North Carolina Regions
Three Regions• land is result of erosion by water• Elevation in the east begins @ sea level and
rises as you travel west• Mt. Mitchell is the highest point in NC and
eastern US• NC is divided into 3 physical regions
The Coastal Plain• 45% of state• Coast to fall line– where
rivers drop into rapids from higher elevations
• Flat area with thin layer of sand and clay
• Two largest port cities are Wilmington and Morehead City
Coastal Plain cont.
• Divided into two areas• The Outer Banks –barrier
islands, beaches, dunes, sounds, swamps– Cape Hatteras, Cape
Lookout & Cape Fear– Sounds –shallow water
between main land and islands, brackish water (fresh & salt)
– Inlets—where ocean flows between islands, strong currents
Coastal Plain cont.
• Tidewater– west of outer banks, slightly higher, sandhills
• Golf courses, peach orchards, horse farms• Tobacco, soybeans, and peanuts
The Piedmont • Rolling land, 45% of state
• What is left of very old mountains (erosion)
• Furniture, textiles, tobacco
• Many rivers provide hydroelectric power
• Largest population center– Raleigh, Durham, W-S, GBoro, Charlotte
The Mountains
• Two ranges w/ plateau in middle
• Blue Ridge and the Smokies
• Heavily forested, dairy farming, apples, Christmas trees
• Eastern continental divide– rivers east flow to Atlantic, west go to Gulf of Mexico
Mountains cont.
• Tourism- Blue Ridge Parkway and Appalachian Trail
Waterways in NC
• Most rivers begin in mountains or piedmont
• Only one goes directly to Atlantic (Cape Fear), most empty into sounds
• Most lakes are man-made, largest are Fontana, Norman, and Gaston
Climate in NC
• Climate– temperature and precipitation over long period of time
• Long growing season- period of time from last frost to first frost
• More snow in mountains (elevation and rain shadow)
• More rain in coastal plain