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Running trails in Raleigh, NC
Raleigh has 26 trails in the directory — 3 paved and 4 on crushed gravel or dirt, 2 boardwalk, 7 loops that return to the trailhead, 6 with a stated distance, 11 shaded, and 3 open 24 hours. 20 of them post opening hours, so you can check the gate before an early start. They're ranked here by rating weighted by review volume, across 13,791 Google reviews. Filter by surface, loop, distance, shade or lighting to get to the run you're actually planning — no made-up difficulty score, just the facts you'd check before driving out.
Lake Johnson Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 5,021 reviews
Recreation area with 5.4 miles of trails around a lake, plus boat rentals, picnic areas & fishing.
Shelley Lake Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 1,775 reviews
2 miles of wooded trails with work-out stations along a scenic lake, plus open fields & a playground
Durant Nature Preserve
4.7 ★★★★★ 1,338 reviews
237-acre preserve with woodlands, lakes & wildlife, plus hiking & mountain biking trails & fishing.
Anderson Point Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 1,067 reviews
This park has wildlife habitat, a historic homestead, a stone amphitheater & canoe areas.
Historic Yates Mill County Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 654 reviews
Wildlife refuge & agricultural-history site centered around an 18th-century water-powered gristmill.
Neuse River Trail
4.7 ★★★★★ 609 reviews
Popular with runners & cyclists, this 27.5-mile long riverside trail traverses woodlands & wetlands.
Annie Louise Wilkerson, MD Nature Preserve Park
4.8 ★★★★★ 476 reviews
Natural 157.6-acre park on a lake, with meadows, fields, play areas, trails & office with exhibits.
Lassiter Mill Park
4.4 ★★★★☆ 439 reviews
Park with a path, waterfall, and picnic area, plus forest and river views.
Green Hills County Park
4.7 ★★★★★ 408 reviews
This park offers a playground, picnic area & hiking/biking trails on a repurposed landfill property.
Poole Road Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 293 reviews
Trail-lined park featuring walking paths and views of the Neuse River.
Sal's Branch Trailhead
4.8 ★★★★★ 256 reviews
Hiking area with a 2.5-mile trail past a lake that's suitable for families.
Swift Creek Bluffs Nature Preserve
4.5 ★★★★★ 246 reviews
A 23-acre natural area along a ridge & creek with a beech forest, floodplains & a mile-long trail.
Neuse River Trail - Capital Area Greenway
4.8 ★★★★★ 227 reviews
Walking and running route that’s mostly shaded and leads to a sunflower field.
Williamson Preserve
4.7 ★★★★★ 216 reviews
Tranquil wilderness area featuring trails for hiking and mountain biking (and horseback riding).
Brookhaven Nature Park
4.6 ★★★★★ 185 reviews
26-acre preserve featuring a forest trail with a footbridge over a stream, plus picnic tables.
Lake Lynn Loop
4.8 ★★★★★ 110 reviews
Wooded park with a paved path circling the lake, plus a playground.
Umstead Sycamore Trail
4.9 ★★★★★ 97 reviews
Park featuring winding, tree-filled trails for hiking, biking and horseback riding.
Falls Lake Trail
4.8 ★★★★★ 72 reviews
Popular lakeside destination for walking and hiking, plus boating and kayaking.
Crabtree Creek Trail access
4.6 ★★★★★ 43 reviews
Park offering opportunities for bird watching, plus a lake, greenway, and trails.
Greenway Trail Head
4.3 ★★★★☆ 38 reviews
No trails match those filters.
How to pick a trail in Raleigh
- Match the surface to your legs. Raleigh gives you a choice: 10 mixed, 4 natural surface, 3 paved, and 2 boardwalk. Asphalt and concrete are fast, predictable and runnable year-round but the least forgiving; crushed limestone and dirt take the sting out of high mileage; boardwalk is flat and scenic but slick in the wet. If your shins or knees are complaining, the fix that actually works is varying the surface you run on rather than chasing one "best" one. More mixed trails →
- Loop or out-and-back? 7 trails here are loops, so you finish back at the car with no backtracking — the easiest way to run a set distance without thinking about it. On an out-and-back you turn round at half your target distance, which makes any trail fit any run. The longest stated distance in Raleigh is Neuse River Trail at 27.5 mi. 2 trails are long enough for a 5-mile-plus run without repeating yourself.
- Check the hours before a 6am run. 3 trails in Raleigh are open 24 hours — the rest can sit inside a park that gates at dusk and doesn't unlock until well after sunrise. 20 of the 26 listings carry posted opening hours — worth a look before you set an alarm.
- Long run? Check water and restrooms first. 20 have trailhead parking, 15 have restrooms, and 6 have a water fountain in Raleigh. Anything over an hour and those stop being nice-to-haves — and in summer, shade counts double.
- The small things that decide it. 11 shaded, 2 with mile markers, 17 that runners describe as quiet, 10 dog-friendly, and 7 smooth and wide enough for a stroller or a wheelchair. Busy or quiet isn't a good-or-bad thing here: a busy path is the safer choice for a solo run at dawn, a quiet one is better for intervals.
More on all of this in the trail-running guides.
Browse Raleigh trails by type
- Mixed trails
- Natural surface trails
- Paved trails
- Boardwalk trails
- Loop trails
- Long-run trails (5+ mi)
- Shaded trails
- Flat & fast
- Hilly trails
- Scenic trails
- Trails with restrooms
- Trails with water fountains
- Trailhead parking
- Trails with mile markers
- Quiet, uncrowded trails
- Dog-friendly
- Stroller & wheelchair-accessible
Running trails near Raleigh
Worth the short drive — the closest towns with trails in the directory.