Bent Creek Forest & NC Arboretum

The North Carolina Arboretum is a place to which I was happy to return, having visited in 2011.  I went ahead and became a member, knowing I'm going to be going back several times over the next few weeks, and  because they also have reciprocal arrangements with other gardens throughout the US that I plan to visit.  It is a beautiful place, focusing mostly on trees, but they do have some native and planted blooming flowers, too.  From almost any place in the property you can see the mountains in the distance. There are about 10 miles of hiking trails, but on this visit I mainly enjoyed the cafe (gluten free bread, yay!), the greenhouse, and the blooming gardens.

Behind the Arboretum are some well used trails through an "experimental" forest; one that is used to study how forests change and what impact invasive species have.  A she-Ranger on the Blue Ridge Parkway had recommended a visit there as a good "ramble" through the woods. There were quite a few runners, mountain bikers, and hikers with dogs on the trail.  I heard a few birds, spotted fewer, and couldn't photograph any.  But I was excited to try out my new binoculars that I had been saving my pennies to buy.  I found them at the Wild Birds Unlimited in Arden on the recommendation of one of the birders I had chatted with the day before.  They carried a much better selection than I had found in Virginia Beach, and I was also happy to be "buying local".

 Beautiful pink dogwood with the sun shining through it. (NC Arboretum)

 There were bird feeders up close to the educational building and some of my favorite birds, American Goldfinches, were enjoying the thistle feeder.  Looks like they are just changing from winter to summer plumage. (NC Arboretum)

 I love the "ordinary" purple iris, a variety of which can actually be found growing wild around here. (NC Arboretum)

 Flame Azelea - I believe these are kind of unique in the area, and can be found along some hiking trails in the mountains. (NC Arboretum)

 Pretty little yellow flowers; I'm feeling too lazy to look up an official name. (NC Arboretum)

 This was like a "tulip tree" but it was trained along and draping over a stone wall.  I don't think I've seen it growing that way before. (NC Arboretum)

 A happy lily of some sort blooming in the greenhouse, which makes me think it might be "special" since it was in that environment rather than outdoors. (NC Arboretum)

The most symmetrical flower I can ever recall seeing. It was stunning, about 4 inches in diameter, and I found it in a planter near the entrance to the Arboretum.  It was another beautiful, sunny day - the way spring is SUPPOSED to be, and I ended up staying outdoors for about 7 hours of it!