Deer Lick Gap, Blue Ridge Parkway, NC

An overcast and gray day view on the Blue Ridge Parkway from Deer Lick Gap, between Mt. Mitchell State Park and Little Switzerland in North Carolina. This Southern view overlooks the mountains that are standing to the North of the Marion, NC area. It had a large Hemlock Tree to the left. It is much higher than the white pine on the right. These trees once were very prominent throughout the hardwood forest, especially in damp and wet areas. Unfortunately, many have succumbed to the Wooly Adelgid and have perished. I am always happy to see one of these giants that are still flourishing. I have read that one of the surviving Hemlocks at Joyce Kilmer Memorial Park towers over 150 feet.