Sussex County’s best outdoor spots are public land; you just need to know they exist.
A lot of them cost nothing. No entrance fee for Redden State Forest’s 44-plus miles of trails. No fee at Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge. No fee to walk or bike the Georgetown-Lewes Trail. Several Cape Henlopen access points sit outside the fee-area boundary. Most kayak and canoe launches in the county are free for paddlers.
The complication is the five state parks, which charge a seasonal vehicle entrance fee from roughly March through November. But the fee parks and the free spots sit right next to each other, and knowing which is which makes the difference. Every fact here links to its official source.
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Quick Answers
- Free hiking trails: Redden State Forest HQ Loop (4.0 mi), all six Prime Hook refuge trails, the Georgetown-Lewes Trail (11 mi open).
- Free wildlife refuge: Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge charges no entrance fee; open daily from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset.
- Cape Henlopen access points without the park fee: the Cape Henlopen High School trailhead and Tanger Outlets trailhead for the Junction & Breakwater Trail; the southern Gordons Pond parking area off Ocean Drive in Rehoboth Beach for the Gordons Pond Trail (check the park page for current fee status at that lot before you go).
- Free launches: Roger C. Fisher Laurel River Park, Seaford Canoe and Kayak Launch, Oyster House Kayak Launch, Riverwalk Kayak Launch, Woodland Wharf, Foord’s Landing at Prime Hook, and the Assawoman Canal Town Road launch are all free for hand-carry boats.
- Fee-free days: no documented recurring fee-free day program for Delaware State Parks was found in a search of official DNREC and state parks pages; check destateparks.com for any current promotions.
Free forest and refuge miles
Redden State Forest
No entrance fee for day use. The Delaware Forest Service lists no entrance fee for day use at Redden; only camping and firewood fees apply.
The forest covers more than 14,000 acres across 18 named tracts in central Sussex County, near Georgetown. According to the Delaware Forest Service, it holds over 44 miles of trails.
Parking is at the headquarters trailhead off Redden Road. Dogs are allowed on a leash per on-site signage, and restrooms are at the HQ area.
The one named trail with a published length is the Redden HQ Headquarters Loop: 4.0 miles of packed earth, rated easy by Delaware Greenways. It crosses bridges over swampy sections and runs through hardwood and loblolly pine.
One safety note worth knowing: Sunday hunting is prohibited on all Delaware State Forest property, per the Delaware Forest Service. On other days during hunting seasons, wear blaze orange and check DNREC dates.
Redden is also where the American Discovery Trail crosses the Atlantic/Chesapeake Bay watershed divide on its way west from Cape Henlopen. See the full Redden trails guide for the HQ Tract map and trail details.
Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge
No entrance fee, every day of the year. The USFWS refuge page confirms: “The refuge does not charge an entrance fee.” Hours run from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset, every day of the year. The Headquarters area closes two days per year for limited deer hunting; check the refuge page for current dates before planning a visit during hunting season.
Prime Hook covers wetlands and woodland near Milton. More than 245 bird species have been recorded here, according to USFWS. Several walking trails, about 7.5 miles in all, branch from the visitor center, described on the USFWS trails page:
- Boardwalk Trail, 0.55 mi: freshwater marsh boardwalk, wheelchair accessible.
- Dike Trail, 0.49 mi: hard surface to a wheelchair-accessible observation platform.
- Pine Grove Trail, 0.79 mi: wooded loop past two ponds with a marsh viewing platform.
- Black Farm Trail, 1.92 mi: wooded uplands beside farmland and marsh.
- Blue Goose Trail, 1.84 mi: rated arduous by USFWS, with exposed roots and stumps.
- Photo Blind Trail, 0.16 mi: leads to an enclosed photography blind for bird photography.
Dogs are allowed on a short handheld leash for the entire visit, per the USFWS rules page. USFWS warns that mosquitoes, ticks, and biting flies are very heavy from June through September; plan accordingly.
The refuge also has a carry-in kayak launch at Foord’s Landing, covered in the section below. A fuller guide to Prime Hook is at birding-sussex-county.
Free long-distance trails
Georgetown-Lewes Trail
Free, flat, and growing. According to Delaware Greenways, the Georgetown-Lewes Trail runs 11 miles of asphalt on the former Delaware Coast Line Railroad bed, rated easy. No fee to use it; parking at several trailheads costs nothing.
When complete, the trail will be 17 miles and Delaware’s longest continuous trail, per Delaware Greenways. The final 6-mile section began construction in February 2025.
The Monroe Avenue trailhead in Lewes has parking, restrooms, water, and a bike repair station, confirmed by Delaware Greenways. Dog walkers are among the explicitly listed user groups. The trail connects to the Junction & Breakwater at Gills Neck Road.
The Georgetown-Lewes Trail is also part of the American Discovery Trail’s Delaware segment. The ADT enters Sussex County at Cape Henlopen and follows this corridor west toward Georgetown. More detail is in the hiking in Sussex County guide.
Cape Henlopen access without the fee
Cape Henlopen State Park covers 5,450 acres near Lewes and charges a seasonal vehicle entrance fee. But two trails that overlap with park land have trailheads outside the fee area.
