The Blue Jay Center

Blue Jay Point is one of my family’s favorite parks. Playground, hiking trails, sports fields, environmental education – Blue Jay Point has it all.

This 236-acre Wake County park is located on the shores of Falls Lake, just off  Six Forks Road. The park offers a good balance of natural areas and outdoor play. The large playground is split into age-appropriate sections. A quick hike from the playground will take you to the lake around a short loop trail. The Blue Jay Center is home to environmental education displays and programming. A garden area and study pond are located near the front of the park. The park’s soccer and baseball fields are popular and well-maintained.

In addition to the normal car entrance, the park is accessible via the Falls Lake trail that follows the west shore of Falls Lake from the dam at the Neuse River to just north of I-85.

If you’re a hiker, in addition to the park trails, you should check out the Falls Lake Trail, part of the NC Mountains to Sea trail. Bob Steinbeiser has posted a nice map of the trail on his site that’s more up-to-date than the “official” map.