Guilford: Discover Nature, Trails and History

Guilford combines extensive natural areas, varied trails and historic sites. The Guilford County Parks and Recreation Department manages around 1,800 acres of natural parkland and maintains more than 60 miles of trails. This opens up different possibilities for your travel planning: You can focus on walks and landscapes, plan opportunities for observing nature or combine the region’s history with outdoor experiences.

Nature experiences among forests, water and open trails

Several preserves show how diverse the landscape in Guilford can be. Cascades Preserve covers around 130 acres and has a hiking trail slightly more than two miles long. At Company Mill Preserve, 240 acres of natural landscape, wildlife and historic structures await you along the trail. Saferight Preserve stands out for its forest trail with a tree-lined canopy and distinctive tree species. The six-acre Thomas Built Bus Preserve offers a different character: there, a marked walking trail leads through an urban orchard and nut-tree area.

There are also suitable starting points for a range of day plans. Guilford County Farm combines walking trails, greenhouses, vineyards and fishing ponds. Rich Fork Preserve complements hiking, cycling and wildlife observation with preserved historic structures. Northeast Park provides hiking, cycling and horseback-riding trails. Those seeking water-based experiences will find several miles of open water for boating and fishing at Southwest Park on the Randleman Regional Reservoir; canoes, kayaks and Jon boats are rented there.

History and culture in Greensboro

Greensboro is an important cultural reference point in the Guilford area. Guilford Courthouse National Military Park preserves a visitor center, historic structures, monuments and trails across 250 acres of the original battlefield. The paved Tour Road is 2.25 miles long, follows a loop route and leads to eight stations. Historic New Garden Road was a colonial-era road and served as an artillery route during the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. A free self-guided audio tour is available through the NPS app.

The Greensboro History Museum documents the history of the city and its people over several centuries with more than 30,000 artifacts. The International Civil Rights Center and Museum is located in the historic F. W. Woolworth Building, where the Greensboro sit-ins took place in 1960, and features interactive exhibits about the struggle against racial segregation. The Greensboro Farmers Curb Market also offers local impressions with locally grown and produced goods, seasonal foods, prepared dishes and handcrafted products.

Choose accommodation to match your travel plans

When searching for a holiday apartment in Guilford, it is worth first deciding on your preferred mix of experiences. For nature-focused days, trails, preserves and water activities are the main attractions; for a culture-oriented stay, Greensboro and its museums offer specific destinations. The Frank Sharpe Jr. Wildlife Education Center provides information about wildlife and natural resources through programs, exhibits and live animal displays. A hands-on learning area is designed for toddlers and younger children. At Bur-Mil Park, the Wildlife Education Center is open on Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. from May through September.

You can also incorporate travel into your planning: J. Douglas Galyon Depot is a multimodal transportation center and a hub for GTA, Amtrak, PART and Greyhound. The terminal building at Piedmont Triad International Airport is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. For a historic excursion in the Jamestown area, the Deep River Cabin dating from around 1800 and a hand-dug well in Gibson Park offer insight into former dwellings in the Deep River Valley. The park also honors the gunsmiths who lived and worked there in the mid-19th century, as well as the handmade muzzleloading rifles that became known as Jamestown Long Rifles.

Further places for orientation

Supplementary local pages for further travel planning: High Point, Greensboro, Mcleansville, Whitsett.

You can find further regional destinations at Hoke County, Moore County, New Hanover and Wake.

For the higher-level travel overview: North Carolina.