Wake Forest Reservoir Park
Park
201 acres8.2 mi of trail
WFR TrailsWake Forest Reservoir Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the trailhead
Photo: Rysnap1024 · CC BY-SA 4.0AOutdoors
Outdoors in Wake Forest
Wake Forest has 23 miles of mapped trails, 1.2 for every square mile of land
11% of Wake Forest’s land is conserved, about 1,426 acres. The biggest trail networks: Wake Forest Reservoir Park (8.2 mi). 85% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 87% of U.S. towns · #12 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Conserved land
11%
1,426 acres · of 20.0 sq mi of land
Trails
23 mi
1.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,190 ac
23 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
85%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
33 mi
1.6 mi lanes · 31 mi paths
Lakes & rivers
6
1 boat launch
What kind of outdoors town is Wake Forest?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Wake Forest have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Wake Forest is ahead of 87% of U.S. towns, #12 of 290 in North Carolina. All four inputs are above most U.S. towns; trail miles rank highest, park acres per resident lowest.
A
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Wake Forest’s overall grade.
Conserved land11% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%A−Trails1.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (23 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4A−Park land23 acres of park per 1,000 residents (1,190 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13B+Parks close to home85% 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 87%
LessMore
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 96%
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 Wake Forest Reservoir Park, with 8.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Neuse River Greenway
Park
150 acres0.4 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
J.B. Flaherty Park
Park
42 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
E. Carroll Joyner Park
Park
121 acres0.1 mi of trail
Cougar Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 15 parks & preserves
Wake Forest Reservoir Park201 acres · 8.2 mi of trail
DirectionsNeuse River Greenway150 acres · 0.4 mi of trail
J.B. Flaherty Park42 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
N Taylor Street Park Rehabilitation1 acres · 0.2 mi of trail
DirectionsE. Carroll Joyner Park121 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsSmith Creek Greenway57 acres · 0.1 mi of trail
DirectionsSanford Creek Greenway71 acres
Dunn Creek Greenway25 acres
DirectionsAiley Young Park15 acres
Tyler Run Park11 acres
DirectionsHolding Community Park8 acres
Linear Park8 acres
DirectionsCrimson Clover Greenway6 acres
H.L. Miller Park4 acres
DirectionsKiwanis Park2 acres
Who protects it
1,426 conserved acres
11% of Wake Forest’s land. Who manages Wake Forest’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
County339 ac
Town or city241 ac
State conservation121 ac
State natural resources87 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits80 ac
Other state land48 ac
Not recorded1,287 ac
Local Recreation Area · 1,428 acLocal Park · 218 acState Other or Unknown · 197 acConservation Easement · 132 acUnknown Easement · 118 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 150 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 17 of 57 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wake County Open Space Land Local Recreation Area | County | 339 | Open |
| Town of Wake Forest Open Space Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 244 | Open |
| NC Land and Water Fund Project State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 148 | Restricted |
| Town of Wake Forest Open Space - Wake Forest Reservoir Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 143 | Open |
| Town of Wake Forest Open Space - OS-023 Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 116 | Open |
| E. Carroll Joyner Park Local Park | Town or city | 115 | Open |
| Town of Wake Forest Open Space - J B Flaherty Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 109 | Open |
| Heritage High Park Local Park | Town or city | 91 | Open |
| Town of Wake Forest Open Space - OS-078 Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 80 | Open |
| Town of Wake Forest Greenway - Richland Creek Greenway Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 76 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
25 places to go in Wake Forest
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Public pools in Wake Forest
Traditions club pool
DirectionsPlaygrounds in Wake Forest
Forgotten Pond Playground
DirectionsHeritage Toddler PlaygroundIn Crimson Clover Greenway
DirectionsHeritage View Playground
DirectionsStonegate Community Playground
DirectionsPlus 18 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Dog parks in Wake Forest
1 dog park without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Boat launches in Wake Forest
1 boat launch without a name on the map.
Trails & water
6 named trails and 6 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 9.3 miUnpaved · 14.3 mi
WFR Trails6.7 mi
Shady 803.3 mi
Wake Forest Reservoir Trail2.8 mi
Wake Forest Middle School Path0.1 mi
Horse Creek Soft Trail0.1 mi
Cougar Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
33 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
1.6 mi
painted or protected bike lanes
31 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
26Tennis
20Baseball
15Soccer
8Basketball
8Pickleball
2Football
1Skate park
1Multi-sport
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →17 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service). The map also marks 1 historic points from OpenStreetMap: plaques, memorials and old buildings.
Powell HouseBuilding · listed 1974
About itWakefieldsBuilding · listed 1974
About itLea LaboratoryBuilding · listed 1975
About itForestville Baptist ChurchBuilding · listed 1984
About itPurefoy-Dunn PlantationDistrict · listed 1988
About itRoyall Cotton Mill CommissaryBuilding · listed 1991
About itDuBois, W. E. B., SchoolBuilding · listed 1993
About itOakforestBuilding · listed 1998
About itGlen Royall Mill Village Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1999
About itDowntown Wake Forest Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2002
About itWakefield Dairy ComplexBuilding · listed 2003
About itWake Forest Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2003
About it5 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Wake 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 | 10.8 | 11.9 | 13.1 | 14.1 | 14.6 | 14.4 | 13.5 | 12.4 | 11.2 | 10.2 | 9.7 |
| High (°F) | 51 | 55 | 62 | 72 | 80 | 87 | 90 | 88 | 82 | 72 | 62 | 54 |
| Rain (in) | 3.5 | 2.9 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 4.8 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 3.6 |
February is the driest month (2.9 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 Wake Forest →
Next door
Wake Forest and its neighbors
Wake Forest has the second most mapped trails of the 3 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wake Forest | 11% | 1.2 | 23 | 85% | A |
| Rolesville | 2% | 0.6 | 11 | 73% | B |
| Raleigh | 16% | 0.7 | 21 | 91% | A |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Wake Forest
Where can I hike in Wake Forest?
The longest trail networks: Wake Forest Reservoir Park, 8.2 miles; Neuse River Greenway, 0.4 miles; J.B. Flaherty Park, 0.3 miles; E. Carroll Joyner Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Wake Forest is conserved land?
11% 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 Wake Forest’s trails?
Wake Forest Reservoir Park and Neuse River Greenway don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in Wake Forest?
33 miles of bike routes are on the map: 1.6 of painted or protected lanes and 31 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near Wake Forest?
32,185 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Wake Forest or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 1,190 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Wake Forest have?
Ahead of 87% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #12 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 Wake 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 →