Caledon Natural Area - Potomac River Trip Pt. III

On the far outer reaches of the vast sprawling northern Virginia suburbs lies Caledon Natural Area. Here on the Potomac River, less than 60 miles from Washington D.C., are over 2500 acres of old growth and virgin upland forest. This area was first settled in the mid 1600's and remained in the same family's hands for centuries. It was donated to the Commonwealth in 1974, and it was easily apparent how special this gift was. Not only was it home to a very ancient forest, but it was also home to a recovering Bald Eagle population. Soon after it was donated, the shoreline here was designated a no-boating zone, part of the trails are closed during the nesting season, and today Caledon has the largest concentration of Bald Eagles on the east coast.

As much as I think the Eagle is a magnificent bird, I came to see the trees, besides we had already spotted half a dozen flying over Westmoreland. The forest at Caledon is primarily made up of different Oaks (Quercus sp.), Red Maple (Acer rubrum), Beech (Fagus grandifolia) and Dogwood (Cornus florida), but the queen of the forest is the Tulip Poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera). They are by far the tallest of the trees, and though I am not always that good at judging heights, I would guess the largest of these are close to 150' tall. They are not Redwood tall, but for this side of the continent, they are magnificent. Underneath these giants is surprisingly little undergrowth, mainly a carpet of leaves and in wetter areas ferns. Also on the floor are the broken skeletons of previous giants knocked down during storms, plus there are still a few remnants of the American Chestnut (Castanea dentata) that succumbed to Chestnut Blight during the first few decades of the last century.

Also at home on the forest floor is a plant that is listed as protected in Virginia, Lycopodium digitatum or as it is known here, Running Cedar. This plant was once a traditional Christmas decoration and was over-harvested throughout the state, hence its protected status.


I brought along my favorite son as a reference so you can see how large and tall some of these trees are. Here he is, not sitting on a tree trunk, rather on a fallen branch from one of the large Tulip Poplars.

Caledon is also home some forbidden, inter-species love. Though I got the impression that the Beech (on the left) is not as committed to the relationship as the Oak (on the right) is.

I was hoping to see a little more fall color while we were there, but it was still too early. There was a lot of green with only a few hints of what was yet to be.



Caledon is part of the National Park Service's National Natural Landmarks Program which "recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of our country's natural history". There are close to 600 sites already designated and if you click here you can see which sites are in which states.

Thanks to a generous gift, good decisions and wise management, Caledon looks as it may have 100 years ago, and could likely look the same way in another 100 years into the future. If I were a tree, I would be happy to call this place home.

Submitted to the 41st Festival of the Trees - "If I Were A Tree"