Paddy Mountain Park
Managed by Town of West Jefferson
22 acres0.4 mi of trail
Shagbark Hickory LoopNorthern Peaks State Trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: Bonita L. Harless · CC BY-SA 4.0BOutdoors
Outdoors in West Jefferson
West Jefferson has 53 acres of parks, 37 for every 1,000 residents
80% of residents live within a half mile of a park. 0.5 miles of mapped trail cross West Jefferson, 0.2 per square mile of land. 2% of West Jefferson’s land is conserved, about 35 acres.
Ahead of 61% of U.S. towns. What drives it
Conserved land
2%
35 acres · of 2.2 sq mi of land
Trails
0.5 mi
0.2 per sq mi of land
Park land
53 ac
37 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
80%
of residents within ½ mile
Bike routes
0.4 mi
0.4 mi paths
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does West Jefferson have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, West Jefferson is ahead of 61% of U.S. towns. Park acres per resident hold the grade up; trail miles pull it down.
B
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of West Jefferson’s overall grade.
Conserved land2% of the land · typical NC town 3% · U.S. 4%B−Trails0.2 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (1 mi) · NC 0.2 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land37 acres of park per 1,000 residents (53 acres) · NC 8 · U.S. 13A−Parks close to home80% 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 61%
LessMore
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 Paddy Mountain Park, with 0.4 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Bowie Seagrave Memorial Park
Park
8 acres0.1 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Who protects it
35 conserved acres
2% of West Jefferson’s land. Who manages West Jefferson’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Joint21 ac
Town or city8 ac
Not recorded6 ac
Local Park · 29 acLocal Other or Unknown · 6 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. Public access isn’t recorded for 1 of 3 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ashe County Open Space Local Park | Joint | 21 | Open |
| Bowie Seagrave Memorial Park Local Park | Town or city | 8 | Open |
| Town of West Jefferson Open Space Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 6 | Unknown |
Things to do
7 places to go in West Jefferson
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Playgrounds in West Jefferson
6 playgrounds without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Campgrounds in West Jefferson
Greenfield Campground
DirectionsTrails & water
2 named trails
Named trails
Shagbark Hickory Loop0.2 mi
Northern Peaks State Trail0.1 mi
Biking & sports
0.4 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
0.4 mi
off-road bike paths
Courts & fields
7Tennis
4Baseball
3Basketball
1Football
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
West Jefferson Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 2007
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in West Jefferson: 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) | 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) | 42 | 45 | 52 | 62 | 70 | 76 | 79 | 78 | 73 | 63 | 53 | 45 |
| Rain (in) | 4.5 | 3.7 | 4.8 | 5.4 | 5.4 | 5.1 | 5.4 | 5.4 | 5.6 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (3.7 in) and July the warmest (highs of 79 °F). 5.6 inches fall in September, the wettest month. The climate in West Jefferson →
Questions about parks and trails in West Jefferson
Where can I hike in West Jefferson?
The longest trail networks: Paddy Mountain Park, 0.4 miles; Bowie Seagrave Memorial Park, 0.1 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of West Jefferson is conserved land?
2% 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 West Jefferson’s trails?
Paddy Mountain Park and Bowie Seagrave Memorial Park don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Where can I bike in West Jefferson?
0.4 miles of bike routes are on the map: 0.4 of off-road paths.
Is there public land near West Jefferson?
8,308 acres of parks and open public land lie inside West Jefferson or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 53 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does West Jefferson have?
Ahead of 61% 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 West Jefferson 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 →