I like to hunt for, find, photograph, and identify native flora, which I do while hiking, biking, skiing, and sea kayaking. And I'm an active member of the Alaska Native Plant Society. I've lived in Anchorage for over 40 years, but I grew up in East Tennessee (Gatlinburg), have degrees from ETSU and UT, and frequently visit there. I'm particularly interested in the native flora of the southern Appalachians from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park north to about the Virginia border.

My formal training has nothing to do with botany, so my interests in flora and fauna is strict;y as a hobby. I do try to ensure my identifications are accurate, but I seem to get corrected about 10% of the time. Hence, I welcome corrections as they help me learn, but I do ask that if you disagree with an identification, please explain why. What are you seeing or not seeing that leads you to a different conclusion.