For those who don't know, Roan Mountain has one of, if not the best displays of Catawba Rhododendron in the universe. I made a late attempt last year and came away with very few pictures. Part of the reason was the weather which is always finicky on The Roan. It is often fogged in and very windy. I had already planned to go today and Andy got me even more excited when he posted a message 2 days earlier saying the blooms were peaking.

The weather looked promising at the lower elevations, but as I got closer I could see the mountain was socked in. I could deal with some fog for a while, but as I approached Carver's Gap, the winds picked up and tree branches were whipping. My plan was to head to Grassy Ridge first, then hit the easier hike in the Gardens at the end of the day. But when I parked at Carver's Gap, I wasn't seeing any pink! I walked up to one of the shrubs and only saw dead petals on the ground - dammit! The fog was so thick I couldn't see anything up the mountain, but I got my gear together and headed up the trail anyway. I came across a few blooms and a flame azalea in bloom, but it was too windy to shoot. As I approached Round Bald I thought 'this is crazy' so I headed back down. My new plan was to do the Gardens first, then see if it would clear enough to hit the balds.

Thankfully, the Gardens still had plenty of blooms. The fog was still very thick and it was windy. I managed a few shots in between gusts - this is one from the loop trail.