Corrected trail map for the Cliff Park Area trails at Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area (click to enlarge)
The Cliff Park section of Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area is located at the north end of the park near Milford, Pennsylvania. This section takes its name from the Cliff Park Golf Course, the first golf course in America designed by a woman, Annie R. Buchanan. It became part of the park when the land was donated by the Buchanan Family in 2003. The Buchanans owned the property since 1803, and the golf course has been around since 1913.
There are eight trails in the Cliff Park section that cover roughly nine miles. Most are out-and-back, so you will have to do a lot more hiking than nine miles to cover them all. I did it in 12 miles starting at the Milford Knob Trailhead on Federal Road.
There are two trail maps available that are published by the National Park Service, one of which is found in the Guide to the Gap, a free tabloid-size publication with the best information about Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Another is posted on the official National Park Service website. Neither are accurate. The problem is that there are a lot more trails in Cliff Park than are shown on the maps. I get the feeling that the National Park Service just wants these to go away. However, eliminating trails from the map does not mean they have disappeared from the landscape.
Coming upon an intersection that is not on the trail map causes a lot of confusion. Why the National Park Service doesn’t understand this is a mystery to me. I highly suggest carrying a hiking GPS unit or loading a hiking app on your phone, as these sources often show the missing trails. Even having access to Google Maps will be of help, as many trails show up on Google’s maps. I have made corrections that I know of to the map above (corrections are in RED).
See the following trail reports here on National Park Planner for detailed information and plenty of photos of each trail:
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Last updated on January 15, 2024
