D&R Canal Trail

D&R Canal Trail
D&R Canal Trail in Lambertville, New Jersey
Length	77 mi (124 km)
Trailheads	Trenton Frenchtown New Brunswick
Use	Hiking, Cycling
Hiking details
Trail difficulty	Easy
Season	Year round
Hazards	Road crossings, adjacent canal
Surface	Stone dust
Right of way	United New Jersey Railroad and Canal Company
Website	Official D&R Canal Park site

The D&R Canal trail is a recreational trail in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The 77-mile (124 km) trail is made up of three segments that transverse three counties: a canal towpath from New Brunswick to Trenton; a canal towpath/rail trail from Trenton to Bull's Island; and a rail trail from Bull's Island to Frenchtown. The three combined trails together form the largest completed trail in New Jersey. Much of the trail runs along the existing Delaware & Raritan Canal within the New Jersey state park of the same name.

There is no direct connection between the main and feeder canal paths along the Delaware River. Signed on-street connections are required to traverse the trail system in its entirety.

The proposed Capital to Coast Trail is planned to connect to the D&R Canal Trail. The trail is also part of the East Coast Greenway, a 3,000 mile long trail system connecting Maine to Florida.

The main canal towpath trail is 29 miles (47 km) long and constructed on the earthen towpath used by mules to pull barges along the canal. The majority of the path was resurfaced in early 2011, however flooding by Hurricane Irene has scoured off the trail's top surface on the New Brunswick end leaving a course surface suitable only for mountain bike and pedestrian use. The main entrance in New Brunswick is at the Landing Lane Bridge.

Access Points

The feeder canal was used to supply water to the main canal from the Delaware River. The towpath/rail-trail's surface is sand and crushed stone. The feeder canal trail, including the rail trail to Frenchtown is 28.7 miles (46.2 km) long. The trail begins in Trenton near Route 1 and ends north of Frenchtown.