BOOK 



MARKET 



Fall: A Season 

 for Discovery 



s 



By Pam Smith 



'oon, days will grow shorter 

 and autumn will nudge temperatures 

 down a notch or two. But there's no 

 need to abandon a vacation frame of 

 mind. Fact is, North Carolina's coast 

 has year-round natural treasures to 

 enjoy. 



A host of new books can lead 

 readers to exciting destinations for a 

 long weekend or a post-Labor Day 

 week at the coast. Some are meant to 

 guide you to and through places that 

 reflect the unique coastal history, 

 culture and environment. 



• Exploring North Carolina's 

 Natural Areas: Parks, Nature 

 Preserves, and Hiking Trails, 



edited by Dirk Frankenberg, The 

 University of North Carolina Press, 

 Chapel Hill, NC 27515. 432 pages. 

 Paperback, $18.95, ISBN 0-7078- 

 4851-4. Hardcover, $29.95, ISBN 

 08078-2547-6. 



This collection of "eco tours" 

 was Dirk Frankenberg' s final gift to 

 the people of North Carolina before 

 his untimely death in June. Dedicated to the 

 state's citizens, the book showcases the 

 variety of natural areas accessible to the 

 public from the coast to the mountains. 



Frankenberg, who was a highly 

 respected professor of marine sciences at 

 the University of North Carolina at Chapel 

 Hill, called upon leading naturalists from 

 across the state to author "tours" as a public 

 service. Essays highlight the ecology, 

 geology, biology and natural history of 

 sites in each region to give readers a 



glimpse of the state's rich biodiversity. 



In his introduction, Frankenberg tells 

 readers that the book is meant to acquaint 

 people with North Carolina's environmen- 

 tal heritage by directing them to the best- 

 preserved examples of natural landscape. 



Along with editing, coordinating and 

 organizing this terrific resource book, 

 Frankenberg contributed several entries, 

 including five coastal tours to: maritime 

 forests, Bogue Banks, a blackwater river, 

 the lower Cape Fear River, and a 



Brunswick County savanna. He 

 also guides an adventure into the 

 Great Smoky Mountains National 

 Park. 



Some entries have strong Sea 

 Grant ties. Lundie Spence, 

 education specialist, and B.J. 

 Copeland, former director, 

 collaborated on "Albemarle- 

 Pamlico Peninsula: Pocosin Lakes 

 and Wetlands." This sector of the 

 coastal plain encompasses 

 Pocosin Lake National Wildlife 

 Refuge, Pettigrew State Park, 

 Somerset Place, Phelps Lake, 

 Alligator Lake and Lake 

 Mattamuskeet. The authors show 

 "how water and land interact to 

 form wetlands, lakes and water 

 courses that have sustained 

 wildlife and humans for thousands 

 of years." 



Illustrations and maps with 

 each entry make this book an 

 excellent resource for planning 

 nature trips. Readers will want to 

 take a copy along to refer to 

 authors' descriptions of what can be seen 

 and learned along the way and notations of 

 unique features — hiking trails, bike trails 

 and water courses. 



Soon, school children across the state 

 will be able to take virtual field trips to 

 each of 38 destinations by clicking on the 

 multimedia listing on the Learn NC Web 

 site, www.learnnc.org. 



Frankenberg' s legacy includes earlier 

 books, The Nature of the Outer Banks 



Continued 



COASTWATCH 23 



