VSP Lake Anna

The day was hot and its memorial day weekend.  We had two choices, West to the Appalachians or south to the Lake.  I must say i'm really glad that we chose the lake.

Today there were 5 of us, Mom, Megan, Wendy (mini doxie) and Leo.  We packed up the car and everyone went through their checklists to pack.  Leo had his dog packed ready for 8 miles (the girls might not have heard about that), and everyone had their best walking boots on.

The trip to Lake Anna took us through 95 south of Fredericksburg.  We hit some memorial day traffic near woodbridge but the rest was at least moving.

Once we arrived at Lake Anna we realized that we might have been in more of a recreational regional park than a regular state park.  There was a pretty decent crowd for BBQ's and beach R&R.

The trails are all over this park and they are really beautiful.  This was a great place to try out my brand new hands free leash.  Ruffwear makes a "roamer" leash that make the trails even happier.  it has elastic to prevent pull shock to either me or the dog.  It also follows all post regulations by having my dog on 6' lead.

What did I expect before I left home:
     As one of the biggest parks in the northern Virginia area there are many people who go to this park for everything from camping to hike, staycation and scouting activities.  I knew the lake would be prominent but I didn't think that the park would have so many long distance trails and history in this neck of the woods.

 Lake Anna State Park

Weather of the day:

25
Actual:	68 | 37
Precip:	0.00
Average:	78 | 55
Precip:	0.25

The trip in 140.

Crystal blue waters with the hum of the cicadas at Lake Anna and enough amenities to make it feel like a cozy Regional Park.
— Topher Gee (@WVUGEE) May 25, 2013

Most interesting thing to see:
     Cicada mating season was in full effect.  The brood was out in full force giving us a new soundtrack to hike to.  I have actually missed all of the major broods in VA either living in Europe, College in West Virginia or travelling while they were here.  We saw a tree absolutely full of cicadas that were actually eating leaves and living out their last few weeks above ground.  It is fun trying to explain the sound to someone that hasn't heard it before.  The distance and the sheer volume of forrest made a distinct whur out far and a buzz when you got close.

     As far as the park there are many amenities for any type of recreation you might want.  there are tons of boats on the lake and plenty of room to ski or wakeboard.  There is a full beach on the lake that has plenty of room for grills.  There are lots of campsites, trails and picnic areas.  Compared to the other parks in No.Va this is a versitale park versus specialized natural areas.

Extra items/needs:

• Sunscreen and full swimming gear.  It was a great day to go and get some lake water on your skin.
• The next time I go to Lake Anna and hike the gold mine trails i'm going to bring a charcoal grill to cook out.
• Maybe a little outside of reality, but I would have loved to go boating on the lake.

Trails Hiked:
     I'm setting up a new rating scale for the trails that we hike on the state parks.  I noticed there were vast differences between what made me comfortable and what Leo wanted to hike through.  There are generally 5 types of trails on the parks; Earth, Grass, Boardwalk, Gravel, Paved.  For instance there were a lot of gravel trails on Caledon that would have lessened the score for Leo and the distance of the trails was good for me.  I would have made that a Paw: 2 and Boot: 4.  For Mason Neck there were a lot of boardwalks which I don't enjoy but the ground was moist which Leo really likes, in all this park just needed more distance.  That park would have got Paw: 4 and Boot: 4.  The Paw score will be out of 5.

Paw score:  Leo loved the water trails, Earth paths and easy trails.  I think he loves any time a trail ends with water.

Boot score:  I liked the amount of trails, and the dense forest, I wish only that they might be more varied in difficulty.

• Railford Trail
• Old Pond Trail
• Fisherman Trail
• Sawtooth Trail

Next time I go back I will be hiking the trails of the Goodwin old gold mine.  check out the trail here on everytrail

VSP Lake Anna Garmin adventure 

Tree-Mendous Fact:
Sycamore:
     The largest trunk diameter of any North American hardwood.

The VSP Geocache was far off the trail and in the back woods... my kind of treasure hunt.

Worst part of the trip:

     I-95 traffic

And of course... don't forget to relax and stretch after a hike!

VSP Mason Neck

Because this is a park so close to home I brought some guests.  The pictures below were taken by +Megan Gee and we were also joined by +Josephine Gee

I had a blast showing Mom and Megan the in's and out's of Geocaching and the Tail Quest.

At all Virginia State parks the trails are very well labeled.  Its really nice to not have to carry a map around because trails are blazed with colors and intersections are clearly marked well as you can see below.

Also if you find yourself at the park after hours there are numerous visitor centers that have all of the information in one kiosk that is on all day.  You can get maps printed, information on the park and even information on the next park you

Leo wore his pack today.  Even on days that are heavy trails or long length/duration I still need to train him for the times that it will be long or when he will need 3 liters of water.

What did I expect before I left home:
Mason neck is my backyard state park.  I generally expect a shorter hiking day with many changes in scenery depending on the season.  The animals, trees, foliage and trails all feel different depending on the day  and weather and we all know Virginia can through all 4 seasons at you at once. Another hidden gem on the way to Mason Neck is the Pohick bay regional park.  When these parks are working together in this area there are many things to do with your dog.  For example at the end of the summer you can hike the trails at Mason Neck and then take your dog to Pohick Bay for the annual dog swim at the pool.
The park also attracts several other migrating and non-migrating species of birds, including whistling swans and assorted species of duck. Bald eagles also inhabit the area. The park boasts forests consisting of oaks, holly, hickory and other species of trees.

http://www.virginiaoutdoors.com/parks/details/mason-neck-state-park

Weather of the day:








The trip in 140 characters: tweeted later after I wrote it in my journal.

