In 2026, Wake County is proud to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its Parks, Recreation and Open Space system! Throughout the year, we’ll be honoring this milestone with special programs, events, contests and community collaborations that highlight the history and impact of our parks and preserves.
From art in the parks to interactive challenges and featured park spotlights, there’s something for everyone to enjoy. Be sure to follow us on social media and check back here regularly for updates on upcoming activities and ways to get involved.
A Legacy of Open Space and Community
Wake County’s commitment to preserving natural spaces and providing recreational opportunities began in earnest in the mid-1970s, when the county formally established its Parks, Recreation and Open Space program. Over the decades, PROS has grown into a vibrant network of county parks, nature preserves, trails and historic sites, serving residents and visitors alike.
Each site reflects the county’s dedication to conservation, education and community well-being. Today, Wake County Parks, Recreation and Open Space continues to expand access to green spaces, promote environmental stewardship and foster connections between people and nature.
Hear from Current and Past Park Leaders
See Parks Timeline
Park openings year by year
Submit Your Memories and Photos
Do you have a special memory of a Wake County park or preserve? Did your child go down a slide for the first time on one of our playgrounds? Did you celebrate a birthday at a picnic shelter? Get engaged at one of our picturesque locations? Spend hours hiking our trails during the COVID-19 pandemic? Whatever the memory—big or small—we want to hear about it!
We’re also collecting photos from the past 50 years! We’d love to see the role our parks and preserves have played in your life. Your photos could be featured on our social media pages!
Get Involved!
We’ve got a lot coming up this year to celebrate the 50th anniversary. Keep an eye out for updates on the following initiatives!
En Plein Air Art Celebration
See our parks and preserves through the eyes of local artists. Our traveling art exhibit hits the road on July 1.
Create Your Parks Adventure
Earn points by visiting parks and participating in programs. Participants who earn 50 points will receive a special anniversary prize! This contest launches in June.
Wake County Parks x Wake County Public Libraries
Visit with Park staff at your local Library and visit Librarians at your favorite park!
Park Programs in Libraries - July - September
- Friday, July 24 – Birding by Ear at 3:30 p.m. at West Regional Library
- Saturday, August 22 – Seeds and Swap at 1 p.m. at Athens Drive Community Library
Libraries in Parks – July - September
- Monday, July 13 – Bookmobile and Storytime at Historic Oak View County Park 11 a.m.–noon
- Tuesday, July 14 – Bookmobile and Storytime at Beech Bluff County Park 10 a.m.-noon
- Monday, July 27 – Bookmobile and Storytime at Historic Oak View County Park 11 a.m.–noon
- Tuesday, July 28 – Bookmobile and Storytime at Beech Bluff County Park 10 a.m.-noon
- Monday, August 10 - Bookmobile and Storytime at Historic Oak View 11 a.m.-noon
- Tuesday, August 11 - Bookmobile and Storytime at Beech Bluff County Park 10 a.m.-noon
Parks 50 Geocaches
Wake County Parks are celebrating 50 years with a special series of geocaches! Find these hidden gems by searching for the key words "Wake Parks 50" on geocaching.com. Collect 50th anniversary prizes and learn a little more about the history of your favorite parks and preserves along the way.
Find caches at:
- Beech Bluff County Park
- Crowder County Park
- Harris Lake County Park
- Lake Crabtree County Park
- Sandy Pines Nature Preserve
- Turnipseed Nature Preserve
12 Parks in 12 Months
Think you know everything there is to know about Wake County parks and preserves? Each month, we’ll post a special feature designed to introduce you to—or reacquaint you with—a Wake County park. Get started below!
Lake Crabtree County Park
Lake Crabtree was created as a part of the Crabtree Creek Watershed Project to reduce property damage, sedimentation and erosion from flooding. The park opened in 1988 to provide public access to the lake for recreation, like fishing, boating and shoreside picnicking.
Size: Lake Crabtree County Park and the 286 east property are 221 acres in total with a combined 13 miles of trails.
Key milestone: Boat rental became free in 2019, making the park a standout in an area with so many boat rental services!
Signature feature: The observation tower! Climbing to the top provides an excellent view of the lake to watch boaters or get a glimpse of our resident bald eagles!
Hidden gem: The ADA kayak launch opened in 2016 as one of the most accessible docks in the county with its low-profile design!
Photo op: The open play field at sunset.
Best time to visit: A staff favorite is when the tickseed sunflowers bloom in late summer and early fall all over the park, but they are especially beautiful where the lake trail meets the open play field. The blooms usually peak in mid to late September.
