King Recreation Area
Managed by City of King
51 acres1.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
King Historic District · Photo: Ceh2624 · CC BY-SA 3.0C+Outdoors
Outdoors in King
King has 87 acres of parks, 12 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: King Recreation Area (1.3 mi). 36% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 2% of King’s land is conserved, about 84 acres.
Ahead of 38% of U.S. towns · #153 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
84 acres · of 6.3 sq mi of land
Trails
1.9 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
87 ac
12 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
36%
of residents within ½ mile
Lakes & rivers
1
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does King have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, King is ahead of 38% of U.S. towns, #153 of 290 in North Carolina. Trail miles hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
C+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of King’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%C+Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land12 acres of park per 1,000 residents (87 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home36% 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 38%
LessMore
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 47%
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 King Recreation Area, with 1.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
84 conserved acres
2% of King’s land. Who manages King’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Not recorded93 ac
Local Recreation Area · 73 acLocal Other or Unknown · 11 acLocal Conservation Area · 9 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 3 of 4 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| City of King - Recreation Acres Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 55 | Unknown |
| City of King Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 20 | Unknown |
| City of King - Central Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 18 | Unknown |
Things to do
6 places to go in King
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in King
Batting CageIn King Recreation Area
DirectionsEveryone's PlaygroundIn King Recreation Area
DirectionsPlus 3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in King
King Dog ParkIn King Recreation Area
DirectionsTrails & water
1 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
6Baseball
3Soccer
3Multi-sport
1Pickleball
1Skate park
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
King Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2002
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in King: April to June and August
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) | 9.9 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.1 | 14.1 | 14.6 | 14.4 | 13.5 | 12.4 | 11.2 | 10.2 | 9.7 |
| High (°F) | 48 | 52 | 60 | 70 | 77 | 84 | 87 | 85 | 79 | 70 | 60 | 51 |
| Rain (in) | 3.7 | 3.0 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 3.3 | 3.2 | 3.7 |
February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 4.4 inches fall in August, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in King →
Next door
King and its neighbors
King 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| King | 2% | 0.3 | 12 | 36% | C+ |
| Tobaccoville | under 1% | 0.2 | 6 | 11% | C− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in King
Where can I hike in King?
The longest trail networks: King Recreation Area, 1.3 miles; Central Park, 0.2 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of King is conserved land?
2% 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 King’s trails?
King Recreation Area and Central Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near King?
9,140 acres of parks and open public land lie inside King or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 87 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does King have?
Ahead of 38% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #153 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 King 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 →