Waynesville Recreation Park
Park
44 acres1.2 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Harrison Keely · CC BY 4.0C−Outdoors
Outdoors in Waynesville
Waynesville has 56 acres of parks, 5.3 for every 1,000 residents
The biggest trail networks: Waynesville Recreation Park (1.2 mi). 1% of Waynesville’s land is conserved, about 64 acres. 35% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 24% of U.S. towns · #210 of 290 in North Carolina. What drives it
Conserved land
1%
64 acres · of 9.0 sq mi of land
Trails
1.7 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
56 ac
5.3 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
35%
of residents within ½ mile
What kind of outdoors town is Waynesville?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Waynesville have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Waynesville is ahead of 24% of U.S. towns, #210 of 290 in North Carolina. All four inputs are below most U.S. towns; trail miles come closest.
C−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Waynesville’s overall grade.
Conserved land1% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%CTrails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4C+Park land5.3 acres of park per 1,000 residents (56 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13CParks close to home35% of residents within a half mile of a park · NC 51% · U.S. 72%C
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 24%
LessMore
North Carolina towns of 2,500+ (290)Ahead of 28%
NoteFew parks or trails are mapped in Waynesville. OpenStreetMap is mapped by volunteers and coverage varies from town to town, so a town with unmapped parks scores low on them.
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would range from C− to C. 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 Waynesville Recreation Park, with 1.2 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Hazelwood Recreation Park
Park
4 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
64 conserved acres
1% of Waynesville’s land. Who manages Waynesville’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Not recorded64 ac
Local Other or Unknown · 52 acLocal Recreation Area · 8 acState Other or Unknown · 4 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 6 of 7 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Waynesville - Waynesville Recreation Park Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 43 | Unknown |
| Town of Waynesville Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 9 | Unknown |
| Town of Waynesville - Hazelwood Recreation Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 5 | Unknown |
| Town of Waynesville - Chestnut Park Local Recreation Area | Not recorded | 4 | Unknown |
| NC Department of Transportation Mitigation Site State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 2 | Unknown |
| NC Land and Water Fund Project State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 2 | Restricted |
| Mountain Research Station State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 1 | Unknown |
Things to do
5 places to go in Waynesville
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in Waynesville
Arbors Open Play Field
DirectionsCentral Elementary Playground
DirectionsWaynesville Kiwanis Community PlaygroupIn Waynesville Recreation Park
DirectionsPlus 1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Dog parks in Waynesville
Waynesville Dog ParkIn Waynesville Recreation Park
DirectionsBiking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
9Tennis
3Soccer
2Softball
2Baseball
1Football
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →18 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Shelton HouseBuilding · listed 1979
About itHaywood County CourthouseBuilding · listed 1979
About itDr. J. Howell Way HouseBuilding · listed 1980
About itBoone-Withers HouseBuilding · listed 1983
About itMasonic HallBuilding · listed 1988
About itCitizens Bank and Trust Company Building, FormerBuilding · listed 1991
About itUS Post Office Building, FormerBuilding · listed 1991
About itClyde H. Ray Sr. HouseBuilding · listed 1996
About itFrank Smathers HouseBuilding · listed 1998
About itAlden and Thomasene Howell HouseBuilding · listed 2003
About itFrog Level Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2003
About itCharles and Annie Quinlan HouseBuilding · listed 2005
About it6 more on the History page.
When to get out
The best walking months in Waynesville: April to August
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 | 13.0 | 14.0 | 14.5 | 14.3 | 13.5 | 12.3 | 11.2 | 10.2 | 9.8 |
| High (°F) | 46 | 50 | 57 | 67 | 74 | 79 | 82 | 81 | 76 | 67 | 57 | 49 |
| Rain (in) | 4.9 | 4.4 | 4.8 | 4.7 | 4.3 | 4.7 | 4.7 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 4.1 | 5.1 |
October is the driest month (3.8 in) and July the warmest (highs of 82 °F). 5.1 inches fall in December, the wettest month. The climate in Waynesville →
Next door
Waynesville and its neighbors
Waynesville 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Waynesville | 1% | 0.2 | 5 | 35% | C− |
| Lake Junaluska | 1% | 0.1 | 1 | 24% | D |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Waynesville
Where can I hike in Waynesville?
The longest trail networks: Waynesville Recreation Park, 1.2 miles; Hazelwood Recreation Park, 0.1 miles; Waynesville Skate Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Waynesville 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 Waynesville’s trails?
Waynesville Recreation Park and Hazelwood Recreation Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Waynesville?
45,495 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Waynesville or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 56 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Waynesville have?
Ahead of 24% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #210 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 Waynesville 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 →