The tidelands region of North Carolina contains some of the state's most popular attractions and most varied landscapes. Areas such as the Outer Banks are popular with all ages, and there are activities such as fishing, golfing, scuba diving and surfing in the area. The region has swampland and a sandy interior in addition to its famous beaches. For the purposes of this article, the tidelands of North Carolina and Tidewater region are interchangeable terms.
North Carolina is broken up into three regions. The regions are the Coastal Plain in the east, the Piedmont in the center and mountains in the west, according to North Carolina's state website. The Coastal Plain stretches from the Outer Banks on the Atlantic Ocean to the interior of the state. It is often subdivided further into the Inner Coastal Plain and the Tidewater region, also known as the tidelands.
The tidelands region is home to many species of plants and animals. Animals including the bald eagle, the black bear and the American alligator have habitats in the region. It is also the only place in the world in which the Venus flytrap plant grows naturally. Further inland, crops such as peanuts, tobacco, sweet potato and soybeans can be found.
The tidelands run along the coast of North Carolina where the streams and rivers empty into the sounds on the Atlantic Ocean. There are seven sounds in the region: Pamlico, Albemarle, Currituck, Croatan, Roanoke, Core, and Bogue Sounds, according to North Carolina Public School's geography website. In addition, the region has three capes–Cape Hatteras, Cape Lookout and Cape Fear.
The tidelands cover the largest part of the state in terms of land area. The Outer Banks follow the coast for North Carolina for more than 175 miles. There are large areas of swampland in the region, including a 750 square mile section of the Great Dismal Swamp. The largest city in the region is Fayetteville.
North Carolina has one of the most varied climates of any eastern state, according to North Carolina State University's climate department. Large changes in elevation and its proximity to the ocean lead to many different climate conditions. Summertime temperatures in the tidelands region average close to 90 degrees Fahrenheit, with an average humidity of 75 percent.
