Falls Lake Trail Sections 9 & 10 Hike

Sections 9 & 10 of the Falls Lake Trail is about 3 miles from New Light Road to Creedmoor Road/NC-50 in North Raleigh.  As an out-and-back hike, it's 6.0 miles round trip or half that for a shuttle hike.

Length: 3.0 (shuttle)/6.0 (out and back)
Estimated Time: 1 to 2 hours
Difficulty: Moderate
Location: Butner-Falls of Neuse Game Land and Falls Lake State Recreation Area
Trail Users: Hiking only
Dogs: Must be on a leash
Features: Lakes, Creeks, Forest
Crowds: High
Warnings: Part of the trail passes through game land where hunting is permitted.  Wear blaze orange during hunting season.
Trailhead GPS: 35.99552,-78.66339 (New Light Road) / 36.01240,-78.68914 (Creedmoor Road/NC-50)

Directions:

Section 9 trailhead is along New Light Road before the causeway over the lake.  From I-540 in North Raleigh take exit 11 for Six Forks Road.  Go north on Six Forks for 2.5 miles and turn left to stay on Six Forks.  Go another 3 miles and go straight through the light to get on New Light Road.  Go another 0.9 miles and pull off on the left just before the causeway.  Parking here is very limited.

To arrange a shuttle, turn around and go 0.9 miles south on New Light Road.  Turn right on NC-98 west and go 1.3 miles.  Take the right exit to get on NC-50 north/Creedmoor Road and go 1.8 miles to a large pull-off on the right before the bridge over the lake.

Map:

Hike Description:

Section 9 begins at New Light Road.  This section is also called Twin Creek.  The trail heads into the woods and crosses the first of two tributaries then climbs up to winter views of the lake.

The trail then crosses the second tributary.

In 0.5 miles, the trail crosses Ghoston Road at the end of section 9 and beginning of section 10.  Section 10 is also called Quail Roost.  The first 1.5 miles of this trail are fairly typical with the trail running along coves with short ups and downs.  There are some nice views of the lake.

The trail crosses a rocky creek on a footbridge at about 1.7 miles.

Then the trail begins to follow old roadbeds and get away from the lake.  The trail passes by Evans Family Cemetery at about 2 miles.

Be sure to follow the blazes as the trail piggbacks on several of these roads and turns are not always obvious.  There is an old farm site just off the trail.

There is another old road to follow and then the trail enters Falls Lake State Recreation Area and crosses a couple service roads and then the main park road to the Falls Lake Visitor Center before ending at NC-50, just before it crosses the lake.  If you shuttled, the shuttle will be here; it not, turn around.

External Links:

Mountains-to-Sea Trail website: https://mountainstoseatrail.org/the-trail/segments/falls-lake-day-hikes/fallslake-dayhike-9/