Spies, Trees and Eagles – Caledon State Park

SPIES, TREES AND EAGLES

The Park of the Month for November has it all!

Overlook on the Potomac River at Caledon State Park

Those are a few things that come to mind when I think of Boyd’s Hole, there is a very good chance you will see eagles. But did you know the park has some of the most magnificent trees I have seen in Virginia? Old growth hardwoods, in a climax forest, many trees are over 100 years old. That is rare along the Potomac River, seems the early European settlers cut most of the trees down and drained the land to farm. You can still see some of the old drainage ditches in the park that must have been dug by hand. Fortunately the land owners stopped using the property for farming in the 1800's and the forest was restored.

Walk under the canopy of the beautiful hardwoods this fall (November is not too late!)

Unfortunately the trees are not as old as the 1659 Caledon Plantation that was settled by Scotsman John and Phillip Alexander, but there are a couple of Oak-Tulip Poplars that are between 200 -250 years old! In fact several of the trees on the Belmont Trail are listed in "Remarkable Trees of Virginia."

Caledon Plantation actually stayed in the Alexander family until descendant Lewis Edgerton Smoot’s wife, Ann Hopewell Smoot donated the land for a state park. Because of National Natural Landmark in 1974.

Great old tree

And the history!

Caledon is rich in history not only with the Alexander’s but it is speculated there were several boat landings and port towns along the river within the park’s boundaries. There may even be a Caledon connection to John Wilkes Booth fleeing through King George County as expressed in the park’s program The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

Upcoming programs you do not want to miss: