Setting: Grassy meadow paths slope down towards the wooded ravine that carries the Locatong Creek to the Delaware River.
Explorable Op's: A ton. Although the preserve is a relatively small swash of land, it still has a wilderness feel to it. The creek is perfect for exploring because it isn't exceptionally deep. The trails are just long enough to give kids a real sense of accomplishment. They will feel like they are miles from the car but in reality it's only a few minutes away.
Difficulty: Moderate. We parked on the eastern most parking area on Raven Rock Road and from this starting point most of the trail loops in a meadow and is grassy with slight up or down pitch depending on which way you're headed. Along the Locatong Creek the trail can be quite muddy. Also, the jump down the ravine into the creek bed is a steep 10 drop. So for those reasons this hike is moderate with kids.
Explorable Op's: A ton. Although the preserve is a relatively small swash of land, it still has a wilderness feel to it. The creek is perfect for exploring because it isn't exceptionally deep. The trails are just long enough to give kids a real sense of accomplishment. They will feel like they are miles from the car but in reality it's only a few minutes away.Difficulty: Moderate. We parked on the eastern most parking area on Raven Rock Road and from this starting point most of the trail loops in a meadow and is grassy with slight up or down pitch depending on which way you're headed. Along the Locatong Creek the trail can be quite muddy. Also, the jump down the ravine into the creek bed is a steep 10 drop. So for those reasons this hike is moderate with kids.Facilities: Primitive. No bathrooms. No water fountains. Not even a Starbucks. 
Review: Our trip to Wescott Nature Preserve was a short one for a reason I'll get to later on in the review. But the time we spent there up until the end of the adventure was darn nice. We were lucky enough to pull in the parking area about the same time as another car pulled in. A woman with a dog got out and I asked her for some suggestions about trekking through the preserve. She told me about the mud on the trail, the path to get to the creek bed and she let us use a few squirts of insect repellent, which I was thankful for. The meadow looked like the perfect place to pick up a deer tick. It was an impossibly beautiful July day when we went, with blue skies, a breeze and temperatures in the 70's. We made our way down the grassy trail and entered the woods. Before long the muddy section of the trail opened up before us and as the woman told me, I was definitely going to get muddy. Frank was on my back and Max handled walking through the mud pretty well. The path down to the Locatong Creek was only about a 30 second walk from the muddy section. This was a little bit of a challenge with Frank in the backpack and Max slipping down the slope, but all in all it was uneventful and no one got hurt - yet. The creek bed is perfect for kids to explore and it has the feel of a "secret spot" because it is nestled down in a ravine with the wall of the bank and the forest protecting it from the sun. You're maybe about a 1/4 mile from your car at this point but you feel like you're deep in the woods. I had enough foresight to put the boys in bathing suits so getting wet wouldn't be an issue. Frank, the one year old, had a good time walking in and out of the shadow pools, digging his hands into the tiny pebbles and, for one of the first times, throwing rocks into the creek. Max did a lot of the same but he felt he needed show his strength by choosing rocks about half the size of his head to throw in the creek. I have to admit, the splashes were impressive. But I tried to point out some more manageable stones for him to throw in while I was busy making sure Frank didn't take a header into the creek. But Max's luck ran out when he tried to maneuver over some large rocks while holding a long salami shaped stone. He slipped and fell and what was going to be a torpedo when launched into the water wound up smashing his fingers on the boulders he was walking over. It was obvious from the moment it happened that this was not a normal fall. He held his and out as if it was a foreign object that he just couldn't identify. On close inspect it turned out that his pinky finger got the weight of the stone. It was bleeding a little bit and turning purple and swollen. So the 1/4 back to the car, uphill, while carrying two kids - one in a bit of pain - seemed plenty long. We took Max to the doctor then the ER later in the day and he did indeed fracture the end of his finger, although we couldn't see anything on the X-ray. For many reason, Wescott Nature Preserve will always hold a special place in my mind. Besides the misadventure, we highly recommend the trip.
