We finished our time with the Red Knot project on 31st of May and drove to West Virginia. It was a six hour drive and we arrived in the early evening for our visit with our son, James who lives in Morgantown, West Virginia.
After a long drive following two and half busy weeks in the field, the first two days, were set aside for R & R while it rained heavily. The next day (3rd) we all set out for the Land of Canaan, three hours away and nestled between a number of state parks. We checked in and made our way to cabin 8 located within the Canan Valley SP. The White-tailed Deer were obviously very used to people and several were browsing around the cabins in the wood. Few other people were staying and one woodland creature was somewhat caught out as we entered through the door with cases and groceries, only for a Chipmunk to shoot from its hiding place behind the sofa, across the floor and straight up the chimney.
We were out within the hour and drove a short distance to an outlook across a Beaver pond. There we looked for the beavers but saw none. A Bluebird could be seen in a dead tree close by with Turkey Vultures overhead. It seems that our voices disturbed a Black Bear from shrubs on the opposite side of the pool as it broke cover, running up hill through the Blueberry and Huckleberry plants until out of sight.
Silver-boarded Fritillary
Red Spotted Purple
West Virgina Dustywing
The next day we drove to Cass for a railroad trip up to Bald Knob. There wasn't too much wildlife to be seen along the route, but the changes in vegetation as we climbed were of interest.
At the end of the day we took the three hour drive back to Morgantown. The next day we did some local walks, visiting the grounds around Prickett's Fork SP on the Monongahela River.
After a long drive following two and half busy weeks in the field, the first two days, were set aside for R & R while it rained heavily. The next day (3rd) we all set out for the Land of Canaan, three hours away and nestled between a number of state parks. We checked in and made our way to cabin 8 located within the Canan Valley SP. The White-tailed Deer were obviously very used to people and several were browsing around the cabins in the wood. Few other people were staying and one woodland creature was somewhat caught out as we entered through the door with cases and groceries, only for a Chipmunk to shoot from its hiding place behind the sofa, across the floor and straight up the chimney.
We were out within the hour and drove a short distance to an outlook across a Beaver pond. There we looked for the beavers but saw none. A Bluebird could be seen in a dead tree close by with Turkey Vultures overhead. It seems that our voices disturbed a Black Bear from shrubs on the opposite side of the pool as it broke cover, running up hill through the Blueberry and Huckleberry plants until out of sight.
Black Bear, Canaan Valley SP
There had been a lot of rain and there were showers on and off but that didn't stop us seeing quite a lot of butterflies, skippers and dragonflies, many that still await identification.
Monarch
Common Whitetail Skimmer female
Little Wood Satyr
Clouded Skipper
Hummingbird Clearwing Moth on Irises
Pecks Skipper
Hobomok Skipper
We drove to some of the more local outlooks and walked no more than a short distance from the car in the Canaan Valley.
Dolly Sods Wilderness Area
The next day was earmarked for a return to Dolly Sods Natural Wilderness. This is a unique landscape that we'd visited the previous year and wanted to see more of. Here it was really windy and that kept the small birds low. However we did see Ruffed Grouse and American Woodcock by the roadside.
Ruffed Grouse
There some longer walks to be done but few were circular walks to bring you back to the starting point without retracing your steps.
Rivers of stone
Huckleberry flowers
Boggy grassland
Wild Azaleas
Common Ringlet
The Blackwater State Park wasn't far away and the falls were spectacular after so much recent rainfall.
Blackwater Falls State Park
It was a brief walk to the Lindy Point outlook and until there, there was no sense of just how high up we were. It was a very good place to watch the birds of prey.
Lindy Point outlook
Black Vulture
Turkey Vulture
Bald Eagle
The next day we drove to Cass for a railroad trip up to Bald Knob. There wasn't too much wildlife to be seen along the route, but the changes in vegetation as we climbed were of interest.
Engine 11 Cass scenic Railroad
Deciduous trees before the track begins the climb
High level growth, mainly Red Spruce
Spring Azure
Fire Watchtower, Whittaker
Eastern Phoebe
Eastern Towhee
Green Heron
Then the afternoon was spent at the West Virginia Geographical Survey Museum. James hadn't been there before as it's out of town and he is still without his own transport. It will be a good teaching resource for his post graduate students.
Giant Ground Sloth - the West Virginia state fossil
Interesting minerals
Even some Eurypterid fossils for James to make a
record of for future reference.
Then a day in the field visiting some fossil sites along corridor H. First a site that James knows of, but has not visited before.
Two separate environments separated by time, but just a few feet apart along the slip road.
Silver-spotted Skipper
Eastern Comma
Then a second stop at the truck stop.
Here recent rains had brought loose material down and some
interesting examples were found.
Clouded Sulphur
Great Spangled Fritillary
And so we reached our final day, and went out walking locally before driving to Philly for the night flight home. We went to the Cooper's Rock SP 13 miles from Morgantown, walking through the West Virginia University Research Forest tract.
We heard plenty of birds including Common Yellowthroat and Red-eyed Vireo
but they proved more difficult to see.
A colony of fungi
The cover wasn't too thick and sunlight reached the ground in some areas
Paw print of a large cat, Mountain Lion are rarely seen but clearly inhabit
the forested areas.
All streams run to the Monongaliha
Our final destination was to the Cooper's Rock outlook, giving a spectacular view across the forests that surround Morgantown in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains.
Cheat River from the lookout
