ALL NORTH CAROLINA STATE PARKS: GENERAL STATUS OF FACILITIES AND GUIDELINES WHEN VISITING PARKS
Posted on: Wednesday, May 27, 2020 - 2:15pm |
Trails
Due to the extreme flooding at Jordan Lake, we have to close the following campsites through June 7, 2020:
Parkers Creek:
Loop 1 sites 4 through 47.
Loop 2 Entire loop is closed.
Crosswinds:
Area C sites C36, C40 and C42 are closed.
Poplar Point:
Loop B sites B3 through B21, B34 through B36, B57, B59, B60 & B79 are closed.
Loop C sites C14 through C16 & C34 & C35 are closed.
Loop F sites F7 through F18, F21 & F22 are closed.
Loop G sites, G14, G30 through G32, G35, G36, G46 & G47 are closed.
Loop H sites H18 through H34, H42 through H48, H56 through H59 are closed.
Loop J sites J17, J20 through J46, J49, and J57 through J75 are closed.
More sites are possibly going to flood due to the quickly rising water which will also cause the campground roadways to be impassable. Please note that after the water recedes several campsites will be extremely wet and can take days to become dry enough for use causing their closures. The water levels are predicted to go 10 to 12 feet above the normal pool. More campsites will be added to the alert as conditions require.
Last updated on: Tuesday, June 2, 2020The following campgrounds are open as of Friday, May 22: Crosswinds campground loops A, B and C; Parkers Creek campground loops 1 and 2; and Poplar Point campground loops B, C, F, G, H and J. Boat ramps inside camping facilities will be open for campers only. All camping will be by advance reservations only. No first-come, first-serve walk-in camping. Camping will be restricted and the following rules will be enforced: No day visitors permitted; two vehicles per site: no firewood sales; all beach areas will be closed; gates open at 8:00am and close at 10:00pm; there will be no 24-hour gate access and gate hours are strictly enforced. Shower houses are available, but comfort stations will be closed.
New Hope Overlook boat ramp and hiking trail will re-open Saturday, May 23: During Memorial Day Weekend, an entrance fee of $7 per vehicle ($5 for senior citizens and veterans/military) and $20 per bus/van will be collected for any vehicle that enters New Hope Overlook. Gates open at 8:00am and close at 9:00pm. The fee is charged every day until Labor Day. During the month of September, the fee is charged on weekends only until the last weekend in September.
Robeson Creek canoe access and boat ramp are also open.
The following facilities will remain CLOSED during PHASE TWO: Visitor center, Ebenezer boat ramp and day-use area, Seaforth boat ramp and day-use area, Parkers Creek day-use area, Vista Point and White Oak. These closures include all hiking trails with the exception of New Hope Overlook. All picnic areas, picnic shelters, all boat ramps**, beach areas, group campsites, and primitive campsites at these listed accesses are closed.
**with the exception of boat ramps at campgrounds, New Hope Overlook and Robeson Creek
PHASE THREE reopening: (tentative date July 1)
Full reopening of park facilities closed during earlier phases, including: visitor center; Ebenezer boat ramp and day-use area; Seaforth boat ramp and day-use area; New Hope Overlook; Parkers Creek day-use area; Vista Point; and White Oak. All hiking trails, all picnic areas, all picnic shelters, all boat ramps, all beach areas, group campsites, primitive campsites, Poplar Point campground loop E, and Parkers Creek campground loops 3 and 4 will be open.
Please note that Poes Ridge boat ramp, managed by the US Army Corps of Engineers, and Farrington Point boat ramp, managed by the NC Wildlife Resources Commission, are both currently open. Please check with those agencies for the most up-to-date information regarding those facilities.
