After creating the list of fun activities a few weeks ago that you can do at the Delaware State Parks, I took it upon myself to give one of the listed activities a shot.  The guided hiking tour across the Indian River Inlet Bridge that is offered by the Delaware Seashore State Park was calling to me.  So, my husband and I decided to buy tickets to find out what this was all about and to report back on it.

            We bought our tickets online and opted for the night hike to try to avoid the heat, get some evening photos on the bridge and to enjoy the sunset.  As we headed towards the bridge on our scheduled day, we realized on our way there that we were unsure where we were supposed to meet.  We did a quick review of the online description and the confirmation email and had not noticed a meeting place listed, either.  I had decided to call the park to check but made the mistake of calling after the park office hours.  A little stressed, we decided to grab a bite to eat and would figure it out.

             Stress dissipated when my husband received a text message from the park approximately a half an hour before the hike was to begin.  The message let us know that we were to meet our guide at the North Inlet Day Area and included a link for directions.  We met up with our guide in the parking lot at the planned time and when our group was gathered and accounted for we began heading towards the pavilion for the first portion of our tour.

            Our guide went over with us how the bridge came to be, how each bridge was constructed (there were five including the bridge we know today!), and what went into designing each bridge.  Her presentation also included the history, fun facts, and pictures.  When this portion of the tour was completed, we were onto the hike!

            Due to our cars being on the side of the bridge we started from, our group only hiked the bridge half-way.  Our guide did give group members the option of ending their tour at that point so that they could continue to hike the full length of the bridge.  Other patrons in the past would decide to do this so that they could walk to the Big Chill Beach Club on the other side.  Everyone in our party chose to stay with our guide for the full duration of the tour.  During our hike on the bridge, our guide continued to tell us facts, quiz us, show points of interest and assist with picture-taking as needed or requested.  When we reached the middle of the bridge, we turned around and walked back to our cars and went our separate ways.

            My husband and I had an enjoyable time and would do it again.  Neither of us are seasoned hikers and found the hike to be very easy and short.  Our entire tour was approximately an hour long from beginning to end and we walked away learning something new.  There are also camp sites available on either side of the Indian River Inlet Bridge for those that would like to stay the night, explore other events that the Delaware Seashore State Park has to offer, or both.  In addition, if you find yourself getting hungry you can go to the Big Chill Beach Club just south of the bridge or Hammerheads Dockside restaurant just north to get something to eat.

            The Delaware Seashore State Park offers the hiking tour for the Indian River Inlet Bridge at 8:30 AM, 6:00 PM, and the night hike at 8:30 PM as of the writing of this blog.  Tickets can be bought online up to 24 hours prior to the hike but you can call the park directly at 302-227-6991 to make a reservation after that time period.  The park office hours to make reservations by phone are from 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM.  When you make your reservation online, it does let you know where you are to meet (which my husband and I overlooked), the most updated health and safety guidelines, as well as what date and times are available.  Tickets cost $6.00 per person and there is a service charge of $0.50 per ticket when you purchase online.

            If you would like to make a reservation, to see the park’s most updated health and safety guidelines, other Delaware State Park events, or to see the menus of the restaurants mentioned in this blog, please check out the links below!  Until your next adventure, please have fun and enjoy your day.

  https://destateparks.com/Programs

https://delawarestateparks.reserveamerica.com/tourDetails.do?contractCode=DE&tourId=118406&tourDate=Sat+Aug+14+2021&numberOfTicketsSearched=1&_ga=2.112956108.959738006.1628690475-1161746298.1626375019

https://destateparks.com/covid19

https://bigchillbeachclub.com/#intro?utm_source=GMB&utm_medium=Yext

https://hammerheadsdockside.com/