Catawba Meadows Park
Managed by City of Morganton
233 acres3 mi of trail
Catawba Meadows Park Nature Trail Disc Golf Course
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Ron Reiring · CC BY 2.0B+Outdoors
Outdoors in Morganton
Morganton has 553 acres of parks, 31 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Catawba Meadows Park (3 mi). 9.6 miles of mapped trail cross Morganton, 0.5 per square mile of land. 5% of Morganton’s land is conserved, about 659 acres.
Ahead of 72% of U.S. towns · #45 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
659 acres · of 19.2 sq mi of land
Trails
9.6 mi
0.5 per sq mi of land
Park land
553 ac
31 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
70%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
13 mi
1.3 mi lanes · 12 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
3
What kind of outdoors town is Morganton?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Morganton have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Morganton is ahead of 72% of U.S. towns, #45 of 290 in North Carolina. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; park acres per resident rank highest, the share of residents near a park lowest.
B+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Morganton’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.5 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (10 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4BPark land31 acres of park per 1,000 residents (553 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home70% 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 72%
LessMore
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 85%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Catawba Meadows Park, with 3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Cascade Park
Park
6 acres0.3 mi of trail
Cascade Park Primary Trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Freedom Park
Managed by Burke County Schools
52 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Catawba River Greenway - Greenlee Ford & River Village Sections
Park
38 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 14 parks & preserves
Catawba Meadows Park233 acres · 3 mi of trail · City of Morganton
DirectionsCascade Park6 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
Freedom Park52 acres · 0.1 mi of trail · Burke County Schools
DirectionsCatawba River Greenway - Greenlee Ford & River Village Sections38 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsCatawba River Soccer Complex32 acres · City of Morganton
DirectionsBethel Park32 acres
DirectionsCollett Street Park18 acres
DirectionsShuey Park16 acres
Martin Luther King Jr. Park13 acres · Morganton Parks and Recreation
Carbon City Park5 acres
DirectionsRock Pile Farm And Stump Farm Forestry Center3 acres
Drexel Heritage Park3 acres
DirectionsMartha's Park2 acres
DirectionsCollett Street Recreation Center1 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
659 conserved acres
5% of Morganton’s land. Who manages Morganton’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Town or city367 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits50 ac
County14 ac
Not recorded690 ac
Local Recreation Area · 274 acState Other or Unknown · 205 acUnknown Easement · 205 acLocal Park · 175 acLocal Other or Unknown · 161 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 2 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 5 of 30 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| NC Land and Water Fund Conservation Agreement State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 204 | Unknown |
| City of Morganton - Catawba Meadows Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 204 | Open |
| City of Morganton Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 160 | Unknown |
| North American Agricultural Foundation Preserve Private Conservation | Land trusts & nonprofits | 50 | Closed |
| North Carolina Agricultural Foundation Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 49 | Restricted |
| Freedom Park Local Park | Town or city | 39 | Open |
| City of Morganton - Catawba River Greenway Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 36 | Open |
| Broughton Park Local Park | Town or city | 35 | Open |
| City of Morganton - Bethel Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 32 | Open |
| Catawba River Soccer Complex Local Park | Town or city | 17 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
18 places to go in Morganton
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Morganton
Collett Street PoolIn Collett Street Park
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Morganton
17 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Trails & water
3 named trails and 3 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Unpaved · 2.3 mi
Catawba Meadows Park Nature Trail Disc Golf Course1.9 mi
Future Trail0.2 mi
Cascade Park Primary Trail0.2 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
13 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.3 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
12 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
24Tennis
21Golf
16Baseball
6Multi-sport
3Football
3Volleyball
1Basketball
1Soccer
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →33 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 2 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Burke County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1970
About itCreeksideBuilding · listed 1972
About itSwan PondsBuilding · listed 1973
About itTate HouseBuilding · listed 1973
About itQuaker MeadowsBuilding · listed 1973
About itBellevueBuilding · listed 1973
About itGaither HouseBuilding · listed 1976
About itJacob Forney Jr. HouseBuilding · listed 1976
About itNorth Carolina School for the Deaf: Main BuildingBuilding · listed 1976
About itWestern North Carolina Insane AsylumBuilding · listed 1977
About itAlphonse Calhoun Avery HouseBuilding · listed 1984
About itGaston ChapelBuilding · listed 1984
About it21 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Morganton: 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 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.1 | 14.0 | 14.6 | 14.3 | 13.5 | 12.3 | 11.2 | 10.2 | 9.7 |
| High (°F) | 50 | 55 | 62 | 72 | 79 | 86 | 89 | 87 | 81 | 72 | 62 | 53 |
| Rain (in) | 4.1 | 3.4 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 3.7 | 3.7 | 4.3 |
February is the driest month (3.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 89 °F). 4.8 inches fall in August, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 89 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Morganton →
Next door
Morganton and its neighbors
Morganton 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morganton | 5% | 0.5 | 31 | 70% | B+ |
| Glen Alpine | 2% | under 0.1 | 13 | 65% | C |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Morganton
Where can I hike in Morganton?
The longest trail networks: Catawba Meadows Park, 3 miles; Cascade Park, 0.3 miles; Freedom Park, 0.1 miles; Catawba River Greenway - Greenlee Ford & River Village Sections, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Morganton is conserved land?
5% 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 Morganton’s trails?
Catawba Meadows Park and Cascade Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Morganton?
13 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.3 of painted or protected lanes and 12 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Morganton?
30,871 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Morganton or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 553 of them inside the city line.
How much outdoors does Morganton have?
Ahead of 72% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #45 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 Morganton 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 →