I do believe Leo (my dog) and my Mom are better geocachers than I am.Good thing they are on my team.
— Topher Gee (@WVUGEE) April 28, 2013

Most interesting thing to see:
For the first time on the Trail Quest we found an animal not in the Aves (bird) family.  When we were looking at some interesting posts that we haven't seen before, Megan the guest photographer for the day got very close to stepping on the snake pictured below.  It turns out the sign posts are for areas that need extra conservation and this little ribbon snake was hopping the border.  Would you be able to see him in the top right picture?

Extra items/needs:

• Bring Binoculars.  There are many bird perches, bird blinds, high trees and many areas to see animals in a natural habitat.  If you are a photographer our guest photographer recommends bringing a telephoto lens.

Trails Hiked:

• Meadowview Trail- the newest of the park trails
• Dogue Trail - pronounced like Rouge... yes we looked it up on the trail.
• Bay view Trail - an enjoyable loop trail with a great view of the bay and a bird blind towards the marsh.

VSP Mason Neck Garmin adventure 

Tree-Mendous Fact:
          Boxelder - mature size: 30-60 ft.
The common name comes from the wood's resemblance to that of a box shrub and the resemblance to those of elderberry.

Random Quote: French Soldier: I don't want to talk to you no more, you empty headed animal food trough wiper. I fart in your general direction. Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries.

Worst part of the trip:
This trip on a whole was great.  The only bad part of the trip was that we as a group were prepared for the highs for the day rather than the 40 degrees with wind that we saw for most of the morning.  All in all we just put on sweatshirts and jackets and just kept walking.

VSP Caledon

What did I expect before I left home:

The beautiful Visitor Center closes at 5pm

Caledon State Park is situated on 2579 acres of mature forest along the Potomac river. Originally established in 1659, this area was owned and farmed for centuries by the Alexander family. It was donated to the state of Virginia by Mrs. Ann Hopewell Hewitt Smoot in 1974 and now is an important site for conservation. In 1974 Caledon State Park was designated a National Natural Landmark by the Secretary of the Interior because it is one of the best examples of an old, undisturbed, oak-tulip poplar-dominated virgin upland forest in the country. This park offers one of the few areas where bald eagles, a recently endangered bird, can nest peacefully. While enjoying the park please stay within designated open areas on the shoreline. On July 14, 2012 Caledon Natural Area was renamed Caledon State Park - http://www.virginiaoutdoors.com/parks/details/caledon-state-park

Weather of the day:
Mostly Sunny 65/45
The trip in 140 characters:

It was a gorgeous day for a hike thru the woods, marsh, beach, and river. There are so many trails that I will have to come back for more.
— Topher Gee (@WVUGEE) April 3, 2013

Leo thinks he's human

Special needs:
-The park has open parking but you still need to pay.  Bring cash to put in the parking box and use the parking sticker.
-I'll point out why later but you may want to think about dog shoes.  I haven't met a dog yet that likes them but its better than carrying them back.
-The 3.5 mile Boyd's Hole Trail leading to the Potomac River is the most popular of the trails. Because human traffic disturbs the park's summer population of roosting and foraging eagles, this trail is only open from Oct. 1 through March 31.

Most interesting thing to see:
It makes for the longest trip in one direction but you have to see the view from the coast/jones pond.  There are some shots here of Leo but it doesn't come close to the real thing. It really made me feel good to take some extra waste bags and fill them with some of the beach trash.  I left it a little cleaner than when I found it.

Name those tracks

I think he was as surprised as I was

The second best thing was seeing some bird tracks in the soft gravel.  There was some discussion between the rangers and some of us hikers that it was either the Bald eagles from just across the marsh or some visiting Turkey's  The only real difference is the size of the talons.  After the ranger saw my picture it was confirmed Bald Eagle tracks.  I'll take his word for it. *Caledon is known for hosting the largest concentration of Bald Eagles on the East coast.*





Trails Hiked:
I have a great function on my Garmin GPS that will show your complete adventure with tracks, stats and pictures mapped along the way.  I used to use my cell phone but it only lasts about 5 hours and I plan to have longer trips than that.
Use the link below to find this trip.  I'll show pictures here since its the first post with this type of route mapping.

Click the link below

VSP Caledon | Garmin Adventures

• Boyd's Hole Trail - closed in the summer
• Hampstead road Trail
• Potomac Overlook Trail
• Stuart's Wharf
• Jones Pond

Tree-Mendous Fact:
     Willow Oak - mature Size: 50-80 ft.
Produces good acorn crops, making it a valuable and dependable wildlife food source.

Worst part of the trip:

GRAVEL - If you were to only look at the map, this is the most expansive and varied trail hiking area in the northern region.  This however doesn't mean that its comfortable to walk on with doggie paws.  It took me a couple hours to find out that Leo had punctured his left paw.


Pro Tip: Here's how you take selfie's when completely alone!

GoPro Hero3

Treat or Lecture... you choose!