Carolina Environmental Diversity Explorations
Jocassee Gorges · By Stephanie Walters and Dirk Frankenberg
Wetland bogs
Figure 5. Wetlands flourish in flat areas and hollows on upper slopes. (Photograph by Dirk Frankenberg. More about the photograph)
The waterfalls may be the most spectacular features of this forested region, but unusual plant communities also flourish in the rain forest climate. By starting near the top of a gorge and working our way down to the waterfalls, we can see a range of such communities.
Flat areas and hollows along the upper slopes of the Blue Ridge or the Highland Plateau allow the abundant water to collect and create wetlands. Most of the topography is steep, so these wetland bogs are rare. The wetland shown in Figure 5 is typical in being dominated by shrubs, but these marshy wetlands also support a wide diversity of herbaceous wildflowers, including the white-blooming meadowsweet visible in the left foreground.
