Setting: Relatively high Delaware River Bank, Serviced Canal Tow Path, Canal Lock/Dam which always has water flow, Foot Bridge to Lumberville Pennsylvania, Campground, Playground, Shaded Picnic Area with charcoal grills, Boat LaunchExplorable Op's: A ton. From my perspective, it's hard to go wrong in a state park with kids. Bulls Island is particularly good for exploration with kids because it's small. The playground, camping area, picnic area, canal, trails, park office and footbridge are all in a short distance from one another. The kids will feel as if they have a lot of freedom to explore and you can feel at ease that they won't be able to get too far away from you.
Difficulty: Easy. The roads and trails on Bulls Island are flat. The trails are wide open and free of roots and rocks.
Review: It's hard to imagine a better day for our visit. We had sparkling skies, a slight breeze
and temperatures in the mid 70's. We started out at the playground to give the kids a chance to burn off some energy from being in the car for a bit. Max decided it was lunch time so he picked out a picnic table. The picnic tables are close to the playground, beneath some towering trees. It's a beautifully shaded area. While we had lunch we heard a woodpecker. It pecked out it's signature sound a few times and then swooped out of a tree and flew just behind our picnic table, calling out a warning the whole time. I've never seen one of these red-headed birds up close. They're big! Max was also thoroughly impressed. We went over to the pine tree where the woodpecker had flown from to see if we could find any holes in the tree. Sure enough we saw plenty of them. After lunch we headed 
to the park office to see if we could grab a map of the the trails at the park, but they only have a map of the camping area. So we headed down the path a bit that's right next to the canal. It starts just beyond the bridge over the canal. We were taken by two enormous black walnut trees at the entrance of the trail. The trails heads down a short decline to flank the canal. We stopped at a rock landing to throw some rocks and take in the scene. We only made it a short distance down the trail from there before we found a toad. I attempted to contain it on the trail with my feet so Max and Frank could get a good 
look at it (Frank was in the backpack so it wasn't easy for me to bend over to catch it). The toad peed on my foot! We thought that was kind of cute. Then Max decided it was time to head back the way we came. We got Max's bike out of the car and headed toward the bridge. Both Max and Frank had a fun time walking across the bridge. It has a tightly woven chain-link fence that is almost flush with the walk-way so there is no worry about falling over. There was a large American f
lag strung from the far side of the bridge and the breeze help it give us a show. We made it to the PA side and both boys were fascinated by the steel support ropes that are anchored into cement a pair of steps. We spent some time there just fooling around before we set back for the Jersey side. From the bridge we went straight to the car and decided it would be a good day to hit Dilly's Corner for some fries. According to me and the boys, the only thing missing from this outing was mom.
Recommen
dations: Whenever you are near Dilly's Corner take some time to stop in. It's really a treat. I don't have many recommendations for Bulls Island because it is small enough that you can do most of what I described above in just a few hours. The playground, picnic area, nature trail and foot bridge are most of what you can do in the day use area and make for a nice couple of hours outdoors. The nice thing about Bulls Island is that you can feel like you'
ve seen the whole place without actually exhausting all the explorable options. There's a sense of satisfaction to be had just from walking the grounds knowing that you've trekked from one end of the island to the other. One general recommendation I do have is if you can swing it, head outdoors during the week. We always see lots of wildlife and I think one of the reason is because there aren't many people around Monday through Friday. Animals are hip to what the weekends bring and they tend to take cover.
and temperatures in the mid 70's. We started out at the playground to give the kids a chance to burn off some energy from being in the car for a bit. Max decided it was lunch time so he picked out a picnic table. The picnic tables are close to the playground, beneath some towering trees. It's a beautifully shaded area. While we had lunch we heard a woodpecker. It pecked out it's signature sound a few times and then swooped out of a tree and flew just behind our picnic table, calling out a warning the whole time. I've never seen one of these red-headed birds up close. They're big! Max was also thoroughly impressed. We went over to the pine tree where the woodpecker had flown from to see if we could find any holes in the tree. Sure enough we saw plenty of them. After lunch we headed 
to the park office to see if we could grab a map of the the trails at the park, but they only have a map of the camping area. So we headed down the path a bit that's right next to the canal. It starts just beyond the bridge over the canal. We were taken by two enormous black walnut trees at the entrance of the trail. The trails heads down a short decline to flank the canal. We stopped at a rock landing to throw some rocks and take in the scene. We only made it a short distance down the trail from there before we found a toad. I attempted to contain it on the trail with my feet so Max and Frank could get a good 
look at it (Frank was in the backpack so it wasn't easy for me to bend over to catch it). The toad peed on my foot! We thought that was kind of cute. Then Max decided it was time to head back the way we came. We got Max's bike out of the car and headed toward the bridge. Both Max and Frank had a fun time walking across the bridge. It has a tightly woven chain-link fence that is almost flush with the walk-way so there is no worry about falling over. There was a large American f
lag strung from the far side of the bridge and the breeze help it give us a show. We made it to the PA side and both boys were fascinated by the steel support ropes that are anchored into cement a pair of steps. We spent some time there just fooling around before we set back for the Jersey side. From the bridge we went straight to the car and decided it would be a good day to hit Dilly's Corner for some fries. According to me and the boys, the only thing missing from this outing was mom.Recommen
dations: Whenever you are near Dilly's Corner take some time to stop in. It's really a treat. I don't have many recommendations for Bulls Island because it is small enough that you can do most of what I described above in just a few hours. The playground, picnic area, nature trail and foot bridge are most of what you can do in the day use area and make for a nice couple of hours outdoors. The nice thing about Bulls Island is that you can feel like you'
ve seen the whole place without actually exhausting all the explorable options. There's a sense of satisfaction to be had just from walking the grounds knowing that you've trekked from one end of the island to the other. One general recommendation I do have is if you can swing it, head outdoors during the week. We always see lots of wildlife and I think one of the reason is because there aren't many people around Monday through Friday. Animals are hip to what the weekends bring and they tend to take cover. 
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