NATURE & SCIENCE
There are many museums and nature preserves within short driving distance from Lake Norman.
Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden 
In 1989, Daniel J. Stowe, a retired textile executive from Belmont, North Carolina, reserved 450 acres of prime rolling meadows, woodlands and lakefront property and established a foundation to develop a world-class botanical garden.
A lifelong nature lover and gardening enthusiast, Dan Stowe and his wife, Alene, envisioned a complex evolving over several decades to rival other internationally renowned gardens. The Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden is easily accessible from I-77, located just west of Charlotte at the NC/SC state line outside the town of Belmont.
Also Make Sure to Visit:
- Carolina Raptor Center – www.CarolinaRaptorCenter.org
- Carolina Zoo – www.NCZoo.org
- Crowders Mountain State Park – www.CrowdersMountain.com
- Charlotte Nature Museum at Discovery Place – www.DiscoveryPlace.org
- McGill Rose Garden – www.McGillRoseGarden.org
- McDowell Nature Preserve – www.ParkAndRec.com
- Ribbonwalk Forest – www.parkAndRec.com
- Schiele Museum of Natural History & Planetarium (Gastonia) – www.SchieleMuseum.org
- Wing Haven Gardens & Bird Sanctuary - www.WinghavenGardens.com