Brunswick Town
🏆 Colonial Capital Ruins — Ruins of colonial Brunswick Town + Civil War Fort Anderson — two layers of dramatic
Bullhead Mountain State Natural Area
🏆 Blue Ridge Summit — Remote high-elevation summit in the Blue Ridge — protecting rare spruce-fir forest and rock outcrop
Bushy Lake State Natural Area
🏆 Longleaf Savanna — Longleaf pine savanna with Carolina bays — one of the best remaining examples of the fire-maintained
Charles B. Aycock Birthplace
🏆 Education Governor — Birthplace of NC Governor Charles B. Aycock (1859–1912) — the “Education Governor” who championed public schools
Chowan Swamp State Natural Area
🏆 Ancient Blackwater — 14,000-acre pristine blackwater swamp — one of the largest and least-disturbed swamp forests remaining in the
Frutchey State Park
🏆 Piedmont Retreat — Developing state park in the NC Piedmont — future recreational hub for the growing Charlotte-Raleigh corridor
Hemlock Bluffs State Natural Area
🏆 Urban Old-Growth — 150-acre old-growth forest with 200-year-old eastern hemlocks — a nature miracle inside suburban Raleigh (population 470,000!)
James Iredell House
🏆 Founding Father’s Home — Home of James Iredell, one of the first US Supreme Court Justices — appointed by
Lea Island State Natural Area
🏆 Undeveloped Barrier Island — 5-mile undeveloped barrier island on the southern NC coast — one of the last pristine
Masonboro Island State Natural Area
🏆 NC’s LARGEST Undeveloped Island — 5,653-acre undeveloped barrier island — the largest undeveloped barrier island on the southern NC
Pineola Bog State Natural Area
🏆 Appalachian Bog Orchids — Rare southern Appalachian bog at 3,500 feet — supporting endangered bog orchids and carnivorous plants
Reedy Creek State Park
🏆 Charlotte’s Nature — 737-acre park inside the Charlotte metro area — one of the finest urban nature preserves in
Run Hill State Natural Area
🏆 Tallest Dune on Atlantic Coast — 100-foot sand dune — the TALLEST natural sand dune on the US Atlantic
Salmon Creek State Natural Area
🏆 Colonial Waterway — Pristine blackwater creek in the Albemarle Sound region — one of the earliest areas of English
Sandy Run Savannas State Natural Area
🏆 Venus Flytrap Savanna — One of the world’s best remaining longleaf pine savannas — home to the VENUS FLYTRAP,
Sugar Mountain Bog State Natural Area
🏆 4,000-Foot Bog — Rare southern Appalachian bog at 4,000 feet elevation — Ice Age relic with northern plant species
Tryon Palace
🏆 America’s FIRST State Capitol — Reconstructed 1770 colonial palace — the seat of British royal governors and North Carolina’s
Warwick Mill Bay State Natural Area
🏆 Carolina Bay Wetland — Rare Carolina bay with longleaf pine savanna — protecting one of the most diverse plant
Waynesborough State Park
🏆 Revolutionary War Town — Site of the colonial town of Waynesborough — named for “Mad Anthony” Wayne and serving
Weymouth Woods-Sandhills Nature Preserve
🌲 676 Acres of Ancient Longleaf Pine Forest — Home to Endangered Red-Cockaded Woodpeckers — One of the last old-growth
Yellow Mountain State Natural Area
🏆 Appalachian Trail Gem — 600-acre high-elevation summit straddling the NC/TN border on the Appalachian Trail — grassy balds with
Burke Lake Recreation Area
🏆 Missouri River Lake — Lakeside recreation area on Burke Lake — fishing, camping, and wide-open South Dakota skies Burke
Buryanek Recreation Area
🏆 James River Prairie — Small recreation area on a prairie lake in the James River basin — quiet fishing
Chief White Crane Recreation Area
🏆 Yankton Sioux Heritage — Recreation area on the Missouri River named for Chief White Crane (Hupahu Ska) of the
Cow Creek Recreation Area
