Maple light

Moon phase: Waxing gibbous
Weather: Unseasonably warm

The red maple (Acer rubrum) in my back yard in late summer.

Reflection

Moon phase: Waxing crescent
Weather: Cold

Trees reflecting in Rock Creek.

Sugarloaf

Moon phase: Waning crescent
Weather: Windy

The view from Sugarloaf, with the Potomac River below and the Blue Ridge in the distance.

And the view of Sugarloaf, a lucky shot due to construction in the road.

Turkey vultures

Moon phase: Waning gibbous
Weather: Cool

Last month I made a trip up to Sugarloaf Mountain in Dickerson, Maryland, which is one of my favorite places. I spent a couple of hours just watching the turkey vultures flying around — they got so close sometimes I could see individual feathers.

I also saw a raven at one point, identifiable by its wedge-shaped tail, although I didn't get a picture. Since ravens shun civilization, the closest they come to DC is the Appalachians, and Sugarloaf is just a little east of the Blue Ridge. Still, I was surprised to see it since I've only seen them in Wisconsin and Maine before.

Spider Flower

Moon phase: Waning crescent
Weather: Cold & rainy
Phenology: Maximillian sunflowers are blooming

Wild lupine (Lupinus perennis) Spider flower (Cleome hassleriana) in Rock Creek Park.

Jewelweed

Moon phase: Waning crescent
Weather: Cold

Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis), aka spotted touch-me-not, is my favorite flower. Nothing else has such a weird shape or that bright orange color. And the juice is a poison ivy antidote.