The Great Smoky Mountains

Wild Orchids

The Pink Lady's Slipper (Cypripedium acaule) is an arresting flower, especially when encountered in the wild. The plant consists of two large football shaped leaves that fan out from the ground with a single pubescent stalk, a quarter of an inch thick and a foot high, protruding from between them, upon which is perched the flower. The entire flower measures about 1 1/2" to 2" across and is composed of a pink, oblong sac hanging down like a lip and a three reddish, skinny petals above the lip. A green sepal hoods the upper petal and the opening to the sac. The sheer complexity of the flower is astounding, but there is something more than just scientific wonder that stirs inside me when I see it. Somehow, this flower reveals the entirety of the forests: This whole wild mountain range with it's peaks and valleys, trees and flowers, animals and humans, rocks and dirt. The whole of the ecosystem throughout history is reflected back at me when I stare into the intimate folds of this flower. I cannot get enough of staring at it, but I manage to pull myself away, pick up my 70 pound backpack and head up the trail. Later that day, as I crest the highest point in my three day journey, I look out onto the Smokey Mountains and I get the same feeling of historical awe. There it is: 180 million years of geological and biological history. Above me, thick, dark, primeval clouds blow across the grey sky. I can see in the distance patches of light shining down into the valley where breaks in the clouds let the sun shine down.

It's my second day in The Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I'm hiking the Gregory Bald loop that begins and ends at the Twentymile Ranger station in the South-West corner of the park. Two nights and about 5 miles a day through some of the richest, most abundant preserved forest land in the country. There are at least 100 species of native trees in the park and over 1,300 flowering plants. There are two major reasons why the plant and animal life is so diverse in the park: One, the park is located in a temperate region that sees long warm summers, mild winters and lots of rainfall. Two, the variation in altitude is extreme ranging from 840 feet above sea level at the mouth of Abrams Creek to 6,643 feet above sea level at the peak of Clingman's Dome. In fact, an ambitious project called the ALL TAXA BIO-DIVERSITY INVENTORY (ATBI) is taking a detailed inventory of ALL the flora and fauna of the park. As of October 2006, the ATBI has identified 651 species new to science and 4,666 species previously not known to inhabit the Park.

With all that life abounding, it helps to have a focus: mine is wildflowers. Late April is an ideal time to see wildflowers and even with the late frost, I am not let down. I see no less than 5 species of Trillium with a great deal of color and size
variation, from the sessile Little Sweet Betsy's (Trillium cuneatum) to the Great White Trillium (Trillium grandiflorum) and Nodding Trillium (Trillium cernuum) ranging from pure white to bright pink. I see at least two different Solomon's Seals (Polygonatum spp.) of which I have not yet identified the species.
As I get closer to the top of Gregory Bald, the vegetation begins to change. The taller, more succulent plants like Trillium and Solomon's Seal give way to more prostrate plants that hug the ground to stay warm in the bitter cold winters. Plants like Bluets (Houstonia caerula) line the edges of the rocks and paths. I enter a hardwood cove and the ground around me is literally carpeted with Spring Beauty (Claytonia virginica): The lush green foliage peppered heavily with the creamy white and hints of pink. It's there, among the Spring Beauty that I come across the largest patches of Yellow Troutlilies (Erythronium americanum) I've ever seen.

The vegetation on Gregory Bald is somewhat different than that of Max Patch (see earlier post). The clumping grasses are more lush and less trod upon and there are 3-4' brambles, plus a couple of brave trees. The view is nothing short of spectacular. Native Flame Azaleas not yet in bloom cover the Northern edge of the bald and I can't help imagining them all glowing orange as I head down the other side to my camp.

Backcountry camping is highly regulated in the park so that the damage us hikers do to the ecosystem is negligible. High cables with pulleys are rigged to keep food out of reach of bears. This camp, at around 4,500 feet above sea level is surrounded by Spring Beauties. I lay in my tent and read Gerard Durrell's My Family and Other Animals. Out of the corner of my eye, through the thin trees, I see something move. My stomach jumps like a spooked moth. A bear? I see it again, a light brown patch moving slowly through the trees. Deer. Four of them to be exact. I jump up and grab my camera and start tiptoeing through the woods. I am no stealthy hunter, and even though I'm upwind of the animals, I'm sure they have spotted me. Even so, they pay me little mind and soon I'm within ten feet of the youngest fawn. There is a mature doe and what seem to be her three offspring, two older and this one, still wobbly on his feet. They are grazing the woods for none other than Yellow Troutlilies. I'm aghast. Can't you eat something else? Now I realize the far reaching effects that Coyotes have had on this ecosystem. After the red wolf and the cougar were driven to extinction in these mountains, the deer population exploded. As a result, flowers like the Yellow Troutlily were in decline. Now that a large predator has filled that niche, namely Coyotes migrated here from the West coast, flowers like Troutlilies have a chance to repopulate. As I'm following the deer, I happen to catch a patch of Dutchman's Breeches (Dicentra cucullaria) which is an amazing looking flower that looks kind of like a pulled tooth or, sure enough, like a pair of puffy pants.

On the way down the mountain the next day I catch another Pink Lady's Slipper and another wild orchid, the Showy Orchis (Galearis spectabilis), in a small cluster. Each plant boasts three or four delicate flowers consisting of a white lower lip and a
pinkish hood. These little orchids stand only 4-6" high and are quite rare. Tiny Dwarf Crested Irises (Iris cristata) line the banks near the creeks and huge drifts of wild Geraniums(Geranium maculatum) created thick, beautiful masses of green and lavendar. I finish my hike, tired and happy, my head spinning with colors and scents. Next time, maybe I'll see how many different ferns I can find...