Mirror orchids

 The previous day, news that a mirror orchid was seen somewhere in the mountains caused me to set out looking for it. The person who had taken the photo hid the location, but left a very obvious artifact on another image of the same time: a huge pipe. I found the pipe no problem, but my searches were discouraged after observing snakes there. 

Today, I decided to try again and check out another area. It was in the mountains, and so I rode through stunning scenery on the way today. But when I got there, I realised that the area yesterday was really the correct one. So I resorted to riding through the forest and enjoying the scenery. Almost at the end of the trail with the road and city in front of me, I was distracted by a large amount of wild gladiolus growing off trail. I proceeded to take pictures, until I noticed what I had just passed. 

It was a mirror orchid. Not the specific mirror orchid on the photo I had seen, a different plant. this different plant had almost finished flowering: out of a few flowers, only one remained, the rest had withered. I had caught this plant just in time! In reality, finding this orchid was like trying to find a needle in a haystack in these mountains, because it is so small and inconspicuous. But it was so beautiful- the most beautiful orchid I had ever seen, better than even the bee and military orchids from the UK!

There was another growing nearby, again with only a single flower left