Category: Field Trips

by RoxAnna Theiss   … on HMN day of advanced training opportunities on Wednesday, August 21, 2013

It was a great day almost glitch free except RoxAnna couldn’t find where she put the pitchers for making tea and lemonade and had to go buy plastic at the local dollar store.  Of course, as soon as she did that she found the missing pitchers.

Sandy led a fantastic Riverwalk and got everybody back in plenty of time for the cavern tour.  The Grand Caverns’ staff was wonderful: accommodating and supportive at every turn.  Members and family of members who came appreciated the tour.  Judy brought husband Leo, Teresa brought daughter Serena; Sue brought husband Mark and RoxAnna’s husband Bill rode in on his Honda Magnum just in time for chow down.  Kate stayed a bit after the Riverwalk to work with Adrie, Dwayne and Pat on identification and keying skills.  Ann Cline found cicada killers in the lawn (thanks to Dwayne we all now know what they look like and what they do) and took some great photos of them.  As he always does, Tom Long took some photos of the cavern tour and while that was in progress Pat and Dwayne helped RoxAnna set up for the return of the Cave Crawlers and the evening Pot Luck.  Paul Bugas came by and was put to work at the Grill.  He was a wonderful Grill Master even though the coals were not cooperating.  We will have to remember to start the coals sooner next time.  Dwayne put together the flower arrangements for each table while RoxAnna mixed the teas and fresh squeezed lemonade and Pat finished the bulk of the food prep just in time for the return of the rest of the group.  Everyone enjoyed the beverages and Jerry’s chips and dip while Paul crooned to the charcoal to get them hot.

After some additional food prep by members who had been on the cave tour, all was ready and we dug in to some wonderful dishes and sat down to socialize and get to know each other better.  Ann Cline took some photos of the group at chow down and all seemed to enjoy the meal and each other.  Stephanie brought some beautiful heirloom tomatoes.  Teresa experimented on the group with a new dessert combo.  RoxAnna focused on Dwayne’s cookies – who tried the other desserts?  Those who finished first (thank you Chip, Rob and Carl) lent a hand to set up the presentation support.  Sandy and Gretchen were the first to receive the new Headwaters appreciation gifts: 2014 Gatewood Calendars made especially for the Chapter by our own Betty Gatewood.  Everybody signed the calendars and the Fall Wildflower book given to RoxAnna –sometimes signing Gretchen’s calendar for Sandy and Sandy’s calendar for Gretchen – so it was a very memorable effort.

Just as Gretchen was about to start her presentation on bats Mother Nature made her entrance and about half way through a very close (if not direct) lightening strike postponed the talk for about fifteen or twenty minutes until the bulk of the storm passed.  Gretchen finished her excellent presentation while Judy and Ann Murray took copious notes and we had lively Q&A session before cleanup and pack up.

Some of our new trainees have already been mentioned but we thank them for joining us for the day and/or evening.  Bob Forrest came with wife Betty (one of our Charter members) and did a book review on the spot for a potential training text.  Kendal Swartzentruber (I did that without looking!), Ginny Hoffman, Sue Eckroth and Janet James (who became a prospective trainee that very night) graced us with their presence.  Thank you Sue and Ginny for helping lug the food support.

Each and every person pitched in at some point during the day and the group team effort made the event a spectacular success.  But the clean up team were the best – smart enough to ignore RoxAnna’s claim that she could do it alone, they made it all happen as Bill packed up the Prius V while Janet and Gretchen packed up Gretchen’s van.  Sandy took home all the dishes and linen to be washed and Gretchen followed RoxAnna home with her loaded van.  We all loved every minute of it!

by Tom Long    May 13, 2013

Many wildflowers can be found at Big Meadows; some provide wildlife food. It is believed Native Americans and early settlers kept the meadows cleared to attract game and perhaps for grazing livestock. For historical reasons, the Shenandoah National Park keeps the meadow in open using a 3 year cycle of burn, brush hog, and fallow. Otherwise, it would soon be a thicket of locust trees.

