Page 30 - The Hunt - Summer 2022

“ “It’s a great place for people to learn how to fly fish because of the low gradient. Everywhere is safe to wade, except around the dams.”
persona as a recreational hub for the Mid-Atlantic region, its waters available to everyone. “Dozens of recreational activities take place here,” says Shawn Heacock, superintendant of Brandywine Creek State Park, the nexus of outdoor activities in the Delaware section of the valley.
Dozens indeed. Among the activities available this summer between Wilmington and the Brandywine’s headwaters 50 miles upstream near Honey Brook: fishing, canoeing, tubing, hiking, running, camping, picnicking, foraging, bird watching, yoga, disc golf, museum tours and more. In addition to Brandywine Creek State Park, sections of First State National Historical Park are located along the main section of the creek, not to mention Natural Lands ChesLen Preserve on the West Branch and Natural Lands Stroud Preserve on the East Branch. And many smaller city and township parks serve both as recreational areas and primary access points to the creek itself.
Brandywine Creek State Park is open
to the public 24/7, and there are periods during the winter when no fees are collected. So establishing an exact number of annual visitors isn’t easy. Heacock offers low estimates of about 125,000 in 2020 and 150,000 in 2021. And while the pandemic drove people outside and into the park, many of its programs had to be temporarily suspended or scaled back.
28 THE HUNT MAGAZINE
summer 2022