Photo: by Dave Forrer Fringed Polygala (Polygala paucifolia), Cliff Trail Hone Quarry It’s always fun to discover a new trail. For my birthday hike (May 12), Patsy and I walked up “Cliff Trail” across from the Hone Quarry picnic area. There’s a beautiful outcrop/overlook only about 30 minutes up the trail.  And beyond that, there were lots…

Photo: from Cyane Lowden Virginia bluebells on the Chessie Trail.   Recently, Cyane Lowden walked the Chessie and McCormick Farm Trails and shared some photos of the wonderful sights she enjoyed. Thank you, Cyane! If on your walks you find some beautiful flora or fauna, or if you find that great flora and fauna in and around your…

Photo: Johns Hopkins University Press Book Announcement: Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes of Virginia Congratulations, Paul E. Bugas, Jr.!   In Field Guide to Freshwater Fishes of Virginia, the foremost experts on Commonwealth fishes bring their decades of field experience to readers, offering a complete reference to the fishes of the entire state of Virginia. Gathering…

By Cheryl Shull, Cohort V During a recent fishing trip at Elkhorn Lake, my husband and I observed what we believed to be a brown water snake swimming towards us. As I began shooting photos, we quickly realized that we had a timber rattlesnake in our midst. We enjoyed the afternoon watching the snake quietly…