As the sun rises into morning mist, the repetitive patterns of a North Carolina rhododendron forest shimmer gold and green.

I went up to the Appalachians of North Carolina (near Cashiers) for a long weekend, but I went too early. It was clear that winter had not yet released its grasp. Most trees still had no leaves (or flowers), and there were a few overnight freezes that kept even the rhododendrons shy. But on my last morning, I awoke to a dense fog – a warm fog, that seemed to signal the change of season. As the fog began to thin and the sun began to pierce holes in it, the sunlight danced brilliantly around the happily opened rhododendron forest.

Purchase “Spring Sunrise Over Carolina Rhododendron Forest” Fine Art Print: