Places to go · Hockessin, New Castle County
Ashland Nature Center
Nature center · Delaware Nature Society
Four miles of trails through forest, meadow and along the Red Clay Creek, free and open sunrise to sunset, with a creek shallow enough for children to stand in and a dog welcome on a leash. This is an outdoor trip: the building is small.
The Red Clay Creek where the trail meets it. Ankle-deep over gravel here, and clear enough to see the bottom right across.
8 Aug 2026
- NOT a wet-weather answer. The ranger station is worth a look and will hold a child for about ten minutes; everything else here is outside.
- The building and the trails keep different hours. The trails are open sunrise to sunset every day; the visitor center is not.
- The Ashland Covered Bridge is just outside the entrance and you drive through it. It is one lane and low.
What's inside
- A small ranger station with a gift shop — interesting, and about ten minutes' worth.
- About four miles of self-guided trails through forest, meadow and floodplain.
- The Red Clay Creek, shallow and gravel-bottomed where the trail meets it — the part children actually end up in.
- An outdoor play kitchen.
- A pond, and the dipping nets that go with it.
- Restrooms and a picnic area.
The details
- Admission
- Free. The Delaware Nature Society says so plainly on its own page for the site.
- Restrooms
- Yes
- Gift shop
- Yes
- Getting around
- The society lists accessible areas without saying which. Worth ringing 302-239-2334 if it decides the trip.
- Parking
- Its own lot at the nature center. Confirmed first-hand; how quickly it fills at a weekend isn't.
Where it is
More photographs
What comes out of the pond. Caught, looked at, and put straight back.
8 Aug 2026
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