Do more of what you love

This section lists areas of interest based on subjects Rangers might enjoy including nature programs, geology, birding, and more:

Fairfax Parktakes: This is the Fairfax County programs catalog and is full of all sorts of classes and throughout you will find classes for a naturalist. In Fine Arts and Crafts there are nature photography classes. In Gardening, you can learn how to plant edible or bee friendly gardens. In Nature they have 7 pages of outdoor programs where you can do astronomy, learn about fungi, fine wild edible plants, go camping with a ranger, enjoy campfires. See those flying squirrels. In Outdoor Rec you can do kayaking, canoeing, mountain biking and birding on boat programs. In science and tech they offered on-line astronomy classes. Then there is a Scouts section where they teach you all you need to earn badges including mammal study, insect study, wildlife survival, etc. But sign up soon because the best stuff fills up fast.

Arlington Parks:  One week after programs are open to Arlington only residents they are also open to Fairfax residents. (If this link does not work, google “Arlington Nature and History Programs.”)

Audubon Naturalist Society:  Located near us in Maryland, the main campus has so many naturalist programs and summer camps.  My advice is to bookmark Audubon Naturalist Society and periodically check on classes.  They often appear seasonally so check for Spring programs in February for example.  If you join and become a member you get discounts on classes and the class booklet mailed to you.  

REI: REI will lead you on local hikes which is great for people who would like to learn more from a guide and people who are worried about getting lost on a trail.  They also provide you gear like walking sticks and bags. Just google “REI Local Hikes.”  Here is one example of a hike to the Catoctin mountains. Another hike they are doing soon is to Harper’s Ferry. REI also does excursions much farther away so be sure to google local hikes.

Virginia Outdoor Adventures:
Learn everything about the Virginia outdoors from this podcast. You’ll discover resources for caving, foraging, biking, hiking, canoeing, rafting all celebrating Virginia nature.

Lists by Area of Interest: 

We have a rich array of clubs, societies and groups dedicated to naturalist interests in Northern Virginia.

Astronomy

Northern Va Astronomy Club : NOVAC holds public monthly meetings on a Sunday evening at GMU and hosts other annual events such as public star gazing nights hosted at Crockett Park near Warrenton, VA. If you go to a stargazing event, place a piece of red vellum over a flashlight to help you get around and keep your eyes acclimated to the dark.

Once the time changes in November think about using that darkness from November to mid March to learn your stars. 

Astronomy Magazine is a good resource. Some good apps are Google Sky, SkySafari, and Star Tracker, and Sky View.

Birding/Ornithology

Follow the Northern Virginia Bird Club. They have a newsletter called The Siskin which lists out all the local bird walks and dates. They also invite speakers and host their events in North Arlington at St. Andrews Episcopal Church which is only 12 minutes away from Longfellow.

There are many beginning bird programs listed in the county nature catalogs and Audubon Society of Northern Virginia which lists recurring bird walks. There are general birding events, but parks also carry specific bird events like “Woodcock Watch” at Huntley Meadows. 

Arlington Teen Birders: If you’ve visited any of the South Arlington parks recently you may have encountered two engaging teen birders “The Chippers,” as they are known on their website. Max and Danté are brothers, two years apart in age but entirely in sync about birds.

Put up a bird feeder and see who visits.  On line you can go to Plow and Hearth.  Go in person to Merrifield Garden Center and Arlington’s Wild Birds Unlimited store to ask questions.  Get some library books about bird feeders, habitat, and food by searching for birds and bird feeders in the card catalog.  

Use apps such as Merlin and eBird and on your computer visit the Cornell Birding website to learn ranges, bird songs and calls.  

If you are up for a challenge try Birding By Ear by Peterson Field Guides which is an audio set that teaches you to identify birds by their calls.

My favorite bird identification book for our region is Sibley Birds East, Second edition.