One-word vibe: Dynamic. Lake Crabtree County Park serves many communities across Morrisville, Cary and the Research Triangle. With changing lake levels with every rain, different wildlife with every season and a mix of quiet moments and lively events, no two visits are ever the same.
Insider tip: During the boat rental season, come on Fridays! It makes for a good excuse to head out of work early ... and avoid the weekend crowds
Upcoming fun: Not only is 2026 the 50th anniversary of PROS, but it’s also America’s 250th birthday, so look out for some special Bald Eagle themed paddle programs later in the year! There will also be lots of other paddle programs, including open paddles, canoe tours, kayak skills classes, and full moon paddles!
Lake Crabtree County Park is located at 1400 Aviation Parkway in Morrisville.
Blue Jay Point County Park
Opened in 1992 to provide environmental education, the park was named after the peninsula—or point—it forms on Falls Lake, and for the many blue jays that lived there when the area was farmed by tenant farmers. It spans 236 acres and includes 5 miles of trails (including 3.1 miles of the Mountains to Sea Trail).
Signature feature: Visit one of the point trails to get a view of the lake. The Blue Jay Point trail is the most popular!
Hidden gem: The Nature Discovery Room in our Education Center—we hear lots of "wows!" when folks enter it.
Photo op (most Instagram-worthy spot?): The lake or the meadow at sunset
Best time to visit: Misty fall mornings when the leaves are changing colors and reflecting in Falls Lake
One-word vibe: Peaceful
Insider tip: Improvements are underway! Parts of the park are currently under construction, but the park and trails remain open.
Blue Jay Point County Park is located at 3200 Pleasant Union Church Road in Raleigh.
Historic Oak View County Park
Opened in 1996 to interpret North Carolina agricultural history through historic plantation buildings. A major milestone in the park’s history is when the Tenant House was moved from Wendell to the park in 2012. The house became the cornerstone of an expanded educational interpretation that directly addressed Oak View’s history of slavery, sharecropping and tenant farming. Check out some photos below!
Signature feature: Our goats and chickens!
Hidden gem: Check out the park’s historic buildings. The Plank Kitchen is 200 years old!
Photo op: The Pecan Grove is bustling with activity in the spring, and some of the trees were planted 100 years ago. We invite the public to pick our pecans each November.
Best time to visit: The fall at dusk. Everyone should experience golden hour at Oak View.
One-word vibe: Discovery. Oak View contains many stories that we continue to discover.
Insider tip: Historic Oak View is a park today but it used to be a plantation. We want everyone to enjoy this community space, but remember the enslaved workers and sharecroppers who farmed this land.
Upcoming fun: We’re starting construction soon on our park’s bond improvements! But we’ll still be open and offering programming, including our fantastic Juneteenth tour and storytimes this summer.
Historic Oak View County Park, which spans 26 acres and features over a mile of wooded trails, is located at 4028 Carya Drive in Raleigh.
Crowder County Park
Opened in 1998 to provide outdoor recreational and educational opportunities for all ages. The park currently spans 33 acres and features 1.5 miles of trails. An additional 96 acres acquired in 2019 are expected to open to the public in 2027, offering more trails, a picnic shelter and indoor classrooms. Stay tuned for updates!
Signature feature: The diversity of turtle species in our park
Hidden gem: Our animal ambassadors: Popcorn (Corn Snake), Stinky (Musk Turtle) and Scooter (River Cooter)
Photo op: Pond boardwalk
Best time to visit: Late spring and summer afternoons, when you can hear an orchestra of many frog species like Spring Peepers, Upland Chorus Frogs, American bullfrogs, Cope’s Gray Treefrog, Southern Leopard Frogs, Pickerel Frogs, Northern Cricket Frogs and more. If you’re lucky you’ll hear our Barred Owls as well!
One-word vibe: Community
Insider tip: Our Gray Fox Creek Trail to the Prairie Garden is a wonderfully short jaunt that connects many cool wildlife hotspots.
Upcoming fun: Work will begin on expanding the park in fall 2026!
Crowder County Park is located at 4709 Ten-Ten Road in Apex.
Harris Lake County Park
This 680-acre park opened in 1999 on a peninsula of the Shearon Harris Reservoir. Recreational adventures abound at this “destination for the day,” as well as the opportunity to observe wildlife or sit by the lake and enjoy moments of quiet reflection. In addition to Longleaf Pine that was original to the site, planting of additional Longleaf began in 1997 as part of the vision to create the largest stand of Longleaf Pine in Wake County.
The park features 10.5 miles of mountain bike trails; 5+ miles of hiking trails; an 18-hole disc golf course (soon to be 27 holes with the addition of the 9-hole Junior Disc Golf Course as part of the bond improvement project!). Thanks to Triangle Off-Road Cyclists, North Carolina Adapted Sports, and Capital Area Disc League for your partnership over the years!
