Jockey's Ridge State Park in Nags Head on North Carolina's Outer Banks preserves the tallest active sand dune system in the eastern United States across 427 acres of shifting dune, sound waters, and maritime forest. Formed over thousands of years as sand moved from the mountains to the coast and inland on wind and storms, the ridge has long served as a landmark, including for 16th-century mariners. Strong Outer Banks winds continually reshape the medano and slowly move it southwest. Preservation began after local opposition to bulldozing in 1973, leading to landmark designation, park creation in 1975, and later conservation efforts such as shoreline restoration and wind power.