Physical Geography

North Carolina divides into three major topographic regions, each crossing the state in a predominantly northeast-southwest direction. They are the Atlantic Coastal Plain, the Piedmont Plateau, and the Blue Ridge. The Piedmont Plateau and Blue Ridge are subdivisions of the Appalachian Highlands region.

The Atlantic Coastal Plain is a low, sandy, and relatively flat land extending 100 to 150 miles (160 to 240 km) inland from the coast. It occupies almost half of the state. In the east, this region ends in a narrow chain of sandy islands, known as the Outer Banks, that run the width of the state. They lie close to shore in the south, but just as much as 30 miles (48 km) out to sea in the north. Distinctive features include sandy beaches; high, shifting dunes; and such prominent capes as Hatteras, Lookout, and Fear. The treacherous waters off Cape Hatteras, the site of many shipwrecks, are known as the “graveyard of the Atlantic.”

Along the coast and reaching up to 80 miles (130 km) inland, is a poorly drained section of the coastal plain, known as the Tidewater area. It is dotted with numerous marshes and swamps, the largest of which is Dismal Swamp. Elevation gradually increases and drainage improves with distance inland. The rest of the coastal plain is flat to gently rolling, except for a hilly section, called the Sand Hills, near the western edge.

The Piedmont Plateau is a rolling to hilly upland that covers much of the rest of the state. It begins at the fall line, a sharp slope where the upland meets the coastal plain, and extends westward to the Blue Ridge. There are numerous rapids and waterfalls where rivers cross the fall line. Elevations vary from about 400 feet (120 m) in the east to almost 1,500 feet (460 m) in the west. Unlike the coastal plain, which is devoted mainly to farming and forestry, the Piedmont is a highly diversified region of agriculture, manufacturing, and commerce. On the Piedmont are nearly all of North Carolina's major cities and the bulk of its population.

The Blue Ridge is a mountainous region that rises abruptly from the Piedmont in the western part of the state. The terrain is generally rough to rugged, with high peaks, deep valleys, and heavily forested slopes. In the east are the Blue Ridge Mountains, the region's dominant range. Also included are the Great Smokies, which lie on the North Carolina-Tennessee state line. This range is the principal feature of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Mount Mitchell, reaching 6,684 feet (2,037 m) in the Black Mountains northeast of Asheville, is the highest of the state's many peaks and the loftiest in the eastern United States.

North Carolina's chief rivers begin either in the Blue Ridge or on the Piedmont and flow southeasterly to the Atlantic Ocean. Among them are the Chowan, Roanoke, Tar (called Pamlico in its estuary), Neuse, and Cape Fear rivers. Flowing south into South Carolina are the Catawba and the Pee Dee. Most of the rivers deep in the Blue Ridge region are headwater streams of the westerly flowing Tennessee. Such rivers include the Hiwassee, Little Tennessee, and French Broad.

Three large sounds—Pamlico, Albemarle, and Currituck—and numerous smaller ones connect and form an extensive system of inland water along the northern part of the coast. Some of these arms of the sea jut far inland as broad, shallow estuaries.

Dotting the coastal plain are most of North Carolina's natural lakes, chief of which are Mattamuskeet, Phelps, and Waccamaw. Elsewhere, especially on the Piedmont, are man-made reservoirs created mainly for hydroelectric power. They include Lake Gaston and John H. Kerr Reservoir on the Roanoke River; High Rock Lake on the Yadkin; and Lake Norman on the Catawba River.

North Carolina has a subtropical kind of climate that is partly affected by the cold, continental type found to the north and west. Within the state, climatic variations occur from southeast to northwest, mainly because of the land's increased elevation and distance from the ocean.

Except in the higher parts of the mountains, summers are long and vary from warm to hot. Average July temperatures decline from about 80° F. (27° C.) along the south coast to 75° F. (24° C.) on the Piedmont and 67° F. (19° C.) at some mountain locations. Summer daytime temperatures often rise above 90° F. (32° C.), but rarely reach 100° F. (38° C.).

Winters are relatively mild, for the mountains form a partial barrier to the cold weather that moves southeastward from the interior of the country. Average January temperatures range from a high of almost 50° F. (10° C.) in the southeast to as little as 35° F. (2° C.) in some northwest mountain areas. There is little extremely cold weather, especially east of the mountains.

Precipitation is abundant during all seasons; summer, however, is the wettest time of the year. East of the mountains the annual fall is 40 to 55 inches (1,000 to 1,400 mm); in the mountains, 37 inches (940 mm) to more than 80 inches (2,000 mm). Up to 50 inches (1,270 mm) of snow fall in the mountains each winter. Only 1 to 8 inches (25 to 200 mm) fall on the coastal plain and the Piedmont.

At the time of the first settlements, the land was almost entirely forested. Today, about two-thirds of North Carolina's land area is forested; most of the forests have been cut over repeatedly.

In the tidewater area trees that tolerate wet conditions, such as water tupelo and bald cypress, are found. In general, the coastal plain and Piedmont support pine forests and some mixed hardwoods. Loblolly, longleaf, slash, and shortleaf pines, yellow poplar, red oak, and white oak predominate. The forests of the Blue Ridge have a wide variety of trees, including various kinds of pine and oak, as well as hemlock, poplar, hickory, and ash. North Carolina is noted for such broadleaf evergreens as rhododendron, especially azalea; mountain laurel; and American holly.