Photo Essay Rhody Season! Come May and June, the Southern Appalachians don one of their prettiest and most-cherished accessories - the explosion of color of the rhododendron as they light up the edges of balds, the rocky crags and streamsides. Photos by Lori Kincaid 34 BlueRidgeCountry.com Upper Right Virginia's Grayson Highland State Park is known for the Catawba rhododendron gracing its open rocky ridges around the first half of June, but delights also await in the park's historic areas and campground. Here, a Catawba rhododendron provides a perfect accent to the log cabin that holds the Camp Store. Lower Left Misty sunrises, mountain ridges fading into the distance, cool summer temperatures and blooming Catawba rhododendron are all part of the lure of the Roan Highlands where three mountain peaks top out above 6,000 feet. Lower Right The Oconaluftee River in the Smokies is lined with rosebay rhododendron in the second half of June, but rosebays may be found as early as May in the southern reaches of the Blue Ridge and as late as July in the higher elevations.http://www.BlueRidgeCountry.com