James Farm Loop

Dogs Leashed

Features Birding · Fall Colors · River/Creek · Swimming · Views · Wildlife

This loop of trails winds through meadows and forests with views of salt marshes and the Indian River Bay.

Ticks and insects can be troublesome during the summer months. Paddlesport rentals available during the summer at the beach.

The loop is best accessed from the east side on the Purple Trail, where the trail separates pine forest and meadow. Make sure to access the short boardwalk to the viewing platform to view Slough's Gut and Beach Cove. The meadow loop will sometimes reveal deer and turkey.

Crossing back to the west side on the Green Trail, the loop wind through early successional forest, then pines, then mature mixed maritime forest. Be careful of the boardwalks, which can be slippery and uneven. See the views of the salt marsh from the Orange Trail Spur. In addition to Pasture Point Cove and the beach, there is the highlight of the hike itself.

An E-Bird hotspot, numerous shorebirds, songbirds, and raptors documented on or passing through the property. Many turtles including eastern box on the wooded trails and diamond-back terrapins in the bay. No venomous snakes.

Various vegetative zones include freshwater wetland, salt marsh, beach, mixed maritime forest, and upland meadow. All sorts of cool mushrooms during wet periods (forage at your own peril).

Donated to Sussex County in 1994 by Mary Lighthipe, the property is now operated by the non-profit Delaware Center for the Inland Bays.