It’s been in the back of my mind to break out of my rut and explore different areas – at the very least, the rest of the Potomac Gorge.  And I keep thinking “next year; I’ll do it next year.”

In the meantime, Steve and I might have picked up a new hobby.  We rented kayaks from the Boathouse at Fletcher’s Cove and went out on the river last Saturday. And guess what I saw?  Wildflowers.  Lots and lots of wildflowers, some that I’d never seen before.  But I didn’t have a camera with me.  Not even the iPhone!

So yesterday morning I went again, and took my time exploring the shoreline. Went from Fletcher’s upstream to Chain Bridge, then back down the Virginia side past Fletcher’s and part way to Key Bridge, then back up the DC side.  Along the way I saw:

wild senna (either Senna hebecarpa or Senna marilandica)
water horehound or bugleweed (Lycopus species)
obedient plant (Physostegia virginiana)
boneset (Eupatorium perfoliatum)
cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis)
pickerel-weed (Pontedaria cordata)
purple loosestrife (Lythrum species)
sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale)
water star-grass (Heteranthera dubia), in its element this time
tickseed sunflower (Bidens coronata)
and something that might have been extraordinarily tall evening primrose (Oenothera biennis)

And two ospreys, fishing.

So, where are the pictures?  I’m still new to kayaking; not trusting my ability to keep myself in the boat and dry, I decided to take an old point-and-shoot camera (Pentax Optio S4), figuring that if I was going to ruin a camera, it may as well be one I haven’t used in more than ten years.

Long story short, the pictures are awful (which is why some of the plants aren’t fully identified).

But now I have a new beat to explore.  And a new way of exploring it, too.  I’ll be back as soon as I can rig a way to keep the Nikon D3200 safe and dry.