Binoculars. If you are interested in investing in a family pair of binoculars, I have been advised by birders that 2 good pairs are the Nikon Monarch 8X42 and the Vortech 8X42. They run about $250. Most park birding events will allow you to borrow a pair. Naturalists use their binoculars for more than birding. They come in handy for butterflies, leaping wildlife, and tall tree leaf identification.

Foraging 

Matt’s Habitats is an amusing way to learn about the outdoors by eating your way through the woods. From his website “All walks include the opportunity to sample wild edibles, often including wild foods I prepare ahead of time. Not all walks include collecting plants or mushrooms to take home -- it will depend on species abundance and park rules.”

Herbarium

You’ll have seen my giant Herbarium in class and you might want to make one for yourself. I have a 4 inch D-ring binder. I ordered one packet of cardstock paper and a pack of plastic sleeves from Staples. I tape my samples on the paper with as little tape as possible. I label each specimen with the date, the location of the tree (such as “my neighborhood” or Longfellow Middle School), and the Latin and common names of the trees.

 
Herpetology 

Look at the Virginia Herpetology website for lots of information about these animals. Use the app FrogID to identify your local frogs. Don’t forget to look at the DWR website for books about Virginia animals. (You can also get other Virginia-specific guidebooks for bats, snakes, etc.)

Mushrooms 

Mycological Society of Washington DC leads walks and programs and hosts monthly meetings on selected Tuesday nights. You can view old monthly meetings on their YouTube channel which is a great place to see some beginner programs like Mushrooms 101.  Matt from Matt’s Habitats leads some of these mushroom walks.

Rocks and Gems 

Virginia is rich in rocks and minerals. You used to be able to go into mines but now the way to do this involves joining a local club and doing a field trip with them to a mind. Check out the Northern Virginia Mineral Club if you are fascinated by rocks and minerals. They have monthly meetings via zoom, speakers, go on digs, and promote the annual Gem, Mineral and Fossil show held each fall at GMU.

The history of the Earth in 10 minutes.  https://youtu.be/Q1OreyX0-fw

If you want to learn more about gems, Mindat will dazzle you. Watch an explanatory 30 minute video about the site’s features.

You can find interesting Virginia rocks, minerals and fossils information at this government website. https://energy.virginia.gov/geology/geologymineralresources.shtml, and this is also where I ordered a box of Virginia mineral samples I bring to our club meetings.

Horses

Fort Valley Ranch: Near Luray Caverns, Fort Valley Ranch provides guided horseback trips. This is about 1 hour and 40 minutes away but there are lots of other interesting places nearby here too.  

Gettysburg offers horseback tours of the Civil War sites. You need to book these in advance of going on your trip. 

Journaling 

Nature drawing classes can be found in the local rec class offerings. For example, you can do nature drawing at Huntley Meadows park. You can look at places like outschool.com and Audubon for virtual instructors or classes.  You can also find a lot of free video guidance especially if you know where to look.  For example, David Sibley himself teaches you to draw 11 birds on the Audubon YouTube channel.  Sometimes it helps just to look for youtube channels of well regarded nature journalists.  I’m always happy to help artists looking for information or material like this so be sure to ask me. 

If you like writing, be sure to look up nature writing contests because you might win awards or be published. 

Photography

Local parks also have photography programs. Look in the Fine Arts section of Parktakes and you will find nature photography classes. REI also offers programs. 

Trees and Plants

There is no way around it, it’s hard learning your Virginia trees and plants but it makes hiking really interesting. Remember some free resources are out there including a PDF tree ID guidebook.  Also, iNaturalist and it’s related app Seek are helpful. There are tree ID classes through the parks, including winter programs where you learn to ID buds and bark.  

Another useful resource is PlantNOVANatives. They have a free guide to NOVA native plants.  

Watersports

Don’t forget to leave land behind.  Try sailing, kayaking, river rafting, bird watching from a boat.  Fairfax County Partakes offers some opportunities to learn water sports.  Washington Sailing Marina allows you to rent a sailboat and take youth and adult sailing classes during the summer months.