Chuck Morehead Memorial Park
Park
65 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Jon Platek · CC BY-SA 3.0C+Outdoors
Outdoors in Albemarle
Albemarle has 285 acres of parks, 17 for every 1,000 residents
46% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 2.3 miles of mapped trail cross Albemarle, 0.1 per square mile of land. 4% of Albemarle’s land is conserved, about 440 acres.
Ahead of 43% of U.S. towns · #127 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
440 acres · of 18.2 sq mi of land
Trails
2.3 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
285 ac
17 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
46%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.7 mi
0.2 mi lanes · 0.3 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Albemarle?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Albemarle have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Albemarle is ahead of 43% of U.S. towns, #127 of 290 in North Carolina. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
C+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Albemarle’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.1 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4CPark land17 acres of park per 1,000 residents (285 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13BParks close to home46% of residents within a half mile of a park · NC 51% · U.S. 72%C+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 43%
LessMore
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 56%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ to B−. Trails and many small parks come from OpenStreetMap, mapped by volunteers, so coverage varies from town to town; the half mile is a straight line from each census block, so a river or highway in the way isn’t counted against it.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Chuck Morehead Memorial Park, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Rock Creek Park
Park
26 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Don Montgomery Park
Park
16 acres0.3 mi of trail
Don Montgomery Park Path
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 7 parks & preserves
Chuck Morehead Memorial Park65 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Rock Creek Park26 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Don Montgomery Park16 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
City Lake Park70 acres
DirectionsAlbemarle Soccer Complex10 acres
DirectionsWiscassett Park6 acres
Hearne Park1 acres
Who protects it
440 conserved acres
4% of Albemarle’s land. Who manages Albemarle’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State natural resources13 ac
Town or city11 ac
Not recorded418 ac
Local Recreation Area · 234 acLocal Other or Unknown · 184 acConservation Easement · 13 acLocal Park · 11 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 13 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 5 of 13 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| City of Albermarle - Long Lake Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 155 | Unknown |
| City of Albermarle - City Lake Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 70 | Open |
| City of Albermarle - Morehead Memorial Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 64 | Open |
| City of Albermarle - Rock Creek Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 36 | Open |
| City of Albermarle Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 24 | Unknown |
| City of Albermarle - South Albermarle Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 23 | Open |
| City of Albermarle - Montgomery Memorial Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 20 | Open |
| City of Albermarle - Roger F. Snyder Greenway Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 20 | Unknown |
| E.E. Waddell Community Center Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Stanly County Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 5 | Unknown |
2 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
8 places to go in Albemarle
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Albemarle
Rock Creek Park PoolIn Rock Creek Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Albemarle
Rotary's All Children's PlaygroundIn Wiscassett Park
DirectionsPlus 4 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Albemarle
2 dog parks without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 named trail and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 0.9 miUnpaved · 0.9 mi
Don Montgomery Park Path0.9 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.7 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.2 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
0.3 mi
off-road bike paths
0.1 mi
shoulders & shared lanes
Courts & fields
10Pickleball
9Baseball
8Tennis
5Soccer
3Basketball
1Beach volleyball
1Football
1Volleyball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →9 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Isaiah Wilson Snugs House, and Marks HouseBuilding · listed 1995
About itOpera House-Starnes Jewelers BuildingBuilding · listed 1995
About itPee Dee Avenue Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1998
About itDowntown Albemarle Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2002
About itFive Points Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2002
About itSecond Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2005
About itThomas Marcellus Denning HouseBuilding · listed 2011
About itAlbemarle Graded School-Central Elementary SchoolBuilding · listed 2014
About itJulius Clegg Hall House and GroundsBuilding · listed 2021
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Albemarle: April and May
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 10.0 | 10.9 | 11.9 | 13.0 | 14.0 | 14.5 | 14.3 | 13.5 | 12.3 | 11.2 | 10.2 | 9.8 |
| High (°F) | 52 | 56 | 64 | 73 | 80 | 87 | 90 | 88 | 83 | 73 | 63 | 55 |
| Rain (in) | 3.7 | 3.2 | 3.8 | 3.7 | 3.5 | 4.5 | 4.7 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.7 |
February is the driest month (3.2 in) and July the warmest (highs of 90 °F). 4.7 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 90 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Albemarle →
Questions about parks and trails in Albemarle
Where can I hike in Albemarle?
The longest trail networks: Chuck Morehead Memorial Park, 0.3 miles; Rock Creek Park, 0.3 miles; Don Montgomery Park, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Albemarle is conserved land?
4% of its land, against a typical 3% for a North Carolina town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Albemarle’s trails?
Chuck Morehead Memorial Park and Rock Creek Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Albemarle?
0.7 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.2 of painted or protected lanes, 0.3 of off-road paths and 0.1 of shoulders and shared lanes.
Is there public land near Albemarle?
37,233 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Albemarle or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 285 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Albemarle have?
Ahead of 43% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #127 of 290 in North Carolina. The grade combines the share of land that is conserved, miles of mapped trail per square mile of land, park acres per 1,000 residents and the share of residents within a half mile of a park. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Albemarle neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →