No. 8 SMITHSONIAN EXPLORATIONS, I913 43 
About Montreat the mountains are covered with an almost virgin 
chestnut forest, traversed by numerous small, swift streams of clear, 
cold water, bordered with hemlocks. There is an abundant under- 
growth of rhododendron and laurel, two of the handsomest of North 
American shrubs, which attain their greatest perfection in the south- 
ern Appalachians. The herbaceous vegetation consists of many 
Fic. 44.—Chestnut forest near Montreat, North 
Carolina. Photograph by Standley. 
species, some of them of limited distribution. A small sphagnum 
bog, in particular, yielded a large number of rare plants. 
The most interesting excursion made during the month’s camp was 
to the summit of Mount Mitchell, the highest peak in eastern North 
America—6,710 feet. By trail, it is distant about sixteen miles from 
Montreat. The trail at first follows a logging railroad which is 
being extended into the mountains, then strikes through the heavy 
