13% of Holly Ridge’s land is conserved: 355 acres
12% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 10 acres are parks and preserves, 2.1 per 1,000 residents. 2.5 miles of mapped trail cross Holly Ridge, 0.6 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 41% of U.S. towns · #137 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
What kind of outdoors town is Holly Ridge?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
How much outdoors does Holly Ridge have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Holly Ridge is ahead of 41% of U.S. towns, #137 of 290 in North Carolina. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
PAD-US, OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors), Census 2025 Gazetteer and 2020 blocks; details in Sources below. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
355 conserved acres
13% of Holly Ridge’s land. Who manages Holly Ridge’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 5 of 8 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Holly Ridge Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 247 | Unknown |
| North Carolina Coastal Federation Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 51 | Unknown |
| Stump Sound Preserve Private Recreation or Education | Private owners | 51 | Closed |
| NC Land and Water Fund Project State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 49 | Restricted |
| Camp Lejeune Military Land | Not recorded | 43 | Unknown |
| Onslow County Park Local Park | County | 8 | Open |
| Town of Surf City Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 4 | Unknown |
4 places to go in Holly Ridge
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
The best walking months in Holly Ridge: 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 | 13.9 | 14.4 | 14.2 | 13.4 | 12.3 | 11.2 | 10.3 | 9.9 |
| High (°F) | 56 | 59 | 66 | 74 | 80 | 86 | 89 | 88 | 83 | 75 | 66 | 59 |
| Rain (in) | 4.0 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 3.6 | 4.5 | 5.6 | 6.4 | 7.3 | 7.7 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 3.8 |
February is the driest month (3.6 in) and July the warmest (highs of 89 °F). 7.7 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 89 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Holly Ridge →
Questions about parks and trails in Holly Ridge
How much of Holly Ridge is conserved land?
13% 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.
Is there public land near Holly Ridge?
40,333 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Holly Ridge or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 10 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Holly Ridge have?
Ahead of 41% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #137 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 Holly Ridge neighbors.
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 →