Charles R. Summey Park
Park
59 acres0.7 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 4.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Forest City
Forest City has 204 acres of parks, 28 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Charles R. Summey Park (0.7 mi). 0.9 miles of mapped trail cross Forest City, 0.1 per square mile of land. 4% of Forest City’s land is conserved, about 239 acres.
Ahead of 50% of U.S. towns · #105 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
239 acres · of 8.6 sq mi of land
Trails
0.9 mi
0.1 per sq mi of land
Park land
204 ac
28 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
53%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
4.6 mi
4.6 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Forest City?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Forest City have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Forest City is ahead of 50% of U.S. towns, #105 of 290 in North Carolina. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Forest City’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 (1 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4CPark land28 acres of park per 1,000 residents (204 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home53% 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 50%
LessMore
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 64%
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 Charles R. Summey Park, with 0.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
James F. Crowe Memorial Park
Park
59 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Legacy Soccer Park
Managed by Town of Forest City, Rutherford County
38 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Charles R. Summey Park59 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
James F. Crowe Memorial Park59 acres
Legacy Soccer Park38 acres · Town of Forest City, Rutherford County
Pavillion on Park Square3 acres
DirectionsHardin Road Park2 acres
Who protects it
239 conserved acres
4% of Forest City’s land. Who manages Forest City’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city72 ac
Not recorded167 ac
Local Other or Unknown · 87 acLocal Recreation Area · 87 acLocal Park · 65 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 3 of 7 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Forest City - James F. Crowe Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 68 | Open |
| Summey Park Local Park | Town or city | 62 | Open |
| Town of Forest City Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 48 | Unknown |
| Rutherford County Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 39 | Unknown |
| Rutherford County - Isothermal Community College Trails Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 12 | Unknown |
| Mcnair Field Local Recreation Area | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Hardin Road Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
Things to do
4 places to go in Forest City
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Forest City
Callison Pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Forest City
2 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Forest City
Trails to Tails Dog Park
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
ICC Trails - Blue East0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
4.6 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
4.6 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
10Baseball
4Tennis
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →8 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
James Dexter Ledbetter HouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itForest City Baptist ChurchBuilding · listed 1989
About itCool Springs High SchoolBuilding · listed 1999
About itT. Max Watson HouseBuilding · listed 2001
About itMain Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2002
About itMain Street Historic District (Boundary Expansion)District · listed 2004
About itEast Main Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2005
About itWest Main Street Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2006
About itAlexander Manufacturing Company Mill Village Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2008
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Forest City: 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 | 63 | 73 | 80 | 86 | 90 | 88 | 82 | 73 | 62 | 54 |
| Rain (in) | 4.1 | 3.4 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.1 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (3.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 90 °F). 4.5 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 90 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Forest City →
Next door
Forest City and its neighbors
Forest City has the most mapped trails of the 2 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forest City | 4% | 0.1 | 28 | 53% | B− |
| Spindale | 1% | under 0.1 | 9 | 58% | C− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Forest City
Where can I hike in Forest City?
The longest trail networks: Charles R. Summey Park, 0.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Forest City 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 Forest City’s trails?
Charles R. Summey Park and James F. Crowe Memorial Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Forest City?
4.6 miles of bike routes are on the map: 4.6 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Forest City?
553 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Forest City or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 204 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Forest City have?
Ahead of 50% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #105 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 Forest City 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 →