Signature feature: Visit the 60-acre Longleaf Pine Restoration Area, register for a public wagon ride program offered in the fall and take in the incredible lake view from our fishing pier!
Hidden gem: The Womble Interpretive History Trail mobile tour transports you back in time to learn about one of the families that lived on the property before it became a park. The tour takes you to the remnants of the Womble family homesite as well as a restored wash house!
Photo op: The fishing pier or lake shoreline at sunrise or sunset.
Best time to visit: Fall and winter mornings at park opening to catch a colorful or misty sunrise over the lake. Spring evenings to hear the frog chorus or the distinct call of a Chuck-will’s-widow.
One-word vibe: Vibrant.
Insider tip: Parking fills up quickly, so come early! Remember to check the trianglemtb.com website for mountain bike trail status before you come.
Upcoming fun: Learn more about the iconic Longleaf Pine and take a guided wagon tour at our Longleaf Ramble event in September.
Harris Lake County Park is located at 2112 County Park Drive in New Hill.
American Tobacco Trail
The American Tobacco Trail is the most visited park in Wake County’s system. This recreational rail-trail opened to walkers, runners, bicyclists and equestrians in 2003. The entire American Tobacco Trail spans 22 miles, from rural New Hill in western Wake County through northeast Chatham County to downtown Durham. Wake County’s section of the trail is 6.5 miles.
Signature feature: Wildlife-viewing from the Beaver Creek bridge located near the 21.5-mile marker and staff-led night hikes in the fall and winter.
Hidden gem: The trail is located on an abandoned railroad corridor of the Norfolk Southern Railroad, which traveled from Dunn to Durham, transporting tobacco from farming communities to the American Tobacco Company in Durham for processing. Reminders of the trail’s storied history are still visible as you travel along, from old railway ties to concrete mile markers to tobacco barns. The bike racks located at the New Hill and White Oak parking areas were created by North Carolina artist Alvin Frega using salvaged metal rail line from the original railroad!
Photo op: The bridge over the beautiful Beaver Creek wetland.
Best time to visit: Spring, fall or sunset at Beaver Creek bridge.
One-word vibe: Connection.
Insider tip: the insider tip: Protocol for yielding right-of-way: bicyclists yield to all other trail users; pedestrians yield to equestrians. Parking can be challenging on busy weekend mornings, so it is helpful to know the location of all three trailheads in the Wake County section.
Upcoming fun: In the spring, the ATT is bustling with almost 4,000 runners as it hosts the annual Tobacco Road Marathon, a qualifying event for the Boston Marathon. This fall, the 19th annual ATT 10-Miler will be held on Oct. 10.
The American Tobacco Trail has three parking areas: 1309 New Hill-Olive Chapel Road, 1017 Wimberly Road and 1305 White Oak Church Road. The White Oak Creek Greenway directly intersects it, allowing users to seamlessly access an extensive system of other interconnected trails.
Historic Yates Mill County Park
Historic Yates Mill County Park opened in 2006 to interpret and preserve agricultural heritage and environmental and historical resources. The park spans 174 acres and features 3.8 miles of trails.
Key milestone: Restoration of the historic gristmill into working order, which began in the 1990s thanks to the combined efforts of the non-profit group Yates Mill Associates, Wake County and N.C. State University. The mill is the last operable water-powered gristmill in Wake County.
Signature feature: The Mill Pond Trail! Look for turtles, birds and other wildlife as you walk, and visit the historic gristmill itself.
Hidden gem: The Creekside Trail.
Photo op: The historic mill and milldam.
Best time to visit: In the fall, when the trees around the pond change color, and in the spring, when flowers can be seen around the park.
One-word vibe: Tranquil
Insider tip: Yates Mill is a native wildlife refuge and a part of NC State University’s Research Farm, so pets are not allowed in the park (though ADA service animals are welcome).
Upcoming fun: Mill Open House days are offered on most weekends from March through November. These free, drop-in programs allow visitors to go inside the mill and talk with historic interpreters.
Bonus fun fact: In 2024, N.C. State University opened the Yates Mill Aquatic Conservation Center in the research wing of the park’s A.E. Finley Center. This state-of-the art laboratory conducts propagation, research, education and outreach in support of imperiled aquatic species conservation in North Carolina, including the Magnificent Ramshorn snail, Carolina Madtom fish, Dwarf Wedgemussel, Yellow Lance, Atlantic Pigtoe and the Neuse River Waterdog salamander.
Historic Yates Mill County Park is located at 4620 Lake Wheeler Road in Raleigh.