Palmyra Cove Nature Park — Attraction in Palmyra

Alert: No pets allowed. I didn’t notice the sign so I took my dog for a walk with me until a gentleman kindly reminded me of it.

Update 05/12/2021: Today when we hiked on the Cove Trail leading to the far side of the park, we found the trail was almost blocked by wild-grown Japanese knotweed. It’s almost everywhere. And many spots of the board paths have broken spots and wild plants poking out on the paths. So walk with cautions if you want to explore that part.

Updated 12/22/2019: I brought my family and friends for a walk today. This time we passed thru the long boardwalk connecting Delaware Rive and Palmyra Cove. Then I realized there’s a very long boardwalk leading to another side of the cove, where Pennsauken Creek runs thru to Delaware River. We thought we could go around the cove and get back to the nature center from there but couldn’t find a path after about 1/3 miles away from the Pennsauken Creek lookout. So we had to come the same way back.

Nevertheless, it’s very nice walk to enjoy different views and watch wildlife.

I first went here on 12/12/2019. As soon as I parked, I was attracted by the lively beautiful painting of the hawk on the park building!

When I started walking, I enjoyed the nice views of the Delaware River, bridges and park at such a pleasant sunny day. There are lots of access to the river from the trail. You can walk at the sandy shore at low tide time but must watch out as the tide fills up very quickly. This morning before noontime, I was able to walk on the riverside toward another bridge. But when I came back, the sandy walkable edge of the river was filled up with water already. However, I would suggest that you wear shoes to walk on the shore any time as there‘s too much junk washed onshore, you never know what you would step onto.

The boardwalks for birdwatching are really nicely built and maintained. Bring your binoculars or long lenses camera if you are a bird lover.

The trails are very easy for all ages. So I think it’s good for outdoor activities...

Let me start off by saying that I LOVE PALMYRA NATURE COVE. Its a great place to get back to nature and just be quiet and walk, listen and look at the beauty that is around us. We used to live very close by and this was almost a weekly adventure spot for my wife and myself. We moved away about 8 years ago and haven’t been back since then. We just visited the cove today and we were thrilled to be back. The nature center is closed due to Covid but the main attraction has always been the park itself anyways. The main trails and “the basin” are just like we remembered and we felt like we were home. The downside to our visit was the hike out to the outer portion of the park. This is the Cove trail. Our last visit to this part of the park i remember it being a highlight and our favorite part of park because of how remote it is and the awesome view of the philly skyline. There was always some garbage and debris because..its Philly and things wash up. This time we had our 6 year old son and i felt like i was on guard constantly telling him, “dont touch anything” “dont pick that up” “watch out for that”. After we got past the fresh water inlet bridge it was actually depressing to see how much garbage was off to the side of the trail. To cap it all off there was a syringe, smack dab in the middle of the trail. Let me reiterate, i still love this park, BUT, we will not be taking the cove trail on our next visit. Stick to the main park and you will have a lovely time as we did. If we lived closer I think I would put my money where my mouth is and volunteer my time to clean up the Cove trail to bring it back to its...

The park itself was very nice. There are a ton of different trails. Some of the trails go along the water, through the wetlands, or into meadows. Each trail is labeled with a sign displaying its name, which was very helpful. Majority of the trails are stone, sand, or grass. We had a stroller with us and we managed to get it around. We saw a lot of wildlife, which was really cool. Lots of deer, turkeys, bunnies, and butterflies.

Walking along the water had some pro's and con's. Pro's: it looked pretty (from a distance) with the sun shining down on the water. Lots of boats can be seen going by. You can see the Philadelphia skyline and two bridges. The breeze was also magnificent.

Con's: The Delaware River is sadly SO dirty and polluted. If you plan to walk along the shoreline PLEASE beware, especially if you have children. We had our two year old and I did not allow her to walk on the sand. The shore was filled with garbage of every kind. We saw bottles of every type of beverage, dead fish, a dead rat, feminine products, needles, and needle caps. We did not stay down there long upon discovering this. It's sad because I remember walking along the Delaware River shorelines as a kid and I don't think it was this bad.

All in all, the park itself was wonderful and the views of the water are very nice. Just please be careful if you decide to venture out onto the shore...