Chapter July Field Trips

Hike with Wild Virginia(National Forest Watch Group from Charlottesville). Sunday July 9, 2006
Native and Alien Plants in George Washington National Forest(GWNF) 10 AM meet Elkhorn Lake*. Continue on FR 95 to the end. Road now becomes WV RT 32. Go approximately 5 miles to FR 64. Roadsides along Forest Roads in the GWNF provide openings for a wealth of native plant life. Plants have access to more sunlight and water than under forest canopies resulting in a large diversity of native species throughout the growing season. With diverse plant life, come prime insect and bird habitat. Alien and invasive alien plants also come, carried in by passing vehicles. In order to comply with road safety guidelines, the Forest Service sprays roadsides with herbicides in keep roads open for vehicles. The Shenandoah Chapter of the Native Plant Society has been monitoring Forest Road roadsides in the GWNF for the past several years. We have been collecting plant inventories for both native and alien species and have made recommendations to the Forest Service about areas that need to be sprayed and areas that should not be touched. This year is the first opportunity to see if they have used our recommendations during the herbicide application season which ends around July 4. Join us in the GWNF to learn about native, alien and invasive plants. We will be stopping along FR 95 to monitor the impact of invasive species and to see what areas have sprayed. We will proceed on to FR 64, Shaws Fork, to see what roadsides with primarily native plants look like. Bring lunch and water. Easy walking along the road; we can decide how far to walk the day of the hike. • *To Reach Elkhorn Lake: RT 250 West of Staunton. Turn Right on 715(becomes FR 96) About 6 miles FR 96 ends at a T intersection with FR 95-turn Right to Elkhorn Lake (within a mile). We can carpool from Elkhorn Lake.

July 22. Spend the day with Jay Shaner. Meet 8:30 AM SHARP at the picnic area at Ramsey’s Draft (Route 250 about 15 miles WEST of Churchville). See what is in bloom including native orchids. Spruces Knob, Sinks of Gandi and Elk Mountain are a partial itinerary. Bring your lunch - this is an all day trip. Notify Jay if you plan to attend. 540-886-5763.