Waterfall Hero Hikes: Wake County NC

Wake County is located in central North Carolina in the Research Triangle region in the eastern Piedmont. The county was formed in 1770 and is named for Margaret Wake Tryon, the wife of colonial governor William Tryon. Home to Raleigh, the state capital and county seat, as well as other smaller municipalities, Wake County is the most populous county in the state as of 2020. Despite rapid urbanization, there is still substantial rural areas and open space in the county with many opportunities for hiking, wildlife viewing and other outdoor recreation.

Wake County Parks:

Wake County Division of Parks, Recreation and Open Space manages numerous parks, nature preserves and trails throughout the county.

286 Property:

The 286 Property is on airport property and leased to the county with 7 miles of hiking and mountain biking trails.

American Tobacco Trail:

American Tobacco Trail is a 22-mile rails-to-trails project leading from downtown Durham to southern Wake County. The Wake County portion of the trail is managed by Wake County Parks.

Blue Jay Point County Park:

Blue Jay Point is a park on a peninsula on Falls Lake with hiking trails, environmental education, and ziplining.

Crowder District Park:

Crowder District Park is a small park near Apex with picnic areas and short trails around a pond.

Green Hills County Park:

Green Hills County Park is a former landfill that has been re-purposed into a park and open space.

Harris Lake County Park:

Harris Lake County Park lies on a peninsula on its namesake lake, a cooling water reservoir for Shearon-Harris nuclear power plant.

Historic Oak View County Park:

Historic Oak View County Park has old farm buildings, including goats in southeastern Wake County.

Historic Yates Mill County Park:

Historic Yates Mill County Park protects one of the only remaining operating mills in Wake County.

Lake Crabtree County Park:

Lake Crabtree County Park surrounds the flood control lake in Morrisville and has hiking trails, mountain bike trails, and boat rentals on the lake.

Robertson Millpond Preserve:

Robertson Millpond Preserve protects an old millpond that has become a cypress swamp, unique in Wake County.

Sandy Pines Preserve:

Sandy Pines Preserve is the largest tract owned by the county with more than six miles of hiking and equestrian trails.

Turnipseed Nature Preserve:

Turnipseed Nature Preserve is a nature preserve in southeast Wake County near Wendell.

Other Park Areas:

Besides county parks, there are several other federal, state, local and private areas for hiking and outdoor recreation in Wake County.

Carl Alwin Schenck Memorial Forest

Schenck Forest is a North Carolina State University forest that is open to the public for hiking, though bikes and dogs are prohibited.

Falls Lake:

Falls Lake is an Army Corps of Engineers flood-control project that provides drinking water to Raleigh and surrounding communities as well as outdoor recreation activities.

Falls Lake State Recreation Area:

Falls Lake State Recreation Area is a state park consisting of multiple recreation sites along the shore of Falls Lake. Shinleaf Recreation Area, Beaverdam Lake Day-Use Area and Sandling Beach Day-Use Area are located in Wake County.

Fred G. Bond Metro Park

Bond Park is a 300-acre municipal park in Cary with a lake and greenway access.

Knightdale Greenway

The town of Knightdale in eastern Wake County has a 3-mile Greenway trail that connects the town to Neuse River Trail and the extended greenway network.