A Trip to the Wildflower Trail!

The ONLY thing I actually asked for for my birthday was a daytrip to the Shirley Miller Wildflower Trail in NW Ga.  We haven't been there in several years & I really wanted to go. So Friday was the day to 'collect' on this gift.

First we stopped at the Rome Lock & Dam - a great fishing place.

The color contrast between the light green spring leaves & sky was beautiful!

  Thanks to the previous night's storms, the river was really high. Murphy discovered a side creek along a trail and leaped in with totally joy & craziness...

 

Then we proceeded further down the road ~ through the blizzard of pollen...

 

Down This Road....

And this road...

 

 

 

...to The Shirley Miller Wildflower Trail!

 

The flowers were glorious! Spring blooming was in full swing. 

Here are some of the pictures Blake & I took...

starting with the Virginia Bluebells.

 

Next, the Columbine.

 

Foam Flowers

 

Wild Geranium (cranesbill)

With a wee butterfly

 

The Hepatica had already bloomed...we never seem to catch it with the flowers.

But the leaves are so interesting - 3 lobes, and kind of thick like a succulent.

 

Wild Hyacinth (I think its in the orchid family.)

 

Jack in the Pulpit

 

One of my favorites... Purple Phacelia. 

When it's in large clusters its just a purple cloud of beauty.

 

Phlox

 

Celandine Poppy

 

Solomon's Seal - one of those very subtle flowers.

The flowers hangs underneath along the stalk.

(On False Solomon's Seal, the flowers are on the end of the stalk.)

 

One of those really funky looking 'flowers'...Squaw Root

 

The ToadShade Trillium & Trailing Trillium

 

And my favorite ~ White Trillium

My absolute favorite picture of the whole day!
God blessed me with a little sunshine at just the right moment, and I was in just the right place.

Everything about a TRI-llium is in threes...3 leaves, 3 petal flowers.

I love the texture in this picture.

This white trillium looked buttery yellow. Never seen on like this.

chickweed

rue anenome

Cole & Murphy

The hillside was just covered with trillium peeking up 'looking' at us.

Like a fairy land of flowers.


A variety of Violets

 

At the end of the trail, beyond the boardwalk, is a waterfall.
It was bigger than we had ever seen it, thanks to the rain on Thursday.
But even before we got to the big waterfall, there were lots of little ones.

 

Blake spotted a 'face' in the waterfall/rock looking back at me. 
I didn't even see it until we were looking at the pictures.

The surest sign of spring....Blake taking flower pictures.

 Murphy had a 'showdown' with a strange looking critter...
it was a funny looking root.
But Murphy barked & barked &
tried to scare that critter away.

Murphy LOVES to play in the water.

Ferns

Play!?

 

And a few unidentified flowers...
As soon as we ID them, I'll update the info.

 

This whole trail is a wildflower-lover's dream.

It's planted entirely by The Lord, and maintained by Him,

(with a little help from the boardwalk provided by the WMA),

and He provided those awesome opportunities

for Blake & I to capture the beauty in pictures. 

I give all the credit to God. He's an awesome gardener.