Emerald Isle Woods Park
Park
42 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Photo: DiscoA340 · CC BY-SA 4.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Emerald Isle
Emerald Isle has 6.3 miles of mapped trails, 1.3 for every square mile of land
The biggest trail networks: Emerald Isle Woods Park (1.2 mi). 5% of Emerald Isle’s land is conserved, about 151 acres. 59 acres are parks and preserves, 15 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns · #51 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
151 acres · of 4.9 sq mi of land
Trails
6.3 mi
1.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
59 ac
15 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
58%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
11 mi
11 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
5 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Emerald Isle?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Emerald Isle have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Emerald Isle is ahead of 70% of U.S. towns, #51 of 290 in North Carolina. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Emerald Isle’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails1.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (6 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4APark land15 acres of park per 1,000 residents (59 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13BParks close to home58% of residents within a half mile of a park · NC 51% · U.S. 72%B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 70%
LessMore
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 83%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from B− 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 Emerald Isle Woods Park, with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Ocean Oaks Park
Park
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
151 conserved acres
5% of Emerald Isle’s land. Who manages Emerald Isle’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city46 ac
State conservation40 ac
Not recorded221 ac
State Other or Unknown · 115 acLocal Other or Unknown · 105 acConservation Easement · 40 acLocal Park · 37 acLocal Recreation Area · 8 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 7 of 10 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Emerald Isle Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 103 | Unknown |
| NC Land and Water Fund Conservation Agreement State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 70 | Unknown |
| NC Submerged Lands State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 46 | Open |
| Emerald Isle Woods Park Local Park | Town or city | 37 | Open |
| Nc Wildlife Public Boat Ramp Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Town of Emerald Isle - Blue Heron Park Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 2 | Unknown |
Things to do
12 places to go in Emerald Isle
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Emerald Isle
3 public pools without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Emerald Isle
4 playgrounds without a name on the map.
Boat launches in Emerald Isle
Emerald Isle Boat RampIn Emerald Isle Boat Ramp
DirectionsEmerald Isle Boat RampIn Emerald Isle Boat Ramp
DirectionsU.S. Coast Guard - Station Emerald Island
DirectionsPlus 2 boat launches without a name on the map.
Trails & water
1 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
11 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
11 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
20Tennis
3Pickleball
2Volleyball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
When to get out
The best walking months in Emerald Isle: 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) | 10.1 | 10.9 | 11.9 | 13.0 | 14.0 | 14.5 | 14.3 | 13.4 | 12.3 | 11.2 | 10.3 | 9.8 |
| High (°F) | 56 | 59 | 65 | 72 | 79 | 85 | 88 | 87 | 83 | 75 | 66 | 59 |
| Rain (in) | 4.1 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 3.5 | 4.3 | 5.3 | 6.5 | 7.3 | 7.7 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 4.0 |
April is the driest month (3.5 in) and July the warmest (highs of 88 °F). 7.7 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 88 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Emerald Isle →
Questions about parks and trails in Emerald Isle
Where can I hike in Emerald Isle?
The longest trail networks: Emerald Isle Woods Park, 1.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Emerald Isle is conserved land?
5% 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 Emerald Isle’s trails?
Emerald Isle Woods Park and Emerald Isle Boat Ramp don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Emerald Isle?
11 miles of bike routes are on the map: 11 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Emerald Isle?
39,065 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Emerald Isle or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 119 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Emerald Isle have?
Ahead of 70% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #51 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 Emerald Isle 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 →