The weather was beautiful this past weekend, and I took the opportunity to do a Spring hike at Cheeks Bend - one of the local protected wildlife areas nearby.  The Spring blooming wildflowers were making a good show. Below are some of the photos taken along the way.

​The trail starts out going through some rocky and scraggy cedar glades. Along the way, I came across a small grove of these plants. I have no idea what they are but I loved the way the bright green leaves stand out against the drab ground. Fuji X-T10 ~ Fuji XF 35mm f/1.4

This rotting tree stump was covered in a medley of beautiful, lush mosses. I adore mosses, and Cheeks Bend has a wonderful collection of them.
Fuji X-T10 ~ Fuji XF 35mm f/1.4

Towards the bottom of the cedar glade, there was a beautiful stand of some form of wild verbena:
Fui X-T10 ~ Fuji XF 35mm f/1.4

After the cedar glade, the trail takes you through a small, grassy area.  Then the trail heads up a small bluff with lots of boulders. Once at the top, there are some nice overlooks on the Duck River.  If you know where to look, there's a great little cavern that takes you underneath the bluffs you were standing on moments before and comes out in on a steep rocky outcrop closer to the river.
Fuji X-T10 ~ Fuji XF 35mm f/1.4

The trail then leads you through a lush woodland with wonderful wildflowers, great old trees, and beautiful scenery.  It's a great natural resource. I'm so glad it's in my community!

Here, you can see Bryan standing next to this massive tree.  It was quite a sight!

~ photos taken with the Fuji X-T10 camera and Fuji XF 23mm f/1.4 lens