🏆 Missouri River Reservoir — Recreation area on Lake Sharpe — one of the four massive Missouri River reservoirs that
George S. Mickelson Trail
🏆 Black Hills Rail Trail — 109-mile trail along a historic railroad grade through the Black Hills — the LONGEST
Indian Creek Recreation Area
🏆 Missouri Oahe — Recreation area on massive Lake Oahe — the fourth-largest reservoir in the US stretching 231 miles
LaFramboise Island Nature Area
🏆 Capital City Island — 345-acre island nature area in the Missouri River at Pierre — the state capital’s wild
Lake Alvin Recreation Area
🏆 Sioux Falls Escape — 93-acre lake just 20 minutes from Sioux Falls — South Dakota’s most accessible nature getaway
Lake Hiddenwood Recreation Area
🏆 Northern Prairie Oasis — Wooded lake in the treeless northern prairie — a surprising oasis of timber in the
Lake Thompson Recreation Area
🏆 South Dakota’s LARGEST Natural Lake — 16,000-acre glacial lake — the largest natural lake in South Dakota and one
Lake Vermillion Recreation Area
🏆 Glacial Prairie Lake — 280-acre glacial lake in eastern South Dakota — popular fishing and camping destination with a
Little Moreau Recreation Area
🏆 Moreau River Prairie — Remote recreation area on the Moreau River in northwestern South Dakota — true isolation on
Llewellyn Johns Recreation Area
🏆 Lake Francis Case — Recreation area on Lake Francis Case — 102-mile reservoir on the Missouri River Llewellyn Johns
Mina Lake Recreation Area
🏆 Northern Prairie Gem — 275-acre lake in Edmunds County — popular walleye and perch fishing in the “Glacial Lakes”
North Wheeler Recreation Area
🏆 Lake Sharpe Access — Recreation area on Lake Sharpe providing boat access to the Missouri River reservoir system North
Oahe Downstream Recreation Area
🏆 Below the Giant — Premier tailwater fishery below Oahe Dam — world-class walleye fishing in the turbulent waters below
Pease Creek Recreation Area
🏆 Eastern SD Prairie — Small recreation area on a prairie creek in eastern South Dakota — quiet fishing and
Pickerel Lake Recreation Area
🏆 SD’s Clearest Lake — 1,004-acre glacial lake with the clearest water in South Dakota — visibility up to 25
Pierson Ranch Recreation Area
🏆 Buffalo Gap Grassland — Remote recreation area near the Buffalo Gap National Grassland — wide-open prairie at the edge
Platte Creek Recreation Area
🏆 Missouri River Valley — Recreation area on Platte Creek near its confluence with the Missouri River — fishing and
Randall Creek Recreation Area
🏆 Fort Randall Tailwater — Recreation area below Fort Randall Dam on the Missouri River — outstanding tailwater fishing and
Revheim Bay Recreation Area
🏆 Lake Oahe Bay — Sheltered bay on massive Lake Oahe — protected fishing and camping on the Missouri River
Richmond Lake Recreation Area
🏆 Aberdeen’s Lake — 1,750-acre lake near Aberdeen — the “Hub City” of northeastern South Dakota Richmond Lake Recreation Area
Sandy Shore Recreation Area
🏆 Lake Sharpe Shore — Sandy shoreline recreation area on Lake Sharpe — camping and fishing on the Missouri River
Shadehill Recreation Area
🏆 Northwest SD Oasis — 5,000-acre reservoir in the remote northwestern prairie — the largest lake in a 100-mile radius
Sheps Canyon Recreation Area
🏆 Angostura Canyon — Recreation area on Angostura Reservoir in the southern Black Hills — warm-water swimming and fishing in
Snake Creek Recreation Area
🏆 Fort Randall Reservoir — Recreation area on Lake Francis Case near the powerhouse of Fort Randall Dam — where
Springfield Recreation Area
🏆 Lewis & Clark Lake — Recreation area on Lewis & Clark Lake near Springfield — the most downstream Missouri
Swan Creek Recreation Area
🏆 Lake Oahe Shore — Recreation area on Lake Oahe in Walworth County — fishing and camping on the massive