Johnston County

Johnston County recently completed and adopted a new Parks and Recreation Master Plan. Among the many master plan recommendations, Johnston County wants to complete the Mountains-to-Sea Trail from Clayton to Smithfield, develop an Agrotourism Trail Map, complete a blueway trail system, and prepare a county-wide greenway, bikeway and blueway system plan. The Buffalo Creek Greenway, one of the signature greenways in the County, is a paved trail which meanders nearly 3 miles along the Spring Branch to the Neuse River Walk at Smithfield Town Commons, then to Buffalo Creek. The path is ten feet wide and accessible for many different types of uses. Trail entrances are located throughout the downtown area and at the back of Smithfield Community Park. Another signature greenway in Johnston County is the Clayton Riverwalk (Neuse River Greenway), a 4-mile, 10-foot wide paved trail that begins at the Wake County/Johnston County line and parallels the Neuse River under Covered Bridge Road. It is part of the 1,175-mile Mountains-to-Sea Trail, that connects Clingman’s Dome to Jockey’s Ridge State Park. This section of trail is also part of the 3,000 mile East Coast Greenway. Sam's Branch Greenway is a beautiful 1.25 mile, 10-foot-wide paved pedestrian and biking trail made possible with roughly $600,000 in funding from the North Carolina Department of Transportation. The greenway leads to the winding Neuse River and connects with the Clayton River Walk on the Neuse. Phase 2 of Sam's Branch Greenway was recently completed and stretches 1.3 miles from the greenway parking lot at O'Neill Street to Legend Park.