Last updated on: Sunday, May 24, 2020
Contact the park
919-362-0586
jordan.lake@ncparks.gov
Addresses
Visitor center
280 State Park Road
Apex, NC 27523
GPS: 35.7355, -79.0165
Crosswinds campground
389 Farrington Road
Apex, NC 27502
GPS: 35.7420, -79.0021
Ebenezer Church
2582 Beaver Creek Road
Apex, NC 27502
GPS: 35.7082, -79.0157
New Hope Overlook
339 W.H. Jones Road
New Hill, NC 27562
GPS: 35.6772, -79.0454
Parkers Creek campground
Parkers Creek Beach Road
Chapel Hill, NC 27517
GPS: 35.7381, -79.0410
Poplar Point campground
558 Beaver Creek Road
Apex, NC 27502
GPS: 35.7289, -79.0044
Seaforth
Seaforth Beach Road
Pittsboro, NC 27312
GPS: 35.7354, -79.0380
Vista Point campground
2498 N. Pea Ridge Road
Pittsboro, NC 27312
GPS: 35.7094, -79.0592
White Oak recreation area
White Oak Beach Road
Apex, NC 27523
GPS: 35.7384, -79.0122
Hours
►
- November to February:
8:00am to 6:00pm
- March to April:
8:00am to 8:00pm
- May to August:
8:00am to 9:00pm
- September to October:
8:00am to 8:00pm
- Closed Christmas Day
- PLEASE NOTE: Jordan Lake's day-use area gates and campground gates open and lock promptly at the posted times. No entry or exit is permitted before or after posted gate hours, except for law enforcement or medical emergencies.
►
- November to February:
8:00am to 8:00pm
- March to April:
8:00am to 9:00pm
- May to September:
8:00am to 10:00pm
- October:
8:00am to 9:00pm
- Closed Christmas Day
- PLEASE NOTE: Jordan Lake's day-use area gates and campground gates open and lock promptly at the posted times. No entry or exit is permitted before or after posted gate hours, except for law enforcement or medical emergencies.
►
- November to February:
Monday to Friday only:
8:00am to 4:30pm
- June to August:
Open daily:
8:00am to 4:30pm
- In 2020, the visitor center is closed on November 26 and 27, December 24 to 28, and New Year's Day
Operating season
List of trails
There are numerous hiking trails at Jordan Lake State Recreation Area. All are easy walking and suitable for all trekkers of all ages, although the New Hope Trail is more strenuous than others. Pets must be leashed at all times and bicycles are not permitted on any trails at Jordan Lake State Recreation Area.
This loop trail begins at Picnic Shelter #3. Hikers will enjoy a long boardwalk and an old farm pond. This is the best trail for spotting old tobacco rows, the last clues of the farm fields of the past. Spring hikers may notice Jack-in-the-Pulpit flowering along the trail.
0.50 miles
loop
easy hike
The Old Oak Trail is an easy 1 mile loop trail that begins at the parking lot in the Ebenezer Picnic Area 1. This trail can be cut to 1/2 mile by taking the shortcut loop, making this trail great for small children. Hikers will see large hollow oaks, 2 ponds, fence-rows and clues of the farms that used to fill the area.
1.00 miles
loop
easy hike
red
The trail passes the site of the historic Ebenezer Church for which the area was named. An interpretive display marks the location. Parts of the path follow an abandoned roadbed and traverse a large farm pond.
1.01 miles
loop
easy hike
red
The Pond Trail is an easy 1.25 mile trail. The path is nearly a loop, it begins at the display case on the western side of the beach parking lot and ends near the picnic shelter #9. Hikers will enjoy glimpses of the lake while walking thru Loblolly Pine forests, hardwood forests, an old field and past 3 ponds. A long boardwalk traverses a wetland teaming with Buttonbush, Black Needle Rush and other water-loving vegetation. A Track Trail has been set up on this trail for self guided family nature hikes.
1.40 miles
loop
easy hike
The trail is comprised of two loops. The red loop is 5.4 miles and the blue loop is 2.7 miles in length. This is the most challenging trail with several steep hills.
5.40 miles
loop
moderate hike
Red and Blue
