Southern United States
Travel Guide > North America > USA > Southern United States
In this Article
- Introduction
- Geography
- Regions and states
- Cities
- Sights and Activities
- Events and Festivals
- Weather
- Getting There
- Getting Around
- Eat
- Drink
- Sleep
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Introduction
The Southern United States encompasses a huge breadth of land, from the Atlantic coast south to the Gulf of Mexico and west to the "Deep South". The South, as it is colloquially known, is not merely a geographic region: It also has historical and cultural significance, particularly relating to the polarizing American Civil War.
Geography
Regions and states
Regions:
- South Atlantic States: Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Washington, D.C., West Virginia
- East South Central States: Alabama, Kentucky, Mississippi, Tennessee
- West South Central States: Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Texas
States:
Cities
Sights and Activities
Appalachian National Scenic Trail
The Appalachian National Scenic Trail, also known as the Appalachian Trail or the A.T., is a 2,175 miles (3,500 km) long hiking trail that has one of its terminus points in Georgia and the other in Maine. This trail attracts countless thru hikers, people that do the hike in one trip, and section hikers, people that hike different parts of the trail at different times in order to do the whole trail, every year. This trail goes into some of the best preserved wilderness in all of the East Coast. Official website: http://www.appalachiantrail.org
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Over eight million people visit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park each year, making it the most visited park in the United States. There are 78 historic buildings in the Park, which is open year round. Spanning the borders of North Carolina and Tennessee, the Park is a popular destination for hikers. The Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Other Sights and Activities
- Beaches can be found along the coastline of the south even outside of Florida. Places like the Outer Banks in North Carolina and the Mississippi coast can be a great place to spend a few days.
Events and Festivals
Weather
Such a huge areas has different climates. While it rarely gets cold in southern Florida, winter temperatures can drop significantly below zero more to the north, for example in Kentucky. Generally though, winters, lasting from December to March are not as cold as in the northern parts of the United States. During this time, temperatures decrease from south to north. Miami has winter temperatures just below 25 degrees Celsius, New Orleans and Houston just under 20 degrees, while more to the north Washington DC is below 10 degrees most of the time and below zero at night. Some nights in the north can drop to around -30 degrees although this is quite rare.
Summers last from late May to September with almost everywhere warm to hot conditions. Temperatures can rise up to 40 degrees, even in the northern parts and Texas is probably one of the hottest states in the southern region during this time, with occasionally 45 degrees. Nights are fairly warm everywhere. Florida experiences smaller differences as temperatures are mainly around 30 degrees with not that much variation throughout the months. The southern coastline can feel hot and sticky, from southern Florida all the way to Texas.
In general, April and May and September and October are good months almost anywhere, though bear in mind that the southern parts have a chance of hurricanes mainly hitting the coastal areas during the latter months.
Eat
Drink
Sleep
This is version 17. Last edited at 20:37 on Jun 18, 09 by Lavafalls (+213). 18 articles link to this page.
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