Falls Lake Trail is a 13.5 mile moderately trafficked out and back trail located near Wake Forest, North Carolina that features a lake. The trail is rated as moderate offers a number of activity options. Dogs are also able to use this trail.
dog friendly
birding
camping
fishing
hiking
nature trips
trail running
forest
lake
river
views
wild flowers
wildlife
bugs
Part of the ambitious North Carolina Mountains-to-Sea Trail project to create a walking route from the Smokies to the Outer Banks. The Falls Lake Trail itself is a 60+ mile continuous footpath from Penny's Bend Nature Preserve in Durham County to Falls Lake Dam near Wake Forest. The trail passes along the southern lake shore of Falls Lake in Durham and Wake Counties through lands managed by NC State Park & Wildlife Resource Commission, Wake County Parks, and Army Corp of Engineers. Maintained by the Friends of the Mountains to the Sea Trail. It contains two (2) NC State Park campground facilities at Shinleaf and Rolling View Recreation Areas. The MST trail route continues westward to Eno River State Park near Durham/Hillsborough, and eastward on the Neuse River Trail Greenway down to Clayton.
It maybe the late Fall season, but this was the most boring trail I have been hiking. It is mostly flat and I saw no scenic view. While on the trail, all the sounds I heard were the planes from the sky, the cars from the road and the gun shots from the nearby fire range. Not recommended.