Howell Woods is a unique 2,800-acre natural resource designed to provide excellent educational experiences.

You can experience a variety of environmental education programs and recreational activities such as bird watching, hunting, and fishing. Canoe the Neuse, spotlight owls throughout our Night Safari, or learn to build your very own backyard wildlife sanctuary. Our programs vary throughout the following three topics: wildlife education, conservation efforts, and recreational activities.

At Howell Woods, you can expect to find a number of trails for hiking, horseback riding, and biking. The 15 separate trails that make up this trail system are some of the best trails for bird watching on the property and are a feature of the North Carolina Birding Trail. The shortest trail is a mere tenth of a mile, while the longest is 3/4 mile in length.

Howell Woods also offers five ponds of various sizes plus access to the Neuse River, Hannah creek and Mill Creek for recreational fishing. We offer canoes for rental so you can glide across the water and fish to your heart's content. Two of the ponds are stocked with catfish and/or hybrid sunfish while the other ponds are "naturally" stocked by seasonal floods.

Last, but not least, are their controlled hunting areas which are popular for feral pigs reaching up to 300lbs, deer, waterfowl, squirrels, and wild turkeys. This is the perfect opportunity for outdoor enthusiasts to hone their hunting skills and catch their forever trophy! If you decide to bring home your catch, bring it by Knight's Taxidermy in Clayton, NC! Let’s bring your trophy back to life.