Grassy Hill Natural Area Preserve
Managed by Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation
62 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dogs on leash
No trailhead mapped yetWebsite ↗
Photo: MarmadukePercy · CC BY-SA 3.0B−Outdoors
Outdoors in Rocky Mount
Rocky Mount has 59 acres of parks, 12 for every 1,000 residents
4% of Rocky Mount’s land is conserved, about 188 acres. 2.0 miles of mapped trail cross Rocky Mount, 0.3 per square mile of land. 59% of residents live within a half mile of a park.
Ahead of 51% of U.S. towns · #155 of 253 in Virginia. What drives it
Conserved land
4%
188 acres · of 6.8 sq mi of land
Trails
2.0 mi
0.3 per sq mi of land
Park land
59 ac
12 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
59%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,339 ft
Bald Knob
Lakes & rivers
1
What kind of outdoors town is Rocky Mount?
Read from the map. The page puts what stands out first.
Outdoors grade
How much outdoors does Rocky Mount have?
On conserved land, trails, park land and how close residents live to a park, Rocky Mount is ahead of 51% of U.S. towns, #155 of 253 in Virginia. Conserved land holds the grade up; the share of residents near a park pulls it down.
B−
OutdoorsA character grade: shown, never part of Rocky Mount’s overall grade.
Conserved land4% of the land · typical VA town 4% · U.S. 4%BTrails0.3 miles of mapped trail per square mile of land (2 mi) · VA 0.7 · U.S. 0.4B−Park land12 acres of park per 1,000 residents (59 acres) · VA 8 · U.S. 13B−Parks close to home59% of residents within a half mile of a park · VA 76% · U.S. 72%B−
All U.S. towns we grade (21,298)Ahead of 51%
LessMore
Virginia towns of 2,500+ (253)Ahead of 39%
How sure. Graded on any three of the four inputs instead, the letter would still be 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 Grassy Hill Natural Area Preserve, with 0.3 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Mary Elizabeth Park
Park
4 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Veterans Park
Park
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Lynch Park
Park
1 acres
Dog rules not recorded
No trailhead mapped yet
Who protects it
188 conserved acres
4% of Rocky Mount’s land. Who manages Rocky Mount’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
State conservation166 ac
Other state land29 ac
County2 ac
Land trusts & nonprofits2 ac
Not recorded161 ac
State Conservation Area · 322 acUnknown Easement · 23 acConservation Easement · 6 acOther Easement · 6 acLocal Park · 3 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 24 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 2 of 14 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bald Knob State Natural Area Preserve State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 188 | Restricted |
| Grassy Hill State Natural Area Preserve State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 100 | Open |
| Bald Knob State Conservation Area | State conservation | 33 | Restricted |
| Lynch Park Local Park | County | 2 | Open |
| Lions Park Local Park | Land trusts & nonprofits | 2 | Open |
Things to do
1 places to go in Rocky Mount
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Peaks in Rocky Mount
Bald Knob1,339 ft elevation
DirectionsTrails & water
1 named trail and 1 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Slope Trail0.1 mi
Lakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & 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
6Baseball
3Tennis
2Pickleball
1Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →5 places on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
When to get out
The best walking months in Rocky Mount: April and 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 | 14.7 | 14.5 | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.2 | 10.1 | 9.6 |
| High (°F) | 47 | 51 | 59 | 70 | 76 | 83 | 87 | 85 | 79 | 69 | 59 | 50 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 3.0 | 3.9 | 3.9 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 3.9 | 4.0 | 4.7 | 3.6 | 3.5 | 3.6 |
February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 87 °F). 4.7 inches fall in September, the wettest month. Summer highs reach 87 °F, too hot for the outline. The climate in Rocky Mount →
Questions about parks and trails in Rocky Mount
Where can I hike in Rocky Mount?
The longest trail networks: Grassy Hill Natural Area Preserve, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
How much of Rocky Mount is conserved land?
4% of its land, against a typical 4% for a Virginia town and 4% nationally (PAD-US). Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors: easements are usually private land.
Are dogs allowed on Rocky Mount’s trails?
OpenStreetMap records dogs as welcome at Grassy Hill Natural Area Preserve (on leash). For the rest, check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Rocky Mount?
2,760 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Rocky Mount or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 59 of them inside the town line.
How much outdoors does Rocky Mount have?
Ahead of 51% of U.S. towns on the Outdoors grade, #155 of 253 in Virginia. 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 Rocky Mount 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 →