Demarest Lloyd State Park is a state park in Dartmouth, Massachusetts. This is a park along Buzzards Bay that you can visit with your Plymouth van rental. You can fish, canoe, kayak, picnic, swim, and walk along the trails here.

Dartmouth’s secret

Demarest Lloyd Memorial State Park is a lesser known park in the Massachusetts forest and park system with your Plymouth rental van. Here, you will find a saltwater beach, with hills of beach grass and grassy picnic sites. Along the eastern edge of the park, there is a marsh line along the Slocum River. The beach here is ideal for families to go swimming because the surf is calm and shallow, and it is warm most of the summer as well. The park is open from mid Mar through mid September, from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. on weekends and holidays. Pets, kite surfing, skim boarding, bogey boarding, and flotation devices are not allowed here.

How to get here

When you visit with your van rental Plymouth, you can get here from Route 195 by taking Exit 12, Faunce Corner Road South. Follow this road to Route 6, going straight across onto Old Westport Road. At the fork, stay to the left onto Chase Road. Follow this road to the end and take a right, past the Dartmouth DPW. Follow the signs from here.

Exploring the area

When you visit with your rental van Plymouth, you will find Dartmouth is a beautiful town in Bristol County. This is an old town, established in 1664. The area was eventually sold to the Quakers, who wanted to escape the stringent religious laws of the Puritans in Plymouth. You can still find Quaker meeting houses in town, including the Smith Neck Meeting House, the Allens Neck Meeting House, and the Apponegansett Meeting House. The area was largely agricultural, but was also a resort area for the wealthy members of New Bedford.

Life is a beach

Being a coastal town, the area has a number of beaches that you can visit with your Plymouth van rental. Apponagansett Pakr on Gulf Road offers a scenic view of the harbor and a sandy beach. There is a picnic area for you to enjoy a lunch here, as well as volleyball court, basketball court, and playground equipment. There are lifeguards on duty here from July 1st through Labor Day, but the park is open to the general public. Jones Park on Saint John Street is a sandy beach with a bathhouse, softball field, horseshoe puits, and playground equipment. There are lifeguards here from the end of June through Labor Day as well, and the park can be enjoyed by the general public. Finally, there is the Dartmouth Regional Park and Trails, which is a multi-faceted regional park for active and passive recreation, and is open a year long for visitors to enjoy the recreation areas and walking trails.

Summer concert series

Every summer, there is a concert series that takes place at Apponagansett Park, near the Padanaram Bridge with your Plymouth rental van. This happens every Wednesday night from 6:30-8:30 p.m., and costs $5 per person at the gate or $4 in advance. Check out the town’s website to find out who will be performing when you are in town. This is a great way to get out and enjoy the last couple hours of sun in the day while enjoying good music. After, you may take a stroll around town or enjoy dinner at one of the local restaurants.

When you visit with your Plymouth van rental, you will find Demarest Lloyd Memorial State Park is a great place to visit with the whole family to enjoy some time outside, particularly if you are looking to get some time on the beach and in the water.