The sun was barely above the horizon and the thermometer was already approaching 80 degrees F. I knew it was going to be a hot one along the SE coast of Virginia, especially where I was visiting for the day-Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). However, if you’re properly prepared for these hot summer days, there are benefits to visiting these areas at this time of year when it comes to experiencing nature.

Located along the Atlantic Coast, in extreme SE Virginia (8 miles from NC), Back Bay NWR is a 9,250-acre refuge established in 1938 to provide feeding and resting habitat for migratory birds. Over the years, it has become a critical habitat for wildlife as the metropolitan area of Virginia Beach continues to grow, while trying to protect the watershed from harmful development. Back Bay NWR includes a thin strip of barrier island coastline typical of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts, as well as upland areas on the west bank of Back Bay. Habitats include beach, dunes, woodlands, agricultural fields, and emergent freshwater marshes. The majority of refuge marshes are on islands within the waters of Back Bay.

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As with many of my trips, I wanted to photograph some of the refuge’s summer wildlife, especially the birds. After hearing about a couple rare avian visitors to the refuge(a pair of Roseate Spoonbills), I packed up my gear, a lunch, plenty of water and departed at 3am, making the 3.5 hr. trek to arrive by sunrise. Roseate Spoonbills are large, beautiful pink & white wading birds normally found in Florida and the Gulf Coast. On occasion, after breeding is done, some Spoonbills (especially juveniles) will wander far from their home range, putting birders on alert and creating a “feeding frenzy” on social media. I wanted to join in on the “feast”, since the last time I saw one was in SW Florida, almost 15 years ago.

Although the scorching, humid summer days may not be ideal for birds (and birders), what I found during my visit was many other critters that thrive during the heat-especially insects! In addition, there were many flowers blooming in the bright sunlight as well.

If you visit Back Bay NWR on a hot, steamy summer day, you can’t miss the amount, and variety, of bugs flying around. Many species of butterflies, bees, beetles and flies are constantly buzzing by you. But the most noticeable winged creatures are the dragonflies. They were everywhere! Thousands of them. Some of them were large and others small and most were brightly colored. I found myself watching (looking for) dragonflies, more than searching for birds-probably because there just so many more of them! The hotter it got, the more active they became.

If you walk the trails at Back Bay NWR long enough, you’re bound to have one accidentally fly into you. But fear not, these beneficial insects will not harm you, and spend most of their waking hours buzzing around one small area catching and eating other flying insects-mosquitoes are their favorite prey! Dragonflies are expert fliers. They can fly straight up and down, hover like a helicopter and even mate mid-air. If they can’t fly, they’ll starve because they only eat prey they catch while flying. They’re such efficient mosquito-catchers that a single dragonfly can eat 30 to hundreds of mosquitoes per day! I would take many dragonflies flying around, rather than mosquitoes, any day! Amazingly, some dragonfly species even migrate.

Scientists have tracked migratory dragonflies by attaching tiny transmitters to wings with a combination of eyelash adhesive and superglue. They found that green darners from New Jersey traveled only every third day and an average of 7.5 miles per day (though one dragonfly traveled 100 miles in a single day). One species, called the Globe Skinner has the longest migration of any insect—11,000 miles back and forth across the Indian Ocean!

Back Bay NWR is a super nature destination any time of the year, even during the “dog days of summer.” If you’re properly prepared with plenty of water, bug spray, sunscreen, a wide brim hat, and a sense of adventure, you’ll be surprised what you might discover! Enjoy, and get Out and About!

The moon lit our way around every bend of the dark, windy road. It was 4:30 am, and we had about an hour to go to get us up high, to get us to the top for sunrise. As Big Blue bounced up the dirt road of the final two miles, the moonlight disappeared behind the fog and low clouds.

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Our destination was the peak of Whitetop Mountain. At 5,518’, it’s the 2^nd highest mountain in Virginia, but the highest you can drive to. The highest point in the state is Mt. Rogers at 5,729’, but to reach the top requires a challenging ½ day hike on the AT, and since it’s covered in trees, it offers no panoramic views when you reach the summit. The reward for the bumpy, eerie drive through the darkness was breathtaking views of the landscape of Southwest Virginia…..oh, and you can look out to the north and see the gentle dome of Mt. Rogers!

Even as the first hues of sunlight began to appear, the bright moon still hung high in the night sky, fading in and out of the chilly mist. As the Dark-eyed Juncos and Hermit Thrushes sang their early morning songs, the valley below began to emerge, and the sparse mountaintop showed its dominant tree species, the Red Spruce, along with dew-covered meadows. Theresa and I both agreed we really love visiting these high, alpine-like environments.

Whitetop Mountain and Mt. Rogers are part of the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area in George Washington and Jefferson National Forest. Theresa and I ventured to this part of the state for a weekend of getting outdoors, a little sightseeing and to stretch our legs on a few short hikes.

Our other outdoor target for the day was Grayson Highlands State Park. This 4,500-acre park, also peaking at over 5,000 vertical feet, is known for being a gateway to Mt. Rogers, as well as the Appalachian Trail and Grayson Highlands. But perhaps its most popular attraction have four legs-wild ponies. They were introduced to the park in 1974 to prevent reforestation of the highland balds (high elevation open areas). The Wilburn Ridge Pony Association manages the pony herd. Each fall, the ponies are rounded up and association members check the herd for health problems. To keep the population balanced, some of the ponies are auctioned off during Grayson Highlands annual Fall Festival.

Although there are many signs and literature warning visitors not to feed the ponies, or not to try petting them, people still do. On a short hike to one of these balds, Theresa and I were told there four ponies just ahead of us, grazing peacefully near the trail. There were two mares, and a young colt still feeding from mama, and a stallion. As we watched from a distance, the mama and colt slowly approached a family that had a Golden Retriever on a leash. The colt seemed curious about the dog, so the family thought it might be cute to try and get a photo of the two animals sniffing each other. I politely said to the father that I thought they were too close and that the other ponies might get a bit agitated. He ignored me. Ten seconds after I said something, the stallion came trotting over, bucked up and kicked his hind legs, just missing the father, who was standing there, a bit dumbfounded. He was lucky one of those hooves didn’t catch him in the head! Theresa and I stood back, snapped a few photos and headed back down the trail.

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After a second, and a bit more challenging, hike to see some waterfalls, it was time to head back to our hotel and grab some supper. By the time we reached the truck, my calf muscles were burning (and into the next morning) and ready to rest! Although we were both a bit tired, we really enjoyed our visit to SW Virginia and exploring the High-Lands!