Rachel StepekAppalachian Field Notes from Laurel River Lake
Stalked Puffball-in-Aspic among moss and wet forest litter

An artist’s field guide

The woods reveal themselves slowly.

This growing photographic record brings together the colors, forms, and lives I notice along Appalachian banks, creeks, and forest floors.

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A curated, growing field guide

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Cumberland Azalea flowering across a wooded layered rock bankPlants33 entries → Bright Shaggy-Stalked Boletes on the forest floorFungi24 entries → Great Blue Heron at a wooded waterlineAnimals16 entries →
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Fresh beaver tooth marks opening a felled trunk beside the water American Beaver SignCastor canadensis Animals
August · Gnawing & Lodge Group of lemon-yellow Appalachian Tiger Swallowtails gathering on damp ground Appalachian Tiger SwallowtailPapilio appalachiensis Animals
April · Waterfall Hollow Tiny powder-blue Azure Bluet flowers in bright moss Azure BluetHoustonia caerulea Plants
April · Mossy Forest Floor Powder-blue Mistflower colony spreading across fallen wood and summer green Blue MistflowerConoclinium coelestinum Plants
August · Two Records Blue-green Cracking Russula cap broken into a light mosaic beside exposed ivory gills Blue-green Cracking RussulaRussula parvovirescens Fungi
August · Forest Floor Spherical white Buttonbush flower head at the water's edge ButtonbushCephalanthus occidentalis Plants
July · Water's Edge Scarlet Cardinal Flower blooms rising among green leaves Cardinal FlowerLobelia cardinalis Plants
August · Cove Edge Tiny yellow Club-Like Tuning Fork fungi branching from decaying hardwood Club-Like Tuning ForkCalocera cornea Fungi
June · Decaying Hardwood Collared Earthstar opened across damp forest litter Collared EarthstarGeastrum triplex Fungi
August · Forest Floor Two Common Earthballs among wet leaves beside moving water Common EarthballScleroderma citrinum Fungi
August · Wet Forest Floor Spotted orange Common Jewelweed flower with droplets on its stem Common JewelweedImpatiens capensis Plants
July & August · Rocky Lake Edge Cucumber Root leaf whorl beside moss and decaying wood Cucumber RootMedeola virginiana Plants
July · Forest Floor Orange Cumberland Azalea flowering above a layered rock bank Cumberland AzaleaRhododendron cumberlandense Plants
June · Wooded Rock Bank Two violet-blue Downy Lobelia flowers on a slender woodland stem Downy LobeliaLobelia puberula Plants
August · Wooded Slope Two cream-white Downy Rattlesnake Plantain flower spikes beside a gray tree trunk Downy Rattlesnake PlantainGoodyera pubescens Plants
July · Forest Floor One yellow Downy False Foxglove bloom beneath round chartreuse buds Downy Yellow False FoxgloveAureolaria virginica Plants
June · Oak Understory Tiny yellow Dwarf St. John's Wort flowers beside a hand for scale Dwarf St. John's WortHypericum mutilum Plants
June · Damp Lake Edge Eastern Black Bear at the Lake Keowee waterline Eastern Black BearUrsus americanus americanus Animals
March · Lake Keowee Cove Eastern Box Turtle beside a red-capped bolete on a wooded slope Eastern Box TurtleTerrapene carolina carolina Animals
July & August · Cove Edge & Wooded Slope Cream Eastern Cauliflower Mushroom with curled ribbonlike branches Eastern Cauliflower MushroomSparassis spathulata Fungi
July 2023 · Hardwood Forest Tiny Eastern Fence Lizard braced on a fingertip above gray stone Eastern Fence LizardSceloporus undulatus Animals
August · Rock & Forest Floor Orange Eastern Newt eft crossing cream, rust, and blue-gray creek stones Eastern NewtNotophthalmus viridescens Animals
