131 Cool and Unusual Things to Do in North Carolina - Atlas Obscura

Unusual
Attractions
in North Carolina

Raleigh, North Carolina

Cloud Chamber for the Trees and Sky

This woodland architectural installation acts as a camera obscura for the heavens.

Littleton, North Carolina

Cryptozoology & Paranormal Museum

Bigfoot prints, Feejee mermaids, and haunted dolls on display in a tiny North Carolina town.

Hendersonville, North Carolina

Blue Ghost Fireflies

These eerie outliers of the lightning bug family glow a mysteriously blue color, for too long, and it's awesome.

Hildebran, North Carolina

Abandoned Henry River Mill Village

An abandoned village that doubled as "The Hunger Games"' post-apocalyptic wasteland is up for grabs.

Sylva, North Carolina

Judaculla Rock

Mysterious ancient boulder carved with petroglyphs in the mountains of Western North Carolina.

Beech Mountain, North Carolina

Land of Oz Theme Park

An Oz-themed attraction that has fallen into disrepair but still holds some of that original magic.

Rougemont, North Carolina

Castle Mont Rouge

A sculptor's dream studio turned fantastical ruin.

Bryson City, North Carolina

The Road to Nowhere

This road in the Great Smoky Mountains was supposed to assuage a displaced community, but ended up a $52 million dead end.

See All 131 Things to Do in North Carolina See All 131 Places

Unique
Food & Drink
in North Carolina

Snow Cream

Ice cream made with fresh snow is a beloved Southern tradition.

Peanut Pie

The Virginia treat can “make even your deepest-dyed Yankee start complimenting you with a southern accent.”

Deep-Fried Peanuts

You eat the shell, too.

Mother Vine Scuppernong Wine

This sweet Southern elixir comes from what may be the oldest grape vine in North America.

Sponsored by Johnston County Visitors Bureau

See all 15 things to eat in North Carolina See all 15 things to eat in North Carolina

Community Forums / United States / US: South

Top Discussions in the US: South Travel Forum

Post	Replies	Views	Activity
Carolina House with a Natural Cavern underneath	9 September 27, 2019	2628	September 27, 2019
What would you do on a time crunch in DC?	19 December 9, 2019	807	December 9, 2019
New Orleans suggestions?	13 June 4, 2019	1911	June 4, 2019
Road Trip between Lexington, KY to Louisville, KY	16 January 31, 2019	2221	January 31, 2019
Off the beaten path / hidden gems near Nashville?	9 November 20, 2019	789	November 20, 2019

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Stories
About North Carolina

An 1826 map of North Carolina, with counties, roads, settlements, and topographical features.

Why North Carolina Is the Most Linguistically Diverse U.S. State

But it might not be that way for much longer.

by Dan Nosowitz

December 11, 2019

How Whopping Whale Skeletons Come to Life at 'Bonehenge'

“Every one of these animals has a story."

December 5, 2019

Bat biologist Kristi Confortin checks for—what else—bats.

North Carolina’s Abandoned Gold Mines Don’t Have Gold, But Do Have Bats

A deadly disease could devastate these thriving colonies of winged critters.

by Sabrina Imbler

August 14, 2019

The cufflink found at the site of the Brunswick Town tavern.

Found: A Seditious Cufflink From the Colonial Resistance Wardrobe

It holds a semi-secret message of opposition to the king.

by Isaac Schultz

Some of the trees along Black River are more than 2,000 years old.

Some Bald Cypress Trees in This North Carolina Swamp Are Older Than Cleopatra

New research suggests that Black River's gnarled conifers are even more ancient than we thought.

by Jessica Leigh Hester

A tubeworm growing from under an outcrop, surrounded by other deep sea species.

Found: For the First Time, Deep Sea Tube Worms Near the U.S. East Coast

You never know what you'll find when you turn over a rock.

by Jonathan Carey

A Divine Pine oyster from N. SEA. Oyster Company in Topsail Sound, North Carolina.

How North Carolinians Learned to Love Their Green Oysters

The seasonal delicacy was discarded for decades.

by Jennifer Rice

A sand tiger shark swims with the fishes, not far from one of the North Carolina shipwrecks.

Sand Tiger Sharks Are Drawn to North Carolina's Shipwrecks

They return to the same sunken vessels over and over again, and researchers are trying to figure out why.

by Jonathan Carey

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