Oh gosh. I hear so much about that area. The biodiversity there sounds extraordinary. I've heard so much about the medicinal plants in the area, the folk lore, the music, the mountain folk. I have never been to America but boy would I like to visit there.
I am sorry about your hardship. I find it so incredible how often nature holds space for us, gives us peace, calms our fraught nervous system, teaches and raises us. It certainly seems like it was family for you - a solace when life's brutality was too much.
You have a heart my friend. And yes, you would love it. Appalachians are one of the oldest ranges in the world. Quite primitive, and beautiful.