Above: Steve and Holly wind down the Kanati Fork trail in the Great Smokies. The trail has one of the finest wildflower displays on the south side of the Smokies, and if you hike it before the weeds get bad, it's a real delight to visit. We did this trip on a warm mid-April weekend, when long ribbons of green are beginning their climb up the mountainside from the lowlands of the Oconaluftee Valley. There were literally millions of white trilliums, mayapple, violets, and other spring flowers decorating the banks and ravines along the trail.
Below: Squaw Root, a favorite spring food of bears in the Smoky Mountains. It's small and looks a bit like skinny little pine cones popping up out of the ground. Squaw root has no leaves and no chlorophyll. The plant is parasitic, living on the root systems of other plants in the forest. If you look closely, you can spot the tiny yellow flowers that grow out of the side of the stalks. It's most often found in dry oak forests, drawing its nourishment from the roots of the mighty oak.

The Kanati Fork trail connects with the Thomas Divide trail after climbing about 2,200 feet in 2.9 miles from Hwy. 441.