Junction & Breakwater Trail is a designated National Recreation Trail on the former Junction & Breakwater Railroad bed, roughly 5.8 to 8.3 miles depending on how you measure it, asphalt and crushed stone. The trail passes an 80-foot railroad bridge built in 1913 over Holland Glade marsh.
According to Delaware Greenways, Cape Henlopen High School in Lewes and the Tanger Outlets trailhead off Holland Glade Road in Rehoboth do not require a park pass. The Wolfe Neck Road trailhead is inside the park fee area. The Junction & Breakwater Trail guide covers every trailhead with parking details.
Gordons Pond Trail is 3.2 miles one-way on crushed stone and elevated boardwalk per TrailLink, skirting a 900-acre saltwater lagoon. It fully reopened on May 21, 2026 after high-tide damage repairs, per Delaware Greenways.
According to Delaware Greenways, the northern Herring Point lot is inside Cape Henlopen State Park and fees apply there. The southern Gordons Pond parking area in Rehoboth Beach is the other end of the trail, and Delaware Greenways does not describe a fee at that lot. Check the state parks site for the current fee status of the southern lot before you go; this is an access detail that can change. The full guide is at gordons-pond-trail.
The practical details come first, not last.
Free kayak and canoe launches
Most hand-carry and town launches in Sussex County charge nothing for paddlers. Non-motorized boats are exempt from the ramp certificate required for motorboats at Delaware Fish and Wildlife ramps, according to the kayak launches guide for Sussex County (every entry sourced to its official page).
Launches that are free for kayakers and canoeists, per the kayak launches guide for Sussex County:
- Roger C. Fisher Laurel River Park on Broad Creek (Laurel)
- Seaford Canoe and Kayak Launch
- Oyster House Kayak Launch
- Riverwalk Kayak Launch
- Woodland Wharf
- Foord’s Landing at Prime Hook NWR (free carry-in; USFWS confirms no entrance fee)
- Assawoman Canal Town Road launch (opened fall 2020, per DNREC)
Foord’s Landing is the standout free paddle. From that carry-in put-in, you follow Prime Hook Creek through red maple swamp and cattail marsh for about 7 miles, according to USFWS. There’s no fee and no boat ramp certificate required.
The launches with fees are the state park ramps. Trap Pond and Holts Landing State Park both charge a state park entrance fee for access, per Delaware State Parks. If you want the Trap Pond cypress paddling experience, kayak and canoe rentals are available on site if the entrance fee fits your plan. The full kayak launches guide maps every put-in in the county.
The launches above see far less traffic than the state park ramps, and most are straightforward hand-carry access from a small parking area.
What still costs money
Being clear about this is part of the site’s core purpose.
All five state parks in Sussex County charge a seasonal vehicle entrance fee, per Delaware State Parks: Cape Henlopen, Delaware Seashore, Fenwick Island, Holts Landing, and Trap Pond. The fee typically runs from March through November; current rates and any resident discounts are on the state parks site. The Sussex County state parks guide compares what each park offers.
Kayak, canoe, and paddleboard rentals are a separate cost from the park entrance fee. The kayak and canoe rentals guide covers what’s available at each location.
Commercial pontoon eco-tours on Prime Hook are priced separately and are not covered by the refuge’s no-fee policy.
Verified beats vivid: we’d rather be accurate than poetic.
Frequently asked questions
What outdoor activities in Sussex County are completely free?
Redden State Forest (44-plus miles of trails, no entrance fee), Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge (about 7.5 miles of trails, free, open daily), the Georgetown-Lewes Trail (11 miles of asphalt rail-trail), and most hand-carry kayak launches in the county charge nothing. Several Cape Henlopen trailheads also sit outside the park fee area.
Can you visit Cape Henlopen without paying the park fee?
For two trails, yes. The Cape Henlopen High School trailhead and the Tanger Outlets trailhead give access to the Junction & Breakwater Trail without a park pass, per Delaware Greenways. The southern Gordons Pond lot in Rehoboth Beach is described by Delaware Greenways as a free-access end of the Gordons Pond Trail, but verify current fee status on the state parks site before making the trip. The Wolfe Neck Road and Herring Point lots are inside the fee area.
Is Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge free?
Yes. The USFWS refuge page states the refuge charges no entrance fee. It’s open every day of the year, from half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset. All six walking trails and the Foord’s Landing paddle launch are included.
Are there free kayak launches in Sussex County?
Several. Roger C. Fisher Laurel River Park, the Seaford Canoe and Kayak Launch, the Oyster House Kayak Launch, Riverwalk, Woodland Wharf, Foord’s Landing at Prime Hook, and the Assawoman Canal Town Road launch are all free for hand-carry boats, per the kayak launches guide for Sussex County (every entry sourced to its official page). Trap Pond and Holts Landing are the state park launches that charge a fee. The kayak launches guide has directions and parking details for all of them.
Does Delaware have fee-free days at state parks?
Neither DNREC nor destateparks.com lists a recurring fee-free day program. Check the state parks site directly for any current promotions or holiday exceptions before you go.
Photo of the Gordons Pond area, Cape Henlopen, by Andrew Parlette (CC BY 2.0), via Wikimedia Commons.
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Last verified: 2026-06.