Rhododendron flowers in full bloom along side Glade creek at the Grist Mill in West Virginia. The Rhododendron is West Virginia’s state flower and only blooms for a few short weeks in the springtime. Many come to the Grist mill in the fall to see the colors; however there are beautiful spring rhododendrons early in the year to see as well.

Spring time in WV at the Gristmill in Babcock State Park. The Grist mill is on glade creek and displays some beautiful waterfalls just after the mill. This picture was taken at a unique angle on the forest side. I wanted to get some rhododendron flowers in the picture with the waterfalls, and this was the only place I could find to capture this composition. I am literally about 1 foot from sliding off the cliff into the water. But it was worth it to get a decent shot. It was raining when we first got here as you can tell by the droplets on the trees. So my little boy took a nap and I studied my bible till the rain let up.

A Majestic Bald Eagle with the forest in the background. This is a large hi res image that would make a perfect picture for framing. The picture could be as large as 4 feet by 6 feet and it would not lose clarity or detail. If you look closely you can see the reflection of me taking the eagle’s picture in its eye.

Looking through the cherry blossoms at the Jefferson Memorial. The cherry trees really make this a beautiful scene as I look across the tidal basin.

A colorful ringed neck pheasant under a tree hiding. These birds are beautiful and are considered a game bird. They are hunted in just about every state and originate in Georgia (the country). It is interesting that these birds are the state bird of South Dakota but again are not native to the United States.

Cascading waterfalls tumble through the Shenandoah forest on a cool spring day. My children and I hiked down to the base of these falls (about 1 mile from the top) and we really enjoyed it. The water is very beautiful here but the spring flower have yet to appear.

An older bobcat in the snow. This wildcat seems content even though it is covered with snow. Certainly the fur on these cats keep them warm.

This is a very small flower found on the forest floor next to some fallen trees. The picture is cropped because the flower is so small. Nonetheless it is a pretty flower picture.

This butterfly is appropriately called a Wandering butterfly. They are also known as a Monarch butterfly and are very common throughout North America. Because the area which these butterflies populate is so large and they are among the largest of all butterflies they have been given the name Monarch. We happened to see this butterfly in a field of dandelion flowers on a bright sunny day on our way down to the falls of hills creek.

These flowers can be found everywhere throughout the spring and summer. They are little daisies and often grow wild in clusters such as this. When they first appear in early spring they have a pink hue and are nice to photograph.