Mercer County Park is the largest park in central New Jersey, spanning 2,500 acres across West Windsor, Hamilton and Lawrence townships. It has facilities for nearly every outdoor activity, including beautiful areas for walking and enjoying Mercer Lake.
At Nature Break we feature nature beautiful experiences that fit into your busy day, so most of this video will feature the outdoor activities around the lake and the boathouse. But there are also playgrounds and picnic areas, as well as facilities for golf, tennis, baseball, soccer and Olympic rowing, which we’ll cover later in the video.
Mercer County Park park is open Sunrise to Sunset, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Its official name is Richard J. Coffee Mercer County Park, named for the former State Senator and Lawrence Mayor who was the driving force in the creation of a park system for Mercer County.
My favorite spot is the area by the boathouse, which offers great walking trails , picnic areas and views of Mercer Lake. You can rent bikes, kayaks, pedal boats and row boats by the hour. They also offer pontoon boat tours of the lake on summer weekends, and there is a boat ramp for folks who want to bring their own watercraft. No gas motors are allowed, but electric trolling motors of up to 12 volts are welcome.
The boathouse doubles as an event venue with an active wedding business, but there’s also a snack bar and patio for the boaters. One of the best features of the park is the long peninsula next to the marina, which offers great views of the lake in both directions. It ends in a gazebo, which is a popular spot for outdoor weddings and photo shoots.
Another great spot is the Grandparents Grove, which offers a seating area and picnic tables with great views of the lake and shoreline. It’s one of many locations suitable for picnics, and there are multiple playground areas.
Mercer Lake covers 275 acres, and was created in 1975 when the Department of Agriculture built a dam to control flooding on the Assunpink Creek in Trenton. The lake basin was excavated by crews building nearby Interstate 295 at no additional cost to taxpayers.
The lake is a popular fishing destination, with populations of Largemouth Bass, catfish, bluegills and reportedly muskies. You can fish from the banks or a personal water craft.
Mercer Lake is home to one of the US Olympic Rowing Team’s training centers. The 2,000 meter course at Mercer Lake played host to Olympic Trials from 1998-2008, and regularly hosts college races and international regattas.
The lake and boathouse area are just a small portion of Mercer County Park’s sports facilities. There are two 18-hole golf courses, Mercer Oaks East and West, as well as the Mercer County Tennis Center, which offers 28 courts for either indoor or outdoor play.
There’s also an ice skating center and more than a dozen fields dedicated to soccer, football and lacrosse. There are also 10 baseball and softball fields, basketball courts, two cricket pitches, and a Frisbee golf course.
The park is also home to the Mercer County 9-11 Memorial, remembering county residents that perished in the attacks. The Memorial features a steel girder salvaged from the World Trade Center site, along with steel cables that were part of the elevator system at the towers.