Park Ranger, Rolf Gubler, described the exclusion fencing used to protect rare plants like Canadian Burnet from the huge deer herd — 100-150 deer per square mile in the Big Meadows area. Blue flags warn deer of the fencing.

by Tom Long               March 30, 2013, Fort Valley, Shenandoah County, VA

The early spring morning was crisp and clear as a group of Headwaters Master Naturalists gathered at the Fort Valley Community Center and Library. Northern Virginia Community College Assistant Professor of Geology and Fort Valley resident Callan Bentley joined RoxAnna Theiss, Dwayne and Pat Martin, Art Vasy, and Tom Long. Our goal for the day’s adventure was to learn more about the geology of the Blue Ridge and Massanutten mountains as well as the Shenandoah Valley and Fort Valley.

Our first stop, the Woodstock Tower, is one of the relatively few old towers in the George Washington National Forest that the public can still climb. To the west lies the Shenandoah Valley, the North Fork of the Shenandoah River, and the Allegheny Mountains beyond. To the east your gaze is across Fort Valley through Woodstock Gap to the Shenandoah National Park. In the chilly breeze atop the tower that offers rare 360° views, Callan gave an interesting overview of the geologic forces that created the mountains, valleys, and the famous seven bends of the river.

The Hike up Veach Gap is a gradual assent with some stream crossings. Callan lead us just off the trail climbing over rock debris to a couple stunning examples of an anticline – a fold in the rocks that is convex up with the oldest beds at its core. Sitting on the rocky hillside, we learned more about how anticlines form and other geological features of the gap. Callan set up his Giga Pan controlled camera to take panoramic pictures of the formations which will eventually become part of a worldwide data base.

by Tom Long                    March 18, 2013, Buffalo Gap, Augusta County, VA

Several inches of snow fell overnight making roads slick and closing area schools. The forecast called from additional snow turning to cold rain later in the afternoon. Most of us signed up for the Winter Silhouettes field trip probably thought it would be postponed for a second time, but Roxanna was working the phones early in the morning to determine who and how many would show up in spite of the weather.

At 11:00 AM a hearty band gathered at the U.S. Forest Service Work Center at Buffalo Gap – RoxAnna, Gretchen, Dwayne, Pat, Judi, Kathy, Carl, and Tom – to meet up with state forester Patti Nylander for a primer on tree identification during the leafless winter months. Patti pointed out various characteristics such as size/shape of the tree, bark form and coloration, branch alignment, and even smell to help identify trees commonly found in Shenandoah Valley woodlands. Some like the shagbark hickory (pictured), white oak, and evergreens such as hemlock are easy to identify. It can be more difficult to distinguish between others, for example the scarlet and black oaks.
Most of us will probably identify trees during warmer months when leaves, flowers, nuts and other distinguishing characteristics make using the field guide much easier. Patti’s tips on identifying trees during the winter months strengthened this group of Master Naturalists’s year-around tree identification skills.

by Kate Guenther,  Headwaters Master Naturalists Secretary

Notes are from the 2012 Annual Meeting Minutes, November, 2012

Members met at North River parking lot for a facilitated hike. Charlie Huppuch, retired US Forest Service supervisor, and Lynn Cameron, representing Friends of Shenandoah Mountain led the hike to the North River Gorge near Mt. Solon. They discussed various management options and proposals for the George Washington/ Jefferson National Forests, and found much common ground.

Charlie gave a great history of the national forests and their management. He showed the hikers many areas where the trees are approaching the end of their life span. He is an advocate of cutting for wildlife habitat and forest renewal.

Lynn showed the group a map of biodiversity in the US, and we are certainly in the top few areas for diversity. She discussed coalition building and the need to block hydrofracking or other mineral extraction in the many areas of national forest where mineral rights are still privately held. Charlie has also had some experience with this.

Along the way, Headwaters hikers met bikers, a hunter, girl scouts, and other hikers on the trail. It was a busy day in the gorge!