It’s really getting green here in Northern Virginia.  I took a hike in Prince William Forest Park today and the green of spring was just about everywhere you looked, along with the occasional flowering tree.  Moss is clinging to rocks and tree trunks and small flowers and ferns are just starting to pop up, they should be in full swing by next weekend.

The trail ran along the South Fork of Quantico Creek (shown below). Prince William Forest Park contains the largest piedmont forest in the National Park Service.

Blackwater Falls State Park near Davis, WV, contains a number of waterfalls within its 2,456 acres.  Above, the park’s namesake is the tallest (above ground) falls in the state at 57 feet. The dark water gets its amber color from tannic acid in fallen needles from trees.  The park’s streams (below) feed the falls which carry water through Blackwater Canyon.

Shays Run is one such stream which has a series of falls, collectively call Elakala Falls.  The first of the Elakala Falls is pictured below.  This falls features dense moss on just about every surface.

Another view of this falls, closer to the main falls, highlights the amber color of the water in the pool below the falls.

Just downstream from the falls pictured above is another falls on Shays Run with a great cascade of water and the far bank filled with rhododendron. I was lucky to have a mostly overcast day which allowed longer exposure times, giving the water a silky look.

Butterflies have started to appear in this area over the last couple of days.  I was in Leesylvania State Park this morning and found several different types working the ground vegetation.  The Zebra Swallowtail above was the most common species I saw, followed by the Skippers (below).

Slightly fewer in numbers, the Whites (I believe this is a Cabbage White below) were still very active.

New growth was popping up everywhere along the trails, with a lot of new ferns coming out. The butterfly photos above were taken with a 105mm lens, the ferns below, with a 24-70mm lens.

On the way home, I stopped off at the Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.  There are several active Osprey nests on the property.  These two Ospreys were keeping an eye on a Turkey Vulture that was flying over their nest.

While at Occoquan Bay I came across one more type of butterfly, the small Pearl Crescent below. I used a 200-400mm lens to capture the Osprey and the Pearl Crescent.

A great weather morning with bright blue skies made it a good day to go bird watching at Huntley Meadows park. The bird above is an immature Eastern Phoebe.  You can tell it’s young because of the pale yellow underneath and buff color on its wings.  Below, a pair of Tree Swallows were playing around a Wood Duck nesting box. The male (the bright blue one) seems to be making a point with the female (more of a grey).

Red-winged Blackbirds are always plentiful at Huntley Meadows this time of year.  The female certainly doesn’t live up to its name or the appearance of the male who has black feathers and red shoulder epaulets.  The female (below) is brown-grey and heavily streaked.

A heavy rain two days ago raised the water level of the Potomac River through Great Falls. The river flows through a narrow opening here, causing a powerful force and some interesting images.

The river crashes over the bedrock so furiously, it almost explodes looking like fireworks made of water.

Up higher along the bank, the scene was much more calm, with a reflection of some trees and the sky in this small puddle of water.

When I arrived back home today, I found some of the Phlox had started flowering, so I put the 105 macro lens on the camera to get up close.

I just thought I’d post a couple more photos from my time in Shenandoah National Park this past weekend. There were so many nice photographic opportunities along the water upstream from Rose River Falls.

Among the early bloomers this spring was the flower below, bursting out from the collection of last Fall’s leaves.  This flower, I believe, is a Bloodroot. Flower pictures come out best when there are overcast conditions, but even though this bloom was in full sunlight, I like how the bright white contrasts to last year’s brown ground cover.

Finally, one last shot from this past weekend. It is of the sunrise which started a great day of photography.

The trees are now generating new growth in a variety of colors. It’s almost like having a second Fall season, but these new buds will soon become the nice green leaves that will stick around until the ‘real’ Fall arrives.  This photograph and the ones below were taken this morning at Huntley Meadows Park in Alexandria, VA.  A protected wetlands, it’s a top spot for birding.  The Red-winged Blackbirds were out in full force, calling out to other Red-winged Blackbirds.

Even though there was plenty of bird activity, with several Snipes in the distance, I was more interested in the trees and the spring color being added to the landscape, including the reflection of that color in the water.