The weather today was a little schizophrenic. It rained on and off over the night and we awoke to clouds whipping by in the morning and the sun dancing off the cloud formations. It would be sunny warm and humid (albeit windy), then the sky would darken, the temperature would drop, and it would rain for half an hour. Then the sun would break through again for half an hour, and the cycle would repeat itself. We learned to time our lunch and snack breaks for the sunny periods.

It gave us a great opportunity to talk about cloud types. We covered cirrus, stratus, nimbus, cumulus, and ominous. We also got to watch the very active wildflowers. We’ve seen countless types so far (from Blood Root in Georgia–the large white flower with the red roots that the Cherokee would use for dye–to Trillium, to wild irises, to Trout Lilies–this cool yellow lilies that open downward, to many others I can’t name). But the stars today were the Bluets or Quaker Ladies–these tiny white flowers with purple streaks that blanket the forest floor in what, for a distance, appears to be frost. Every time the sun would come out, we could watch the Bluets open into four petaled flowers. Then when those ominous clouds took over the sky, we could watch the Bluets close into tiny white bells. With the rapidly changing weather, they put on quite a show.

Here you can see our tent in the morning, us stealing lunch in the sun by a giant rock with AT symbol on it, RobinHood exploring unusual tree formations, and Cartwheel trying to ensure that she doesn’t get left behind. Happy Trails, and thanks to all who have written or taken the time to comment. We do see all your messages, even if it does take us a while to reply.