with the Pomeroy Trail, both following the grade of the old Pomeroy Railroad through forests and wetlands to rejoin Hopkins Road just east of where it began. The only caveats are that the surface is rougher in some locations than the other area rail trails, making it best suited for hiking or mountain biking, but not for road biking or pushing strollers. Although crossings on Hopkins Road are well-marked, the shoulders of the road are narrow and traffic often speeds down the surrounding hills, complicating access to the trail for users who park at the nature center.
This is a great place to Mt bike, there are a lot of trails that all connect to each other. The Delaware Trail Spinners do a great job of keeping these trails in great shape. White Clay Creek State Park has a map that shows all the loops and trails. There is some great biking here, lots of single track.
Jon Osborn
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