The Green Cathedral

Feb. 4, 2026, Elizabeth Kaari,
Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina

One moment that I encountered beauty that impacted my life was found at the end of a hike in the Blue Ridge Mountains. I worked at a camp in the Blue Ridge Mountains one summer. There was one particular hike nearby called Black Balsam that consisted of a steep incline surrounded by thick forest and followed a rocky path. Once you reached the top, the thick forest stopped and gave way to a prairie— also know as a bald. You could give throw your sleeping bag anywhere in the grass and sleep comfortably since the grass was tall enough to block the wind on the top of the mountain. The woman who ran the camp would often refer to the mountains as “The Green Cathedral” and sleeping here somehow felt like I was staying in a perpetual state of adoration.