Friday

It is a beautiful day today.  It is getting a bit warm again, but beautiful.  Puppy and I enjoyed a nice walk along the Mainland Farm end of the trails.  We stopped to let no less than 15 deer cross our path.  The deer were ranged widely in age and size.  We crossed over the Mainland farm and could see more deer out toward the Jamestown end of the fields.  The wheat is beautiful at this time and about 2 feet high.  Other than a few squirrel and the Great Blue Heron being out on the pond, it was just a nice walk. 

Deer

Yesterday, our walk included more deer, woodpecker, a frog nesting.  At a side trail, we startled the Great Blue Heron.  I tried to get a picture of him in flight, but was tangled up in the dog leash. Further down a trail a deer grunted at us before running off.  I also saw a few Cardinal.  I heard the call of the Pileated and the hammering of another woodpecker, possibly the Red-Headed I had seen the day before. I hope to capture this little guy on my camera. 

Monday in the Park

Yesterday was a cool morning followed by a day of downpouring rain.  In the morning we saw a few deer, cardinals, mourning doves, the Snowy egret was in her usual spot.  I did notice where the Pileated woodpecker have moved to since the babies are now out of the nest.  I also noticed a Red-headed Woodpecker which my bird book says is quite rare in the Northeast.  There is at least one alive and well living on the Beaver pond.  I am heading out this morning with the camera to see what I can find on a cool morning. There is never a quiet moment.

This past saturday I saw a snapping turtle in a field and where at first I thought she was trying to move away, I soon realized she was preparing to lay eggs.  I looked yesterday and there is a "nest" now in the spot.

A nice week

This has been a nice week on the trail.  The storm which blew though on Wednesday left the trail littered with leaves and sticks but it was refreshing.  The wetlands were filled a little more.  There was not too much activity on Thursday morning.  The baby pileated woodpeckers are no longer nesting.  There is another tree of woodpeckers but they have been rather elusive.  The wheat on the Mainland farm is about 16 inches high and as green as ever.  A beautiful site to look across the land knowing the history and that it has been producing crops for almost 400 years. 

Friday, 7 May 2010 - a day to remember

Photos are of a Snowy Egret, Unkown, Adult pileated and two baby pileated woodpecker, a Great Blue Heron and a second picture of the unknown bird.

Late April

The following photos were taken last week.  The amount of undergrowth is fantastic.  This photo is of two parents transporting precious cargo across the wet lands. It also shows another look at deer.  Last weekend, a newly born fawn was sighted. It was so new the spots were not visible and the fur was matted. 

Photos coming

Mid April

These photos were taken in mid-April along the trails.  It is amazing to me how fast everything comes alive.  There are always deer along the trail and the Canada Goose is everywhere.

May on the Trail

Today, we had an amazing walk.  The weather has been warm and their is a bit of humidity in the air.  I did not have my camera "of course".  I noticed a Piliated woodpecker flying overhead and land on one of the large pine trees, then I noticed a second piliated woodpecker.  As I walked further along, I heard another one call out.  This was all along the Virginia Capital trail portion along the Greensprings wetlands area.  Further down the trail there was a tiny turtle about 4 inches across making an attempt to climp up the hill coming out of the water area.  That turtle must have thought he was climbing the Mt. Everest when you compare the size of the hill to the turtle.  He had obviously been working hard, so we left him alone and continued along our journey.

As we move into mid April, the trail has been alive with visitors during Spring Break.  The growth of the vegetation is remarkable in just a few short weeks.  Behind out house, Dogwood are in bloom, my favorite tree and the state tree of Virginia.  Two deer visited our back yard as well.  Last night our puppy stopped in bewilderment to listen to the large frog or toad on the wetlands. Baby tree frogs can be seen on our back door, a favorite spot in the evenings for them.  We also heard the Hoot of an owl in the trees above us. 

Spring Break Visitors

This past week has been spring break.  With the economy the way it has been it has been great seeing the tourists around the historic areas of Colonial Williamsburg and Historic Jamestowne.  Yesterday, we took visitors to both places.  There is so much to see and do in this area. In addition to the historic areas, the parks and natural areas in the region are excellent.  Currently, there are some storms in the area and I can hear the weather alert sounding downstairs.  Stay safe and stay indoors for the evening. 

Beautiful day on the trail

Today was the third day in a row of temperatures reaching the 90's.  I walked this morning on the Mainland Farm end of the trail, keeping to the wooded trail as much as possible to avoid the heat of the day.  My puppy still has his winter coat and has been overheating with this sudden increase in temperatures.  The trail is beautiful.  You can see definite growth in all of the plants and trees.  I saw two very dark red cardinals, one on each end of the trail. We also came across three deer with one of the albino deer in the distance.  I only had my phone camera to get pictures and film of the deer.  I plan on going out in the morning with my camera again to capture the changes within the last week and the growth of the vegetation. 

A Good Friday

Today is Good Friday and the area is bustling with Spring Break vacationers.  This morning is a bit crisp but the next few days promise to be in the mid 80's.  I hope to see a lot of people out exercising and families out taking advantage of the days ahead. While I can hear the piliated wookpecker, he is far off in the distance this morning. This next week we are vacationing at home enjoying the trails, taking family visiting from Europe to Jamestown and Williamsburg as well as at least one stop to Busch Gardens.  There is so much for a family to do in an area like this. Happy Easter!!!!