Lillington Recreation Park
Park
11 acres0.5 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Dincher · CC BY-SA 3.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in Lillington
Lillington has 198 acres of parks, 42 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Lillington Recreation Park (0.5 mi). 8% of Lillington’s land is conserved, about 414 acres. 35% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 60% of U.S. towns · #69 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Conserved land
8%
414 acres · of 8.1 sq mi of land
Trails
2.1 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
198 ac
42 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
35%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
2.5 mi
2.5 mi paths
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Lillington have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Lillington is ahead of 60% of U.S. towns, #69 of 290 in North Carolina. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Lillington’s overall grade.
Conserved land8% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%B+Trails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land42 acres of park per 1,000 residents (198 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home35% 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 60%
LessMore
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 76%
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 Lillington Recreation Park, with 0.5 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
414 conserved acres
8% of Lillington’s land. Who manages Lillington’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city19 ac
Not recorded396 ac
State Other or Unknown · 202 acLocal Recreation Area · 177 acLocal Park · 19 acLocal Other or Unknown · 16 ac
Good to know
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.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harnett Correctional Institution State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 200 | Restricted |
| Harnett County - Cape Fear Shiner County Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 170 | Unknown |
| Lillington Park Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Open |
| Harnett County Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 14 | Unknown |
| Town of Lillington - Lillington Riverfront Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 7 | Unknown |
| Town of Lillington Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 2 | Unknown |
| NC Department of Transportation Mitigation Site State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 2 | Unknown |
| Lillington Community Bldg Local Park | Town or city | 1 | Open |
Things to do
4 places to go in Lillington
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Lillington
3 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Boat launches in Lillington
1 boat launch without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Biking & sports
2.5 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
2.5 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
2Tennis
1Basketball
1Baseball
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).
Summerville Presbyterian Church and CemeteryBuilding · listed 1985
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Lillington: 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) | 53 | 57 | 65 | 74 | 81 | 87 | 91 | 89 | 83 | 74 | 64 | 56 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 3.1 | 3.7 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 4.8 | 5.4 | 5.0 | 5.1 | 3.3 | 3.4 | 3.4 |
February is the driest month (3.1 in) and July the warmest (highs of 91 °F). 5.4 inches fall in July, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 91 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Lillington →
Questions about parks and trails in Lillington
Where can I hike in Lillington?
The longest trail networks: Lillington Recreation Park, 0.5 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Lillington is conserved land?
8% 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 Lillington’s trails?
Lillington Recreation Park doesn’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Lillington?
2.5 miles of bike routes are on the map: 2.5 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Lillington?
7,145 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Lillington or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 198 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Lillington have?
Ahead of 60% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #69 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 Lillington 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 →