Four regions of North Carolina

Water, water, everywhere! Tidewater – narrow strip of land that extends along the Atlantic Ocean

The Tidewater Region In the south, no more than thirty miles wide. In the north, where inland bodies of water are large, it goes back more than fifty miles in places.

NC Lighthouses

Sounds Sounds are the inland bodies of mixed water found through much of the Tidewater.

Barrier Islands Long chain of islands or sand spits along the state coastline. Most famous of barrier islands are the Outer Banks located along the northern half of the state coastline. Really just a long ridge of sand, spread along the ocean floor, shifting in tides and storms.

Inlets Where the sand is low, inlets allow the seawater to come in and out with the tides. An inlet is a break in the barrier islands that allow seawater to come in and out with the tides.

Gulf Stream The ocean current that runs northward along the North Carolina coast. It carries warm water from the Gulf of Mexico across the Atlantic. This was the “road” ships took back from the New World to the Old World.

Five major sounds Going from North to South 1) Currituck Sound in the north 2) Followed by the Albemarle Sound 3) Pamlico Sound 4) Core Sound 5) Bogue Sound

Map of Sounds

Wetland A large portion of the Tidewater is wetland. Wetland is soil that is soaked or flooded with water most of the year. These wetlands contain salt marshes where shellfish breed and live. Estuaries serve as incubators for a variety of sea life, such as shrimp. An estuary is that part of the river where it meets the sea; where fresh and salt water mix.

Swamps and Lakes Pocosins Most common type of wetland away from the estuaries. An old Indian name, which means “a swamp on a hill.” Made up of peat that fills with water when the water table is high. Savanna A flat grassland with some scattered trees. Parts of the Great Swamp become savannas in the drier times of the year.

Find these facts on your own. 1) ________________, the most eastern point of our state, is known as the “graveyard of the Atlantic.” 2) The highest point along the barrier islands is _________________, located not far from Kitty Hawk, where the Wright Brothers flew. 3) The ____________ is the habitat for the Venus Fly Trap, one of North Carolina’s unique plants. 4) The largest lake in the Tidewater region is ____________________.

Sources NC: Land of Contrasts.