Chimney Rock State Park
Nature preserve
845 acres3.2 mi of trail
Rumbling Bald LoopHickory Nut Falls TrailSkyline TrailFour Seasons Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Palmer Fire School · Photo: North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources · Public domainAOutdoors
Outdoors in Lake Lure
26% of Lake Lure’s land is conserved: 2,219 acres
289 acres are parks and preserves, 187 per 1,000 residents. 18 miles of mapped trail cross Lake Lure, 1.4 per square mile of land. The biggest trail networks: Chimney Rock State Park (3.2 mi), Dittmer-Watts Nature Trail Park (2.8 mi), Morse Park (0.7 mi).
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
26%
2,219 acres · of 13.2 sq mi of land
Trails
18 mi
1.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
289 ac
187 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
60%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
2,480 ft
Chimney Rock Mountain
Lakes & rivers
2
2 beaches · 5 boat launches
What kind of outdoors town is Lake Lure?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lake Lure have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lake Lure is ahead of 93% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lake Lure’s overall grade.
Conserved land26% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%ATrails1.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (18 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4APark land187 acres of park per 1,000 residents (289 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13AParks close to home60% 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 93%
LessMore
Water is 8% of Lake Lure’s area (1 of 14 square miles), so every share here is of land; over land and water together, the conserved share would read 24%.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from A to A+. 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 Chimney Rock State Park, with 3.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Dittmer-Watts Nature Trail Park
Park
68 acres2.8 mi of trail
Mountain Laurel TrailRaptor Ridge TrailMountain Vista TrailDogwood Trail+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lotWebsite ↗
Lake Lure Green Space
Nature preserve
55 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
All 5 parks & preserves
Chimney Rock State Park845 acres · 3.2 mi of trail
DirectionsDittmer-Watts Nature Trail Park68 acres · 2.8 mi of trail
DirectionsMorse Park22 acres · 0.7 mi of trail
DirectionsLake Lure Green Space55 acres
Buffalo Creek Park11 acres · Town of Lake Lure
Who protects it
2,219 conserved acres
26% of Lake Lure’s land. Water is left out: Lake Lure has 13.2 square miles of land and 1.2 of water, so the share counts land only. Who manages Lake Lure’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation690 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits426 ac
Town or city3 ac
Not recorded2,494 ac
Conservation Easement · 1,116 acState Park · 928 acUnknown · 804 acState Other or Unknown · 663 acLocal Recreation Area · 54 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 325 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 20 of 27 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chimney Rock State Park State Park | Not recorded | 928 | Open |
| Lake Lure Unknown | Not recorded | 804 | Unknown |
| NC Land and Water Fund Project State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 587 | Restricted |
| NC Land and Water Fund Conservation Agreement State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 76 | Restricted |
| Town of Lake Lure Open Space Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 63 | Unknown |
| Town of Lake Lure - Morse Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 26 | Unknown |
| Town of Lake Lure - Lake Lure Beach and Water Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 6 | Unknown |
| Town of Lake Lure - Buffalo Creek Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 3 | Unknown |
| Buffalo Creek Park Local Park | Town or city | 3 | Open |
| Rutherford County Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 1 | Unknown |
1 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
18 places to go in Lake Lure
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Lake Lure
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Lake Lure
5 boat launches without a name on the map.
Waterfalls in Lake Lure
Bottomless Pools
DirectionsHickory Nut FallsIn Chimney Rock State Park
DirectionsScenic views in Lake Lure
Devil's HeadIn Chimney Rock State Park
DirectionsExclamation PointIn Chimney Rock State Park
DirectionsOpera BoxIn Chimney Rock State Park
DirectionsPulpit RockIn Chimney Rock State Park
DirectionsVista RockIn Chimney Rock State Park
DirectionsPeaks in Lake Lure
Chimney Rock Mountain2,480 ft elevation · In Chimney Rock State Park
DirectionsChimney Rock2,280 ft elevation · In Chimney Rock State Park
DirectionsBuzzards Roost1,470 ft elevation
DirectionsFairfield Mountain1,293 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
18 named trails and 2 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 5.8 mi
Rumbling Bald Loop1.4 mi
Hickory Nut Falls Trail0.6 mi
Skyline Trail0.6 mi
Mountain Laurel Trail0.6 mi
Raptor Ridge Trail0.5 mi
Mountain Vista Trail0.5 mi
Dogwood Trail0.4 mi
Roller Coaster Trail0.2 mi
Four Seasons Trail0.2 mi
Creekside Trail0.2 mi
8 more trails
Mulberry Trail
0.2 miPiney Hill Trail
0.1 miOutcroppings Trail
0.1 miGreat Woodlands Adventure Trail
0.1 miExclamation Point Trail
0.1 miRhododendron Trail
0.1 miHummingbird Cove
0.1 miHuckelberry Trail
0.1 miLakes & 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
8Tennis
2Pickleball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →2 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Lake Lure: April to June
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) | 51 | 55 | 63 | 72 | 79 | 86 | 89 | 87 | 82 | 72 | 62 | 53 |
| Rain (in) | 4.8 | 4.0 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.3 | 5.3 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 5.1 |
February is the driest month (4.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 89 °F). 5.3 inches fall in August, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 89 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Lake Lure →
Next door
Lake Lure and its neighbors
Lake Lure 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Lure | 26% | 1.4 | 187 | 60% | A |
| Chimney Rock Village | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Lake Lure
Where can I hike in Lake Lure?
The longest trail networks: Chimney Rock State Park, 3.2 miles; Dittmer-Watts Nature Trail Park, 2.8 miles; Morse Park, 0.7 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lake Lure is conserved land?
26% 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 Lake Lure’s trails?
Chimney Rock State Park and Dittmer-Watts Nature Trail Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Lake Lure?
16,919 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lake Lure or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 289 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Lake Lure have?
Ahead of 93% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade. 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 Lake Lure 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 →