North Carolina - Scuppernong River Preserve

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About Us: The mission of The Nature Conservancy is to preserve the plants, animals and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive.


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Scuppernong River Preserve

Scuppernong River Map

LOCATION:
Coastal Plain
Tyrrell and Washington Counties

SIZE IN ACRES:
653

INVOLVEMENT IN ACRES:
NA

Hooded mergansers (© Ken Taylor)

TOPOGRAPHICAL MAP:
Columbia East, Columbia West, Creswell, Creswell Southeast

Topographical maps are available by contacting:
NC Geographical Survey.
1612 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1612.
(919) 715-9718
www.geology.enr.state.nc.us/

ACTIVITIES & AMENITIES:
Birding / Fishing / Small Boats / Canoeing

OWNERSHIP & ACCESS:
The Scuppernong River is best explored by small boat on day trips, since the land along the river is privately owned. If you spend a weekend exploring this remote natural area, camping is available at nearby Pettigrew State Park and Lake Phelps.

SITE INFORMATION:
The Scuppernong is a blackwater river that flows through Tyrrell and Washington Counties into the Albemarle Sound. This free-flowing river is a great place to canoe, birdwatch, and fish. The river's broad floodplain is comprised of diverse wetland forest communities, including extensive swamp forests of bald cypress, pond pine, sweetgum, sweet bay, and significant stands of rare Atlantic white cedar.

The river's floodplain provides an important wildlife corridor between Alligator River and Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuges. Black bear, bobcat, and river otter are common in this area, with the deep organic soils and thick forest providing an almost impenetrable protective barrier on the shoreline.

CONSERVATION HIGHLIGHTS:
Since 1989, the North Carolina Chapter has protected five tracts on the river through separate purchases and donations.

DIRECTIONS:
The Scuppernong is included in the Albemarle Region Canoe Trail system. There is a public boat landing south of the town of Creswell on Main Street.

The Visitor Center in Columbia offers canoe access and a 3/4 mile boardwalk through a bottomland swamp bordering the river.

Pettigrew State Park is located nine miles south of Creswell off of US 64 on SR 1166.
Pettigrew State Park
2252 Lake Shore Drive
Creswell, NC 27928
(252) 797-4475