July & August · Stream Edge Eastern Tiger Swallowtail resting with striped wings open Eastern Tiger SwallowtailPapilio glaucus Animals
July · Sandy Cove Denim-blue Entoloma cap above brown leaf litter Entoloma indigoferumEntoloma indigoferum Fungi
August · Forest Floor Red-orange Field Bolete shown against leaves on the forest floor Field BoleteHortiboletus campestris Fungi
August · Forest Floor Scarlet Fire Pink flowers above a rocky woodland floor Fire PinkSilene virginica Plants
April · Rocky Woodland Lemon-yellow Fragile Dapperling rising from the forest floor Fragile DapperlingLeucocoprinus fragilissimus Fungi
August · Forest Floor Ivory-white Ghost Pipe stems rising through wet leaf litter Ghost PipeMonotropa uniflora Plants
June · Forest Floor Pink-and-cream Goat's Rue flowers above silvery green leaves Goat's RueTephrosia virginiana Plants
May · Open Woodland Great Blue Heron balanced on a fallen trunk at the wooded waterline Great Blue HeronArdea herodias Animals
April · Waterline Cluster of blush-white Great Rhododendron flowers in the leafy understory Great RhododendronRhododendron maximum Plants
June · Moist Understory Great Spangled Fritillary showing pearl-silver spots beneath orange wings Great Spangled FritillaryArgynnis cybele Animals
August · Flowering Edge Overlapping green Greater Whipwort shoots forming a dense mat Greater WhipwortBazzania trilobata Plants
August · Forest Floor Tall Hollow Joe-Pye Weed crowned with soft pink flower clusters Hollow Joe-Pye WeedEutrochium fistulosum Plants
July · Moist Opening Blue Indigo Milk Cap on the wet forest floor Indigo Milk CapLactarius indigo Fungi
August · Wet Forest Floor Cream Jellied False Coral Fungus branching across the hardwood forest floor Jellied False Coral FungusSebacina schweinitzii Fungi
July · Hardwood Forest Floor Tiny purplish Lanceleaf Frogfruit flowers growing among stones near the water Lanceleaf FrogfruitPhyla lanceolata Plants
July · Rocky Waterline Longear Sunfish showing turquoise facial lines and orange fins above green water Longear SunfishLepomis megalotis Animals
May & June · Open Water Powdery blue-green Luna Moth resting with its long hindwing tails visible Luna MothActias luna Animals
August · Resting Moth Lynx Paw Oyster mushroom emerging from a hardwood cavity Lynx Paw OysterPleurotus levis Fungi
July · Hardwood Cavity Low green Meadow Spikemoss spreading across damp ground Meadow SpikemossSelaginella apoda Plants
August · Damp Ground Closed green Mottled Wakerobin bud centered above three patterned leaves Mottled WakerobinTrillium discolor Plants
April · Forest Floor White Mountain Camellia held toward the sun above a wooded slope Mountain CamelliaStewartia ovata Plants
June · Rich-Cove Understory Cluster of porcelain-white Mountain Laurel flowers with patterned pink centers Mountain LaurelKalmia latifolia Plants
May · Wooded Bank Mountain Spleenwort fronds rooted in a narrow sandstone crevice Mountain SpleenwortAsplenium montanum Plants
July & August · Sandstone Crevice Blush-white Multiflora Rose blossoms with yellow stamens Multiflora RoseRosa multiflora Plants
May · Flowering Shrub One fully opened New York Fern frond above dark moss and curled brown leaves New York FernAmauropelta noveboracensis Plants
July · Shaded Forest Floor Dark shaggy Old-Man-of-the-Woods mushroom among forest litter Old-Man-of-the-WoodsStrobilomyces strobilaceus Fungi
August · Forest Floor Bright orange Orange Jelly Spot fungus on dark wet wood Orange Jelly SpotDacrymyces chrysospermus Fungi
August · Wet Wood Yellow Ornate-Stalked Bolete rising from the leafy forest floor Ornate-Stalked BoleteRetiboletus ornatipes Fungi
July & August · Forest Floor Red Partridgeberry fruit among glossy leaves and wet moss PartridgeberryMitchella repens Plants
