An unapologetic plant geek shares advice and opinions on gardening, the contrived and the natural landscape, as well as occasional topics from the other side of the gate.

November 20, 2010

Back to the Swamp

Last Saturday I returned to the Dismal Swamp Canal Trail with my son and our bikes. As I have mentioned in other posts, the fall colors here have been unusually spectacular so I was hoping we would see some on our ride. We did, but I had forgotten that the predominant tree species on this trail was Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda) whose fall color is strikingly similar to its spring, summer and winter color. However, there were enough Red Maples (Acer rubrum) and Sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) to punctuate the green.
Dismal Swamp Canal Nov. 2010

Red Maple


Toll Taker's House (2)


In my previous post I spoke about how the water from the Great Dismal Swamp was valued by sailors for its long shelf life. I valued the mirror-like reflections coming from the black surface.

Canal Reflections (6)


Canal Reflections (8)

Canal Reflections


Canal Reflections (10)


Canal Reflections (7)


Canal Reflections (9)

15 comments:

  1. How exquisite these images are .. even though it pales by comparison with that of my friends in the east, I am so grateful to live where there is a distinct autumn.

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  2. Les,

    Thanks for the tour, its been years since I was in the Great Dismal Swamp. Loved the red tree reflection in the water!

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  3. So when are you going to exhibit your photos?

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  4. Wonderful photos. The reflections are beautiful. And they call that place Dismal Swamp??

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  5. It is anything but dismal - very beautiful.

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  6. Great photos --as always Les. Love the reflection of the foliage in the water.
    Can't imagine drinking that water though....ugh
    and I agree with Phillip, your photos should be exhibited.

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  7. So beautiful! I love seeing your images.

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  8. Mirror-like indeed! Fabulous photos..

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  9. Oh Les, you made my day. Colors have been normal this year, vs. last year's amazinglyness (new word!). Love those shots of the water.

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  10. The reflections are so beautiful, with the fall colours captured against the deep blue sky! Great shots!

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  11. What a beautiful Autumn!!! So wonderfully captured! Thank you!

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  12. Your photos are gorgeous, especially that first one. :)

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  13. Loblolly Pines do tend to look the same a lot of the time, don't they. :) The Red Maples and Sweetgums made up for all of that green though. So beautiful and glowing against the deep blue sky.

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  14. Love the colors against the blue sky. Fantastic shots!!

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  15. Love it when you visit the Dismal Swamp!

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