Colonial Williamsburg in the Fall

Robin's Photo's of Colonial Williamsburg 9 November 2011.  A beautiful day turned into a photo shoot of our favorite Colonial town. 

Colors of Fall Leaves - Greenspring area of Williamsburg

Fall Leaves

As late October quickly approaches there is a change going on in the area of Greensprings Trail in Williamsburg, Va.  While the changes in the colors are subtle, there is a change coming to the trail.  With the drop in temperature, the lush green of the thick forest is giving way as the leaves begin to fall and others still on their limbs change to beautiful hues of yellow, orange and red. 

A Day relaxing in Colonial Williamsburg

The following photos were taken on a recent outing to Colonial Williamsburg.  It was an absolutely gorgeous day here in the Historic Triangle of Virginia.  Although it was early fall, the leaves were far from starting to change color in this region.  My camera lense often led me to the garden sheds scattered around the Colonial buildings.  I hope you enjoy the photos as much as I enjoyed the visit to one of my favorite areas. 

Fresh Air - Early Fall in Jamestown/Williamsburg

Greensprings Interpretive Trail overlook 4 October 2011

My walk this morning was a beautiful reminder of how much nature and beauty is in the area of Jamestown/Greensprings in our little corner of Williamsburg/James City County.  It is a bright and magnificent day with the skies and woodlands filled with vibrant shades of blues and greens. 

A great day to be out in the fresh air of Williamsburg, Va

Woodpecker

Cooper's Hawk along the Greensprings Interpretive trail

I have discovered that their are more varieties of Hawk than I ever imagined.  Often on the far end of the trail from our home, I have seen a hawk, but have never had a close look at him.  Today, I quickly discovered this Hawk on a tree near the area where I was observing a woodpecker.

A visit to a bird classification website tells me it is a Cooper's Hawk.

Beautiful day to be in the open air enjoying an early fall in Virginia

Along the Greensprings Interpretive Greenway Trail a James City County Park

Bald Eagle Spotted

Bald Eagle Spotted from the Bridge over the Pond Overlook

This past Tuesday proved to be a very quiet and peaceful walk out on the trail of the Greensprings Interpretive Greenway Trail.  Just about the time I was telling myself that "there is nothing out here today", I noticed far off in the distance a very VERY large bird on a tree limb high above the main portion of the wetlands.  I tried the best I could to get photos of this magnificent creature, however my camera was just inadequate for the distance that had to be covered. 

Historic Green Spring 2011

This year on October 8th, 2011 the Friends of Green Spring will host their Annual Public Tour from 10:00am until 12:00 noon.  Parking is at the Historic Jamestown Island parking area.  There will be transportation provided from the Island to the are of Green Spring Plantation. 

http://www.historicgreenspring.org/

For more information, resources of the history of the area, newletters from Friends of Green Spring please see their website posted above. or

http://www.historicgreenspring.org/resources.php

According to the Friends of Green Spring website:

The Friends

The Friends of the National Park Service for Green Spring, incorporated in 1997, is a non-profit organization dedicated to researching, preserving, and presenting Historic Green Spring and its history for public education and enjoyment. The Colonial National Historic Park has been the steward of Green Spring since 1966.

Green Spring

Built as a home for Governor Sir William Berkeley in 1645, Green Spring is located three miles from Jamestown, near Williamsburg, Virginia. This historical site, while closed to the public, is significant in its potential for learning about the complex roots of what we know today as the United States of America.

I had a magnificent time last year attending the days events.  The National Park Rangers offered excellent information and the "Friends" were a great group of people to meet.

My photos of the 2010 event can be seen at:

http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=6074972234073998523#editor/target=post;postID=1127991342676040368

Thank-you Greenspring Neighbor

One man fighting boredom when his electicity was out was a act of generosity to those using the trail!

Thank-you to the crews from James City County who cleared the trail so quickly around Greensprings Interpretive Trail.  Within a matter of 2 or 3 days the many trees across the trail were cleared away or cut into pieces so the trail could be used. 

A Special thank-you to the retired Gentlemen who was being a great neighbor to all who use the trail by clearing a large portion of the Capital Bike trail with his leafblower.  Keeping himself entertained while the electricity was still out was a gift to the entire community. The photo below shows what the rest of the trail looked like.

Aftermath of Hurricane Irene 2011

Effects of Hurricane Irene on Greensprings Interpretive Trail

During the weekend that the area of Jamestown, Williamsburg, James City County were seeing the effects of Hurricane Irene, the waters quickly rose upon the Wetlands at Greensprings Interpretive Trail.  While we had some winds and a lot of rain, there were often periods of a sort of calm.  The rain continued but there was a break from the damaging winds. 

At about 6 pm the storm had almost arrived right over head.  During a band of green on the weather channel, we took our two labradors out for a walk to stretch their legs after a long day stuck in the house.  As we were playing in puddles out on Main Land Farm, the winds began to kick in again and there was some concern getting back to our home through the trails which wander through the park.  By about 7 pm, the beginning of the worst winds arrived to the Jamestown area. 

Throughout the day we had endured quite a show from Irene.  After 7 pm the worst of the storm arrived and I am willing to predict the most damage occurred after this time closer to 8 and 9 pm.  Until that time we had power which was lost at about nine.  We all got through the night well. I was on the trail at 7 am on Sunday morning to find a great deal of damage that had not been present 12 hours earlier.

Photos during Hurricane Irene at Greensprings Interpretive Trail, Virginia

Photos taken of the Greensprings Interpretive Trail in James City County near the area of Jamestown and Greensprings near Williamsburg, Virginia.  These photos were taken after approximately 12 hours of rain and wind due to Hurricane Irene.  During a calmer band of the storm, we ran out with the dogs who had been in the house most of the past day.  We timed our trip during a slow down in the storm.  Before making it back to the house, the worst part of the storm began to arrive which caused the most damage and knocked out power.  The water at this time was about 1 foot above where I have seen it previously.  Along the footbridge crossing the main pond, the water was about a foot high under the bridge which is usually not under water.  The main pond was flowing rapidly.  Please compare photos to previous blog post which shows the area prior to the storm arriving. 

Large pool of water along Main Land Farm at about 6:30 pm Saturday evening

Greensprings Wetlands from footbridge which crosses from Trail to Virginia Captial Trail

Main Land Farm during Hurricane Irene adjacent to the Virginia Captial Trail

Main overlook from footbridge along the Greensprings Interpretive Trail

water standing about 8 to 12 inches above normal during Hurricane Irene at Greensprings near Williamsburg

Puppies taking a look at a small tree down along Greensprings Interpretive trail during Hurricane Irene