In response to orders issued by Pennsylvania’s Governor Wolf and New Jersey’s Governor Murphy and guidance from the CDC and local, county, and state public health officials, Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area is announcing additional modifications to operations to support federal, state, and local efforts to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
As of April 2, all trails on the Pocono Environmental Education Center (PEEC) campus will be closed and all winter closures have been extended until May 22. In New Jersey, the extended closures include Mountain Road, Blue Mountain Lakes Road/Crater Lake Area, Watergate, Namanock, Rivers Bend Group Campground, and the dirt section of Old Mine Road. In Pennsylvania, the extended closures include Dingmans Access, Dingmans Falls Visitor Center and Parking Area, Hialeah Picnic Area, and Valley View Group Campground.
Without vehicles on the roads, and because they are wider than park trails, areas like Mountain Road, Blue Mountain Lakes Road, the dirt section of Old Mine Road, and the Dingmans Falls access road provide additional locations where visitors can safely maintain social distancing if they chose to visit the park at this time. Most of park’s outdoor spaces, including more than 150 miles of trails, remain accessible to the public.
Public restrooms, volunteer and partner-operated buildings and the visitor information desk at Bushkill Meeting Center were closed on March 17 and the Kittatinny Point area in New Jersey was closed on March 28.
The health and safety of our visitors, employees, volunteers, and partners is our number one priority. The National Park Service (NPS) is working with federal, state, and local authorities to closely monitor the COVID-19 pandemic. We will notify the public when we resume full operations and will provide updates on our website and social media channels.
The NPS encourages people who choose to visit Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area during this pandemic to adhere to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state and local public health authorities to protect visitors and employees. As services are limited, the NPS urges visitors to continue to practice Leave No Trace principles, including pack-in and pack-out, to keep outdoor spaces safe and healthy.
Updates about NPS operations will be posted on www.nps.gov/coronavirus. Updates on Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area can be found on our website at www.nps.gov/dewa and on our Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/DelWaterGapNPS.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
