Blue Ridge Country Staff

Oxeye Daisy. Credit Joe Cook and Monica Sheppard

July’s Mountain Wildflower: Oxeye Daisy

The oxeye daisy is a member of the composite family, which American naturalist Roger Tory Peterson believed to be the most recent one to make its appearance on Earth. 
2027 Best of the Mountains Awards

2026 Best of the Mountains Awards

The Nomination /Voting period has ended. Please look for the results posted in the November/December 2026 issue.
Blooming rosebay rhododendrons frame a lovely, fast-moving cascade along the Oconaluftee River in Great Smoky Mountains National Park near Cherokee, North Carolina. Photo by Robert Stephens

Currents & Cascades: A Photo Essay

Our contributing photographers followed the flow of summer.
Mountain Laurel. Credit Leonard M. Adkins

June’s Mountain Wildflower: Mountain Laurel

If you are out in the fall, stop to examine the small capsules on the mountain laurel; these were once the plant’s flowers in May, June, and July.

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Even More Sweet Virginia Breezes

Casually cruising to Claytor Lake in southwest Virginia, I felt like I had come home – back to where it

CALENDAR OF EVENTS