July & August · Mossy Forest Floor Post-bloom Pink Lady's Slipper leaves on the forest floor Pink Lady's SlipperCypripedium acaule Plants
July · Hemlock-Deciduous Grove Warm brown and ochre Pink-Striped Oakworm Moth resting on a hand Pink-Striped Oakworm MothAnisota virginiensis Animals
May · Woodland Three small Powder-Scale Pholiota mushrooms on decaying hardwood Powder-Scale PholiotaFlammulaster erinaceellus Fungi
August · Fallen Hardwood Rainbow Trout showing a speckled olive back and rosy side stripe Rainbow TroutOncorhynchus mykiss Animals
March · Open Water Smoke-mauve Ramaria fumigata branching from vivid green moss Ramaria fumigataRamaria fumigata Fungi
August · Mossy Wood Small divided orange-red Red Chanterelle against wet forest litter Red ChanterelleCantharellus cinnabarinus Fungi
July & August · Two Records Red Maple leaves and reddish petioles in the green understory Red MapleAcer rubrum Plants
July · Green Understory Coral-red Red Raspberry Slime Mold cushions clustered on decaying wood Red Raspberry Slime MoldTubifera ferruginosa Other Life
June · Decaying Wood Red-Eared Slider viewed from above with its red head stripe visible Red-Eared SliderTrachemys scripta elegans Animals
July · Lake Edge Sage-green Rock Greenshield Lichen spreading across a dark rock surface Rock Greenshield LichenFlavoparmelia baltimorensis Fungi
July · Rock Surface Pink Rosepink flower with a yellow-green star-shaped eye RosepinkSabatia angularis Plants
July · Sunny Opening Pair of bright Shaggy-Stalked Boletes on the forest floor Shaggy-Stalked BoleteAureoboletus betula Fungi
August · Forest Floor Purple Sharpwing Monkeyflower growing in a seep Sharpwing MonkeyflowerMimulus alatus Plants
July · Seep One egg-yolk-yellow mushroom rising through crossed pine needles Small Yellow MushroomsHydnaceae Fungi
August · Moss & Leaf Litter Southern Sneezeweed flower with yellow rays around a purple-brown center Southern SneezeweedHelenium flexuosum Plants
June · Wet Bank Red Stalked Puffball-in-Aspic among moss and wet litter Stalked Puffball-in-AspicCalostoma cinnabarinum Fungi
August · Mossy Forest Floor Striped Fishing Spider spread across a submerged creek stone Striped Fishing SpiderDolomedes scriptus Animals
August · Shallow Water Striped Wintergreen leaves on the forest floor with a dog farther along the trail Striped WintergreenChimaphila maculata Plants
May · Forest Trail Tiny Thyme and Allied Mosses forming a bright green colony on damp substrate Thyme and Allied MossesPlagiomnium Plants
August · Damp Substrate Broad brown Velvet-Footed Tap mushroom attached to decaying wood Velvet-Footed TapTapinella atrotomentosa Fungi
August · Decaying Wood Branching white coral fungus rising from brown forest litter White Coral FungusClavulina coralloides Fungi
August · Forest Floor Layered White-Pored Chicken of the Woods at buried hardwood roots White-Pored Chicken of the WoodsLaetiporus cincinnatus Fungi
June & August · Two Records Yellow-striped Oakworm caterpillar shown at close range Yellow-striped Oakworm MothAnisota peigleri Animals
August · Caterpillar

The Appalachian Color Guide

The mountains have their own rainbow.

Follow the colors that stop you—from cardinal red and mushroom gold to forest green, indigo blue, flower pink, ivory cream, and the earth tones of wood and leaf litter.

Explore the Appalachian Color Guide →
Red Cardinal Flower bloomsRed Orange Cumberland Azalea flowersOrange Golden Shaggy-Stalked Bolete beneath green mossYellow & Gold Yellow-green patterned underside of a Red-Eared SliderGreen Saturated blue gills of an Indigo Milk CapBlue & Indigo Violet cap of a Viscid Violet CortViolet & Pink Translucent white Ghost Pipe flowersWhite & Cream Charcoal Old-Man-of-the-Woods mushroom among mossEarth & Black