Still Above the Rush 🍄

Just above Tom Branch Falls in North Carolina's Deep Creek area, a small woodland mushroom emerges from a dark tangle of earth, roots and leaves. Photographed in 2026, Still Above the Rush gives an easily overlooked subject the space usually reserved for something much larger.

The Story Behind the Photograph

Places known for moving water naturally pull our attention toward the sound and sight of the falls. Yet the surrounding forest holds an entirely different world at ground level. Fungi occupy that quieter scale, where the details are measured in fine gills, slender stems and the textures of soil and decaying wood.

Here, the mushroom is partly sheltered by its surroundings. Its cap catches a little warmth, while the softly blurred greenery in front of it creates a sense of looking into the understory rather than simply observing a specimen. The most important details are modest ones—the ridges beneath the cap, the way the stem rises, the darkness that keeps the small form distinct.

The title links two neighboring worlds without pretending the waterfall is visible in the frame. Nearby, water continues its rush. Above it, this small subject remains perfectly still.