标签田纳西下的文章

同步萤火虫，大烟山国家公园，田纳西州，美国 Synchronous fireflies, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee (© Floris Van Bruegel/Minden Pictures)

一闪一闪亮晶晶（的小虫子） Twinkle, twinkle, little bugs

自然摄影日

让自己沉浸在大自然中绝对是阴沉的一天的最佳解药。我们周围的动植物、景色、声音和气味可以安抚我们的精神、身体和灵魂。想象自己沉浸在若虚若幻的情境中，好像站在神秘森林里，被高耸树木、潺潺溪流还有闪烁的萤火虫环绕。这片神秘的森林就是大烟山国家公园，这里每年五月和六月是萤火虫季。今天是大烟山国家公园的创立日，也正好是自然摄影日，可能没有什么比在今天拍摄萤火虫更应景了。

Nature Photography Day

Towering trees, rushing streams, and luminous fireflies combine to create this magical landscape in Tennessee's Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The park is famous for its firefly season between May and June when these 'lightning bugs' gather to put on a light show as part of a mating display. Today, we celebrate the anniversary of this magnificent national park, as well as Nature Photography Day. There may be no better subject than the lightning bug to mark the day—as photography is the art of capturing light in lasting images.

大雾山国家公园，田纳西州 Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee (© Tony Barber/Getty Images)

田纳西之巅 The top of Tennessee

Nature Photography Day in the Smokies

If you're celebrating Nature Photography Day today, then Great Smoky Mountains National Park would be an excellent place to snap your own shots of sylvan splendor like this one. That's because you'd have two reasons to celebrate—the park turns 88 today. These misty peaks and valleys along the border between Tennessee and North Carolina were established as a national park on this day in 1934. All these years later, it may not be the most famous national park in the US, but it is by far the most popular. With more than 14 million visitors per year, it draws more people than the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, and Yosemite combined.

True to its name, the park is known for its persistent haze. Native Americans–the region is the ancestral home of the Cherokee people–gave the place a name that translates to 'place of the blue smoke.' The smoke is actually a fog created in part by the native vegetation. It owes its blueish appearance to humidity and stagnant air. Almost all of the park is covered in deciduous and coniferous forest, a third of it old-growth trees that predate European settlement. The thick forests, range of elevations, and abundant rainfall support a stunning variety of wildlife. There are so many black bears that about two live in every square mile of the park. Bats, foxes, skunks, otters, bobcats, and 200 species of birds also call this place home. The park is most notable for its salamanders. In fact, it's known as the Salamander Capital of the World, with 30 species living here.

But the real stars of the park are the mountains. For panoramic vistas, this vantage point—Clingman's Dome on the Tennessee side of the park—is hard to beat. At 6,643 feet, it's also the highest point in the state. To take your own version of this shot, you don't even have to hike. Simply drive to the parking lot. But after you've got your pics, keep the camera handy. If the parking lot looks this good, imagine what photos you can take in the rest of the park.

烟雾中的自然摄影日

如果你今天要庆祝自然摄影日，那么大烟山国家公园将是一个很好的地方，你可以在这里拍摄自己的森林美景。那是因为今天你有两个理由庆祝公园88岁生日。1934年的今天，沿着田纳西州和北卡罗来纳州边界的这些雾蒙蒙的山峰和山谷被建成了国家公园。多年后，它可能不是美国最著名的国家公园，但它是迄今为止最受欢迎的国家公园。它每年吸引的游客超过1400万，超过了大峡谷、黄石公园和约塞米蒂的总和。

不折不扣地说，这个公园以其持续的阴霾而闻名。印第安人——该地区是切罗基人的祖籍——给这个地方起了一个翻译成“蓝烟之地”的名字烟雾实际上是一种雾，部分是由当地植被造成的。它的蓝色外观归因于潮湿和停滞的空气。几乎整个公园都覆盖着落叶和针叶林，其中三分之一是欧洲殖民地之前的老树。茂密的森林、广阔的海拔和充足的降雨量支撑着种类繁多的野生动物。公园里有很多黑熊，每平方英里大约有两只。蝙蝠、狐狸、臭鼬、水獭、山猫和200种鸟类也把这里称为家。该公园以其蝾螈最为著名。事实上，这里被称为世界蝾螈之都，有30种蝾螈生活在这里。

但公园里真正的明星是山。从全景来看，这个位于公园田纳西州一侧的有利位置克林曼圆顶（Clingman's Dome）是无与伦比的。海拔6643英尺，也是该州的最高点。要拍摄你自己的照片，你甚至不需要徒步旅行。只需开车去停车场。但是在你拿到照片后，把相机放在手边。如果停车场看起来这么好，想象一下你可以在公园的其他地方拍些什么照片。

Falling for Tennessee

Although it might not look like it in this image of a tranquil fall day, Roaring Fork in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park has earned its ferocious name. The stream descends 2,500 feet over just 2 miles—a steep drop. After heavy rains, Roaring Fork transforms into a whitewater rush, the sound echoing off the mountainsides. But during drier spells, the stream quiets to more of a babbling brook, as seen here along the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail. The 5.5-mile popular loop drive passes waterfalls, well-preserved historic log cabins, and scenic overlooks of a forest that during this time of year reaches its fall color peak, exploding in bold yellows, oranges, and reds. These are just some of the things that make Great Smoky Mountains the most popular national park in the country.

Loud waters

Roaring Fork may seem like a misnomer for this mountain stream in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. During dry spells, it's an idyllic mountain stream. But Roaring Fork descends 2,500 feet over just two miles—a steep drop down Mount Le Conte. When heavy rains swell the stream, Roaring Fork transforms into a whitewater rush, with the sound of the surging water echoing off the sandstone walls of the mountain.

继续阅读...

星空迷