Neuse River/Flanners Beach Complex
Managed by USDA
347 acres0.8 mi of trail
Flanners Beach AccessTrail to Front GateConnector Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
A+Outdoors
Outdoors in Neuse Forest
43% of Neuse Forest’s land is conserved, and virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park
Virtually every resident lives within a half mile of a park. 43% of Neuse Forest’s land is conserved, about 855 acres. 358 acres are parks and preserves, 134 per 1,000 residents.
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns · #2 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Conserved land
43%
855 acres · of 3.2 sq mi of land
Trails
2.1 mi
0.7 per sq mi of land
Park land
358 ac
134 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
99%+
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
6.0 mi
6.0 mi paths
What kind of outdoors town is Neuse Forest?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Neuse Forest have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Neuse Forest is ahead of 98% of U.S. towns, #2 of 290 in North Carolina. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; conserved land ranks highest, trail miles lowest.
A+
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Neuse Forest’s overall grade.
Conserved land43% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%A+Trails0.7 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B+Park land134 acres of park per 1,000 residents (358 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13AParks close to homeVirtually all residents within a half mile of a park · NC 51% · U.S. 72%A+
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 98%
LessMore
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)#2 of 290
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 Neuse River/Flanners Beach Complex, with 0.8 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Croatan National Forest
Managed by United States Forest Service
347 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
855 conserved acres
43% of Neuse Forest’s land. Who manages Neuse Forest’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
U.S. Forest Service357 ac
State conservation150 ac
Not recorded981 ac
State Other or Unknown · 560 acPrivate Conservation · 414 acNational Forest · 357 acConservation Easement · 150 acLocal Other or Unknown · 6 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 8 of 11 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 Project State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 477 | Restricted |
| Croatan National Forest National Forest | U.S. Forest Service | 357 | Open |
| North Carolina Coastal Land Trust - Anderson Creek Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 285 | Unknown |
| North Carolina Coastal Land Trust - Dam Creek Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 122 | Unknown |
| NC Land and Water Fund Conservation Agreement State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 83 | Unknown |
| North Carolina Coastal Land Trust - Neuse River Ellis Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 7 | Unknown |
| Craven County Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 5 | Unknown |
| City of New Bern Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 2 | Unknown |
| Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point - Main Air Station Military Land | Not recorded | 1 | Restricted |
Things to do
2 places to go in Neuse Forest
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Neuse Forest
Flanners BeachIn Neuse River/Flanners Beach Complex
DirectionsCampgrounds in Neuse Forest
Flanners Beach/Neuse River CampgroundFee · In Neuse River/Flanners Beach Complex · USDA-Forest Service, Croatan National Forest
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails
Named trails
Flanners Beach Access0.1 mi
Trail to Front Gate0.1 mi
Biking & sports
6.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
6.0 mi
off-road bike paths
When to get out
The best walking months in Neuse Forest: 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 | 10.3 | 9.8 |
| High (°F) | 55 | 58 | 65 | 73 | 80 | 86 | 89 | 87 | 83 | 75 | 65 | 59 |
| Rain (in) | 4.0 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 3.4 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 6.6 | 7.0 | 7.3 | 4.0 | 3.6 | 3.9 |
April is the driest month (3.4 in) and July the warmest (highs of 89 °F). 7.3 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 89 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Neuse Forest →
Questions about parks and trails in Neuse Forest
Where can I hike in Neuse Forest?
The longest trail networks: Neuse River/Flanners Beach Complex, 0.8 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Neuse Forest is conserved land?
43% 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 Neuse Forest’s trails?
Neuse River/Flanners Beach Complex and Croatan National Forest don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Neuse Forest?
6.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 6.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Neuse Forest?
48,199 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Neuse Forest or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 365 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Neuse Forest have?
Ahead of 98% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #2 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 Neuse Forest 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 →