Mary Hayes Barber Holmes Park
Park
9 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Gerry Dincher · CC BY-SA 2.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Pittsboro
Pittsboro has 74 acres of parks, 15 for every 1,000 residents
75% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 4.0 miles of mapped trail cross Pittsboro, 0.4 per square mile of land. 1% of Pittsboro’s land is conserved, about 78 acres.
Ahead of 54% of U.S. towns · #91 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
78 acres · of 8.9 sq mi of land
Trails
4.0 mi
0.4 per sq mi of land
Park land
74 ac
15 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
75%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
5.0 mi
5.0 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
2
What kind of outdoors town is Pittsboro?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Pittsboro have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Pittsboro is ahead of 54% of U.S. towns, #91 of 290 in North Carolina. The share of residents near a park holds the grade up; conserved land pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Pittsboro’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.4 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (4 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4BPark land15 acres of park per 1,000 residents (74 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13BParks close to home75% 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 54%
LessMore
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 69%
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 Mary Hayes Barber Holmes Park, with 0.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Pittsboro Lake Park
Park
36 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
78 conserved acres
1% of Pittsboro’s land. Who manages Pittsboro’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Private owners3 ac
Town or city2 ac
State conservation1 ac
Not recorded89 ac
Local Recreation Area · 47 acState Other or Unknown · 17 acState Park · 14 acLocal Other or Unknown · 11 acLocal Park · 5 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 8 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Pittsboro - Pittsboro Lake Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 36 | Unknown |
| NC Land and Water Fund Project State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 17 | Restricted |
| Lower Haw River State Natural Area State Park | Not recorded | 14 | Open |
| Town of Pittsboro Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 11 | Unknown |
| Town of Pittsboro - Mary Hayes Barber Holmes Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 10 | Open |
| Kiwanis Park Local Park | Private owners | 3 | Open |
| Mcclenahan Street Park Local Park | Town or city | 2 | Open |
Things to do
10 places to go in Pittsboro
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Pittsboro
8 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Pittsboro
2 dog parks without a name on the map.
Trails & water
2 lakes & rivers
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
5.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
5.0 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
5Basketball
5Baseball
5Tennis
2Pickleball
1Football
1Tracks
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →15 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Pittsboro Presbyterian ChurchBuilding · listed 1978
About itPittsboro Masonic LodgeBuilding · listed 1978
About itChatham County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1979
About itA. P. Terry HouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itHall-London HouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itLewis Freeman HouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itLondon CottageBuilding · listed 1982
About itLuther Clegg HouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itReid HouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itKelvinBuilding · listed 1982
About itMoore-Manning HouseBuilding · listed 1982
About itHenry Adolphus London HouseBuilding · listed 1998
About it3 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Pittsboro: 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 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.1 | 14.0 | 14.6 | 14.3 | 13.5 | 12.3 | 11.2 | 10.2 | 9.7 |
| High (°F) | 52 | 56 | 63 | 73 | 79 | 86 | 90 | 88 | 82 | 73 | 62 | 54 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 3.0 | 4.0 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 4.9 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.5 |
February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 90 °F). 4.9 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 90 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Pittsboro →
Questions about parks and trails in Pittsboro
Where can I hike in Pittsboro?
The longest trail networks: Mary Hayes Barber Holmes Park, 0.4 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Pittsboro is conserved land?
1% 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 Pittsboro’s trails?
Mary Hayes Barber Holmes Park and Pittsboro Lake Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Pittsboro?
5.0 miles of bike routes are on the map: 5.0 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Pittsboro?
10,258 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Pittsboro or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 74 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Pittsboro have?
Ahead of 54% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #91 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 Pittsboro 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 →