Top 10 N.C. Natural Wonders announced

Land for Tomorrow has counted all the votes, and the first-ever top 10 North Carolina Natural Wonders have been announced.

They are:
-Blue Ridge Parkway
-Cape Hatteras and Cape Lookout
-Grandfather Mountain
-Great Smoky Mountains
-Lake Mattamuskeet
-Lumber River
-Merchants Millpond State Park
-Mountains to Sea Trail
-New River
-Ocracoke Island

About 1,300 nominations yielded 200 unique potential “Natural Wonders,” which were narrowed to a field of 25 semifinalists by a panel of prominent North Carolinians, said Land for Tomorrow. From those 25, “North Carolina’s Ten Natural Wonders” were determined by popular vote. Over 3,000 individual votes were submitted.

The (first) votes are in!

The list has been whittled down in the Land for Tomorrow's Top 10 N.C. Natural Wonders survey. You have until May 18th to pick your top five (or you can pick for the same natural wonder five times).

Among the choices are:
-The Blowing Rock
-The Blue Ridge Parkway
-Cape Hatteras and Cape Lookout seashores
-Chimney Rock
-DuPont State Forest
-Grandfather Mountain
-Great Smoky Mountains
-Jockeys Ridge
-Joyce Kilmer Forest
-Lake Mattamuskeet
-Linville Falls
-Linville Gorge
-Lumber River
-Merchants Millpond State Park
-Mount Mitchell
-Mountains to Sea Trail
-Natahala Gorge
-New River
-Ocracoke Island
-Pilot Mountain
-Pisgah National Forest
-Roan Mountain
-Eno River
-Outer Banks
-Wild Horse of Corolla

Some intriguing possibilities here. To be honest, I forgot about many of these; North Carolina is truly blessed. Hard to narrow down to 10.

Just looking at 'em, here are a few initial thoughts on some of the choices.

-The Blowing Rock: One of my personal favorites. It's "legend" adds to its aura.
-The Blue Ridge Parkway: At first glance, an easy top 10 ...
-Grandfather Mountain: ... as is this one ...
-Great Smoky Mountains: ... this one ...
-Jockeys Ridge: ... and this one.
-Joyce Kilmer Forest: Some of the state's oldest and largest trees reside here. An underrated place.
-Linville Falls: Very nice, but there may be more majestic falls.
-Lumber River: For thousands of years, this river was the lifeblood of natives.
-Mount Mitchell: Tallest peak east of the Mississippi seems like a no-brainer.
-New River: I think, aside from the Nile, this is the only river in the world that flows from south to north.
-Ocracoke Island: Famous for its own local "dialect," but I'm not sure it's a top 10 natural wonder.
-Outer Banks: No-brainer.
-Wild Horse of Corolla: A sleeper suggestion I hadn't thought about. Good choice.

Go here to vote.

What are N.C.'s top 10 natural wonders?

You've probably read about it by now, but Land for Tomorrow is hoping that people will vote on just what are the top 10 natural wonders in our great state. There are just a couple more days to vote.

North Carolina is a "state is full of natural wonders." However, "settling on a list of its most beautiful places is not so easy."

“We were trying to think of a fun way to get people involved in highlighting how important conservation is to them,” said Debbie Crane, of Land for Tomorrow, a statewide coalition working to preserve the state's natural resources and urging legislators to fund conservation. “People need to understand that the places they love, they don't just get saved on their own.”

Residents have until Thursday to nominate any landscape, natural feature, wildlife or plant life unique to North Carolina for consideration in the contest. More than 600 nominations have already been submitted.

There are some obvious front-runners: Grandfather Mountain; Jockeys Ridge; Linville Gorge; Pilot Mountain; the Blue Ridge Parkway; etc. But if "unique" plants and animals are options, that could allow for voting for things such as the Venus Fly Trap or the famous white squirrels of Brevard. The results are expected to be released May 18. Go here to vote.

Happy voting!