Ledge Creek Forest Conservation Area
Managed by Tar River Land Conservancy
32 acres0.3 mi of trail
Pond Trail
Dogs on leash
No trailhead mapped yet
Photo: Burnsidegen · CC BY-SA 3.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Stem
Stem has 12 acres of parks, 9.8 for every 1,000 residents
5% of Stem’s land is conserved, about 37 acres. 56% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 0.3 miles of mapped trail cross Stem, 0.2 per square mile of land.
Ahead of 47% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
5%
37 acres · of 1.2 sq mi of land
Trails
0.3 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
12 ac
9.8 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
56%
of residents within ½ mile
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Stem have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Stem is ahead of 47% of U.S. towns. Conserved land holds the grade up; park acres per resident pull it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Stem’s overall grade.
Conserved land5% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (0 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land9.8 acres of park per 1,000 residents (12 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home56% 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 47%
LessMore
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C+ 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 Ledge Creek Forest Conservation Area, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Who protects it
37 conserved acres
5% of Stem’s land. Who manages Stem’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits30 ac
Not recorded36 ac
Private Conservation · 47 acConservation Easement · 15 acLocal Other or Unknown · 4 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 3 of 5 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tar River Land Conservancy Preserve Private Conservation | Not recorded | 47 | Unknown |
| Town of Stem Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 4 | Unknown |
Trails & water
1 named trail
Named trails
Pond Trail0.3 mi
When to get out
The best walking months in Stem: 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) | 9.9 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.1 | 14.1 | 14.6 | 14.4 | 13.5 | 12.4 | 11.2 | 10.2 | 9.7 |
| High (°F) | 50 | 54 | 62 | 72 | 79 | 86 | 89 | 88 | 81 | 72 | 62 | 54 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 3.8 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 3.6 |
February is the driest month (2.9 in) and July the warmest (highs of 89 °F). 4.5 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 89 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Stem →
Questions about parks and trails in Stem
Where can I hike in Stem?
The longest trail networks: Ledge Creek Forest Conservation Area, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Stem 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 Stem’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Ledge Creek Forest Conservation Area (on leash) and Picture Branch Nature Preserve (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Stem?
29,405 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Stem or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 12 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Stem have?
Ahead of 47% 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 Stem 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 →