Recommendations: Little hands shouldn't throw big rocks! No, really, it could have happened anywhere and it was bound to happen sooner or later. But as always, I recommend taking your phone with you. Spraying everyone with insect repellent is also a good idea. Dress the kids in something that they can feel comfortable getting wet in and have a change of clothes back at the car. In light of the fractured finger, it's generally a good idea to have some first aid kit with you. But to be honest, if the injury is too big for cotton balls and band-aids then I'm heading to a hospital, quick! And even though Max did break his finger, there wasn't a whole lot anyone could do for it. They put a splint on it at the hospital just to keep him from bumping it. Finally, Dilly's Corner did wonders for everyone. Grandma and Grandpa met us there. We had ice-cream and french fries and the finger was forgotten about until our 3 o'clock appointment. All's well that ends in ice-cream. Happy trails.
Review: Our trip to Wescott Nature Preserve was a short one for a reason I'll get to later on in the review. But the time we spent there up until the end of the adventure was darn nice. We were lucky enough to pull in the parking area about the same time as another car pulled in. A woman with a dog got out and I asked her for some suggestions about trekking through the preserve. She told me about the mud on the trail, the path to get to the creek bed and she let us use a few squirts of insect repellent, which I was thankful for. The meadow looked like the perfect place to pick up a deer tick. It was an impossibly beautiful July day when we went, with blue skies, a breeze and temperatures in the 70's. We made our way down the grassy trail and entered the woods. Before long the muddy section of the trail opened up before us and as the woman told me, I was definitely going to get muddy. Frank was on my back and Max handled walking through the mud pretty well. The path down to the Locatong Creek was only about a 30 second walk from the muddy section. This was a little bit of a challenge with Frank in the backpack and Max slipping down the slope, but all in all it was uneventful and no one got hurt - yet. The creek bed is perfect for kids to explore and it has the feel of a "secret spot" because it is nestled down in a ravine with the wall of the bank and the forest protecting it from the sun. You're maybe about a 1/4 mile from your car at this point but you feel like you're deep in the woods. I had enough foresight to put the boys in bathing suits so getting wet wouldn't be an issue. Frank, the one year old, had a good time walking in and out of the shadow pools, digging his hands into the tiny pebbles and, for one of the first times, throwing rocks into the creek. Max did a lot of the same but he felt he needed show his strength by choosing rocks about half the size of his head to throw in the creek. I have to admit, the splashes were impressive. But I tried to point out some more manageable stones for him to throw in while I was busy making sure Frank didn't take a header into the creek. But Max's luck ran out when he tried to maneuver over some large rocks while holding a long salami shaped stone. He slipped and fell and what was going to be a torpedo when launched into the water wound up smashing his fingers on the boulders he was walking over. It was obvious from the moment it happened that this was not a normal fall. He held his and out as if it was a foreign object that he just couldn't identify. On close inspect it turned out that his pinky finger got the weight of the stone. It was bleeding a little bit and turning purple and swollen. So the 1/4 back to the car, uphill, while carrying two kids - one in a bit of pain - seemed plenty long. We took Max to the doctor then the ER later in the day and he did indeed fracture the end of his finger, although we couldn't see anything on the X-ray. For many reason, Wescott Nature Preserve will always hold a special place in my mind. Besides the misadventure, we highly recommend the trip.Recommendations: Little hands shouldn't throw big rocks! No, really, it could have happened anywhere and it was bound to happen sooner or later. But as always, I recommend taking your phone with you. Spraying everyone with insect repellent is also a good idea. Dress the kids in something that they can feel comfortable getting wet in and have a change of clothes back at the car. In light of the fractured finger, it's generally a good idea to have some first aid kit with you. But to be honest, if the injury is too big for cotton balls and band-aids then I'm heading to a hospital, quick! And even though Max did break his finger, there wasn't a whole lot anyone could do for it. They put a splint on it at the hospital just to keep him from bumping it. Finally, Dilly's Corner did wonders for everyone. Grandma and Grandpa met us there. We had ice-cream and french fries and the finger was forgotten about until our 3 o'clock appointment. All's well that ends in ice-cream. Happy trails.
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