Best Bets updated: Yes, there are still things to do in the Triangle for you and your family
While staying home is recommended as we navigate the uncharted territory that is COVID-19, here are a few safe places around the Triangle to get some fresh air while spreading out and maintaining your social distance.
Schedules and procedures are changing quickly these days, so check with the venue before you head out. For many parks, trails are open, but visitor centers and campgrounds are closed.
Keep checking back: We’re updating.
Triangle Land Conservancy
The Triangle Land Conservancy offer mountain bike trails at Brumley Forest Nature Preserve in Orange County. In Durham County, hike through Horton Grove Nature Preserve or take a walk in Wake County at Swift Creek Bluffs Nature Preserve.
Capital Area Greenway Trail System
Happy trails to you! A network of interconnected trails of 100-plus miles linking many of Raleigh’s parks throughout the city provides ample opps for spreading out and walking, hiking, biking, birdwatching, nature study and more.
American Tobacco Trail
All aboard (spatially, of course). Converted railroad paths give way to 22-plus miles of trails across parts of Wake, Durham and Chatham counties at ATT, where you can hike or bike the day away on trails running through Durham, Cary, Apex, Jordan Lake and more.
Umstead State Park
A 5,500-plus-acre natural park paradise inside the city (accessible from I-40 and US-70) houses 20 miles of hiking trails surrounding three manmade lakes with fishing welcome on all lakes and connecting tributaries. Whether hiking, biking, running, fishing or horseback riding (the park has 13 miles of bridle trails), Umstead is the primo choice to unplug, get your nature on and spend a day in the woods.
Insider tips: The 7.2-mile Sycamore Trail tops out as the park’s longest, and a fave of many Umstead-goers; Big Lake is the largest; and, while several spots make the perfect place to park it for an outdoor picnic, the Crabtree Creek section shines with a pine/hardwood-forest canopy over picnic tables.
Durant Nature Preserve
Ah, nature. It’s so… natural. And it’s so, not the inside of your house. Designated as a nature preserve in 2010, Durant reopened on March 7 after closing for storm cleanup. Most trails are now open, but cleanup is still underway. Check the park site for the latest.
North Carolina Museum of Art Trail
Art meets nature at the Ann and Jim Goodnight Museum Park, featuring outdoor installations so you can still get your art on with plenty of space to spread out. International artists, both temporary and permanent, are featured along environmentally sustainable landscapes, gorgeous gardens, a terraced pond, and miles of Greenway and wooded trails for biking or hiking. Fun up your typical hike by stepping inside a cloud chamber; picnic near the near the iconic trio of Gyre rings; or nap on the Ellipse lawn. Trailside signs dish details on other points of interest such as art and history.
Duke Forest
Owned by Duke University for teaching/research, this 7,000-plus-acre woodsy wonderland is a win for those looking for beauty in the Bull City and beyond, with forested land and open fields in Durham, Orange and Alamance counties. Got mini-me’s or short on time/energy? The Shepherd Nature Trail is sub-1 mile… and you won’t regret it.
Lake Johnson and Shelley Lake
You can still get your lake on. Shelley Lake in Midtown off Millbrook Road provides 2 miles of lake-encircling paved trails and plenty of grassy areas to spread out on. Lake Johnson off Avent Ferry Road in Southwest Raleigh has both natural surface and paved Greenway trails, with a dual designation of “nature preserve on the south side of the park and metro park on the north shore.”
Eno River State Park
Spread across parts of Durham and Orange counties with five dispersed access areas, the Eno offers nearly 30 miles of trails (the challenging Cox Mountain Trail is one of the longest at just sub 4 miles) along a swift, shallow stream traversing historic home sites and mills, forests, river bluffs and more. Intel: The Riverwalk portion in downtown Hillsborough is a stunning 1.8-mile stretch worth stepping.
Occoneechee Mountain
High hopes for your hike? Take a trip up the tallest spot in the Triangle via Occoneechee trails. The trek will require some climbing, but the payoff of 350 feet above Eno River plus ’grammable views is definitely worth the effort. That, and it’s a good way to close those circles — beyond laps in your hood or basement HIITs. A win-win.
Hemlock Bluffs
Open daily from 9 a.m. to sunset, Cary’s 140-acre off-the-beaten-path natural preserve, created to “protect wildlife habitat and preserve the Eastern Hemlock trees on the property,” is ideal for solitude seekers, plant and bird lovers, and even nature novices. It’s 2-ish miles of trails for walking and nature study.
Morgan Creek Trail
In Chapel Hill, hit the dusty trail with a quick hike on this sub-1-mile paved, woodland route in Chapel Hill, culminating in wide-open-space Merritt’s Pasture, encompassed by another small trail.
Lake Crabtree Trails
You’ve hit the motherlode at this 520-acre oasis in the middle of the city with 6 miles of trails looping the lake for epic and Insta-worthy scenery, plus 10 miles of mostly shaded additional trails (popular with mountain bikers).
Neuse River Trails
In Wake Forest, escape to the Neuse River Greenway for a 33-mile treelined asphalt trail — open to cyclists and pedestrians alike — along the river from Falls Lake Dam to the Wake/Johnston County line providing wildlife viewing options aplenty, river crossings (including two suspension bridges) and boardwalks through wetland areas. Fun fact: It’s the longest Greenway trail in the state, and the longest paved path between western Georgia and northern Virginia.
This story was originally published March 16, 2020 at 4:41 PM with the headline "Best Bets updated: Yes, there are still things to do in the Triangle for you and your family."