Wake Forest Greenways

The town of Wake Forest, North Carolina in northern Wake County has a small but growing system of public greenway trails.  The trails provide recreation and transportation benefits to residents and visitors while helping to protect natural environments as the town grows.  The first greenway in Wake Forest was constructed in 2003 and has grown to include 14 miles as of 2021, with plans to extend to more than 40 miles.  The system also connects to other local greenway systems in the Triangle, including Rolesville and Raleigh's Capital Area Greenway.

Map:

Trails:

Dunn Creek Greenway:

Dunn Creek Trail is currently 1 mile from Smith Creek Soccer Complex north to NC-98 following Dunn Creek.

Richland Creek Greenway:

Richland Creek Greenway runs from the Cottage at Old Mill Stream to Barnford Mill Road with plans to extend to Franklin County.

Sanford Creek Greenway:

Sanford Creek Trail starts at Smith Creek Greenway near Heritage High Park and follows its namesake upstream for just under a mile to Mill Bridge Nature Park in Rolesville.

Smith Creek Greenway:

Smith Creek Greenway is in two sections.  The north sections starts at Smith Creek Soccer Complex and follows Smith Creek south to Heritage High Park and Sanford Creek Greenway.  The south section leads from Burlington Mills Road to the Neuse River.  A pedestrian bridge crosses the river and provides access to Neuse River Trail, part of Capital Area Greenway.  There are plans to connect the two sections.

Wake Forest Reservoir Soft Trail:

Wake Forest Reservoir Soft Trail is a 1.7-mile natural-surface trail along the west side of the old Wake Forest Reservoir.  There are plans to develop trails on the eastern side of the reservoir but currently, only social trails are on the east side.

External Links:

Wake Forest Parks website: https://www.wakeforestnc.gov/parks-recreation-cultural-resources/greenways