May 16 - 18 2009 Smith Mountain Lake State Park, Va.

Heading, to Smith Mountain Lake was the start of our vacation--three days, two nights, mostly with rain...Smith Mountain Lake offers over 500 miles of shoreline! The town on Moneta is a lot like the small beach towns found on the Atlantic--shops, ice cream, pizza parlors, and good restaurants, with highway and boat-slip access.

Smith Mountain Lake is located SE of Roanoke, Va., and SW of Lynchburg, Va.

I like this site--you can swim, fish, and boat with the mountains on the shoreline. All amenities from the state park are about 20 minutes away.

While I don't have any pictures of birds from here, this was the best birding site on the trip--hairy and redbellied woodpeckers outside our camp site, male and female blue birds, cedar waxwings, warblers, rufous crowned kinglets (including hovering), osprey, plus deer and wild turkey.

It was fairly cool on the middle day when I went for a walk. I ran into the camp host, who said that we were having a cool spell because the wild black berries were in bloom. Pictures of wild blackberries below.

Smith Mountain Lake, from the visitor's center.

Another view of the lake

A function of state park
Butterfly Garden by the visitors center

One of several spores found by the camp ground

Interesting texture on a cypress tree


Bluets

I look for symmetry in nature

Wild blackberry, following blooming

Wild Blackberry in bloom

Daisy

Pink Mountain Laurel

Azalea

More wild blackberry

Another mountain laurel

I like this flower

Osprey Nest, down from the visitors center