I have lost count of the times we have been to Huntley Meadows over the years, and I have shared it many times on my blog. I can't even remember how we first discovered it. If I had to guess I would say it was found online when looking for new places to walk. It was and still is one of our most favorite places. We were there at the beginning of the month, on September 1st, 2019.
It looked like someone had flipped a switch. There were signs that the season was changing.
In the Fall Flowering Dogwood Trees are bright with red berries, and the birds love them. In the spring I am always looking for the first blooms. "George Washington planted dogwoods at Mount Vernon, which came from the surrounding forest. Thomas Jefferson planted dogwoods at Monticello in the late 1770s, which inspired Virginia lawmakers to select the American Dogwood as the state flower in 1918." I read all of this and more at the first link in red above.I am always on the look-out for wildflowers and these were still blooming. They are called Panicled tickclover. also known as Panicled tick-trefoil, Panicledleaf ticktrefoil and Narrow-leaf tick-trefoil. There have been Cardinal Flowers growing in this particular spot for as long as I can remember.New York Ironweed is another native wildflower. Its purple flowers bloom for most of the month of September and attracts many butterflies.This is a Floating Primrose Willow. In the photos above and below, we have Swamp Smartweed. It is an aquatic plant and in these wetlands it grows everywhere.The following is a Sweetgum tree, such a beautiful color at this time of the year. According to the website it is 'common in the southeast and has a gummy, aromatic sap from which it gets its name'.
So much to see at this park but I'll leave the rest for another time when I share the wildlife.
On Sunday, May 4th, 2019, the weather was too good not to go out and enjoy, so we headed to Huntley Meadows. It was a great choice because not only was everywhere very lush and green, there was also a lot of wildlife. And just like last time there were lots of people, couples like us and parents with young children.
We took our usual path through the woods and you couldn't help but notice how beautiful everything looked. The trees were waking up, along with all the plants and bushes on the ground. They were full of bright green, newly sprouted leaves.
The wildflowers were lovely also. A cricket was enjoying this one. The closest I could come to identifying the flower was the Common Blackberry. I found a website here. If you know for sure I would be glad for the help.
There were many more blooming in other areas.
Over the water we noticed dragonflies everywhere. You can read more information about the Common Whitetail Dragonfly here.
I didn't know if this video was going to turn out, but if you enlarge it you will be able to see a couple of Common Whitetails flying around, and another dragonfly I don't know the name of, just bouncing up and down in one spot. I'm assuming it was feeding.
My favorite area is when you get down to the marshy area, where water levels can rise and fall depending on weather, and beaver building.
We stopped to look at this familiar view across the pond, and noticed movement. There was a Snowy Egret and a Great Blue Heron not too far from each other.
We saw several Canada Geese sitting on nests. I noticed her bill was open but we were all too far away to be a threat, and surmised this was not an aggressive, protective stance. I wondered if it was because it was a very hot day, and have read that wild birds will open their bills and pant to help dissipate heat when it is very warm. As they get hotter their panting may increase in speed, or they may open their bills even further for greater cooling.
We were intrigued by this old tree stump sticking out of the water, and surmised that beavers had caused it.
We took another photo several weeks ago (below) and as you can see, there is a lot of new growth not only on the stump, but also in the water surrounding it. The old tree is still growing...
and it is now being slowly surrounded by other water plants. One of the reasons I enjoy coming in all the four seasons is to see those changes.
In the center of the next photo is a turtle.
~Painted Turtle~
There are always naturally fallen logs lying in the water, and always several turtles sunning themselves. This scene is repeated all over the park.
And then you get the frogs. It is fun to try and spot them in the mud. There were several American Bullfrogs making their appearance. We also saw large tadpoles but I couldn't get a decent photo of these. A couple came along and saw our interest, and told us that the tadpoles we were looking at were second year. They were the biggest I had seen. They told us that bullfrog tadpoles (I am not sure if this applies to other types) live for two years before turning into a frog. We met in other areas along our walk, and we enjoyed chatting with them each time. They always told us interesting things, fellow nature lovers who were happy to volunteer what they knew.
Our next stop was at the nesting box where we saw the male Wood Duck on our previous visit. This time there was a female Hooded Merganser.
I have only seen a male Hooded Merganser in the distance before. This is the first female I have been able to take photos of...
and I took several. In her first pose she appeared to be looking for fish?
But she never left her perch and I just kept taking photos, as did others. She attracted several of us and I heard one person get very excited saying she was about to go into her nest. By this time I was walking in the other direction, and I was satisfied with our time spent with this pretty bird.
Now would be a good time to finish today's post. I have many more photos, too many I thought to include here. I saved them for tomorrow. Have a good day everyone and thanks for keeping us company on our walk around Huntley Meadows.
We enjoy visiting Big Meadows Lodge when we take a trip up here, usually because we arrive around lunch time. We were a little earlier today and lunch doesn't start until noon, so we had brunch instead.
I noticed very pretty stained glass pictures hanging on the windows of the dining room. They were done by a local artist. I am rather partial to stained glass and love looking at them, from those found in the windows of churches and cathedrals to pretty ones in frames such as these.
This is my favorite.
If you would like to take a look at the artist's website you can go to this link.
I asked the lady who took care of us to take our photo, and she was happy to oblige.
There was a craft show-market taking place outside.
There is also a gift shop to the right as you walk out the front door of the lodge. I always enjoy a quick browse. It isn't very big but what they carry is lovely.
Everywhere we went there were wildflowers blooming.
I don't know the exact name of these yellow daisy-like flowers. They are as big as Black-eyed Susans.
Bees on Common Milkweed.
and on the thistle.
The Silver-spotted Skippers were enjoying the thistles also.
More thistles and phlox.
There was also a lot of Queen Anne's Lace around, always a favorite.
This one still opening.
I hope you've enjoyed your trip up to Skyline Drive.Thanks again for stopping by, and enjoy the rest of your week.
In the Fall Flowering Dogwood Trees are bright with red berries, and the birds love them. In the spring I am always looking for the first blooms. "George Washington planted dogwoods at Mount Vernon, which came from the surrounding forest. Thomas Jefferson planted dogwoods at Monticello in the late 1770s, which inspired Virginia lawmakers to select the American Dogwood as the state flower in 1918." I read all of this and more at the first link in red above.
I am always on the look-out for wildflowers and these were still blooming. They are called Panicled tickclover. also known as Panicled tick-trefoil, Panicledleaf ticktrefoil and Narrow-leaf tick-trefoil.
New York Ironweed is another native wildflower. Its purple flowers bloom for most of the month of September and attracts many butterflies.
This is a Floating Primrose Willow. 
In the photos above and below, we have Swamp Smartweed. It is an aquatic plant and in these wetlands it grows everywhere.
The following is a Sweetgum tree, such a beautiful color at this time of the year. According to the website it is 'common in the southeast and has a gummy, aromatic sap from which it gets its name'.
