Duke Gardens (Duke University Durham, North Carolina)

One of the places that Ashley and I had the opportunity to visit and hike at was the Sarah P. Duke Gardens in Durham. This is a beautiful area to explore and relax and the walking trails here are top notch. Duke Gardens is often spoken of as "the crown jewel of Duke University" and is a beautiful place. Duke Gardens occupies 55 acres in the heart of Duke's West Campus and is recognized as one of the premier public gardens in the United States.

Directions to Trailhead: There are several options to reach Duke Gardens. From Chapel Hill and points southwest via 15/501: Take 15/501 North toward Durham, merge right onto the 15/501 bypass, exit onto Hwy. 751 (a.k.a. Cameron Blvd.), turn right at bottom of exit ramp onto Hwy. 751, proceed on Hwy. 751 to third stop light, turn left onto Duke University Road, follow Duke University Road to second stop light, turn left onto Anderson Street, after first intersection, main entrance is 150 yards up on the left (a half-circle drive with stone walls).

From Raleigh and points south and east via I-40 & Hwy. 147 (Durham Freeway): Take I-40 west to Hwy. 147 (Durham Freeway), follow Hwy. 147 to the Swift Avenue exit, turn left onto Swift Avenue, pass one traffic light and proceed to Campus Drive (a four-way stop), turn right onto Campus Drive, proceed to first stop light and turn right onto Anderson Street, main entrance is 150 yards on the left after the intersection (a half-circle drive with stone walls).

From Greensboro and points west via I-85: Take I-85 North to Durham, exit onto Hillandale Road, turn right at the top of exit ramp onto Hillandale Road, continue on Hillandale, which will merge with Fulton Street at the Hwy. 147 overpass, proceed on Fulton Street to the Erwin Road intersection, turn left on Erwin Road, proceed to second stop light,  turn right onto Anderson Street, entrance is about one-half mile up on the right (a half-circle drive with stone walls).

From points north and east via I-85: Take I-85 South to Durham, exit at Hillandale Road, turn left at the top of the exit ramp onto Hillandale Road, continue on Hillandale, which will merge with Fulton Street at the Hwy. 147 overpass, proceed on Fulton Street to the Erwin Road intersection, turn left on Erwin Road, proceed to second stop light, turn right onto Anderson Street, entrance is about one-half mile up on the right (a half-circle drive with stone walls).

Note, there is a fee for parking at Sarah P. Duke Gardens during these hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. They have automated machines to pay at. The current fee is $1 per half an hour for parking. For more information click Here. A map of the area can be found by clicking Here, as well as the Google Map below.

Description of Hike: This is not so much a true hike, but more of an outdoor adventure. When you visit Duke Gardens you will see many people out enjoying the serenity in this area. For an interactive map of the different sections within Duke Garden you can click Here. In reality the elevation gain while exploring Duke Gardens is minimal and you can make your hike/walk as long or as short as you would like. The paths and trails are well maintained. The Google Map below provides the path of where we visited at Duke Gardens. We spent a couple hours here and that was not enough time to visit all sections of Duke Gardens.

Further Thoughts: Ashley and I really enjoyed our visit to Duke Gardens. We enjoyed taking our time and exploring the different sections of Duke Gardens. The trails were well maintained and the best thing was all the plants were labeled so we knew what we were looking at. The amount of care that has to go into the upkeep for Duke Gardens is amazing. It is really tough to capture the beauty and diversity of the plants that are found at Duke Gardens in a blog post. The best way to see the diversity of plant life that is at the gardens is to visit Duke Gardens.

Rating: Elevation Gain: Minimal (Very Easy), Distance: 1 - 2 Miles Roundtrip (Easy).

Time to Complete Hike: 1 - 2 hours.


View Sarah P. Duke Gardens in a larger map