Riding Skyline Drive: Bear Cubs!

I wasn't going to put up a post about our ride on Saturday. We've ridden Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park a lot and even thought it is one of my favorite places to ride, there isn't much more to say about it. We usually stop at the same places, so I don't even get particularly different pictures. Well, we stopped in the shade to rest briefly on a long climb and I saw this lady hanging out on the side of the road about 25 yards ahead of us:

She stood on the road, looking back and forth. A car came by and she sort of ducked back into the woods. We figured she was gone, but we were pretty thrilled to have gotten the chance to see her. Then, a minute or two later, she came back out and started looking back and forth again. She must have decided it was safe because she looked back and then decided to cross the road.

She was followed by these two little cubs! They were so cute (click to enlarge). I wasn't quite quick enough to get a picture of them on the road. They moved pretty fast. They had to run to keep up with their mother. It was impressive to see how careful she was about crossing the road.

The summer flowers were impressive on Saturday as well. Summer wildflowers are in full bloom on the roadside in the park.

Lilium michauxii (Turk's Cap Lily). These lilies are stunningly beautiful. The ones that I saw on Saturday were nearly six feet tall, growing up over the rest of the underbrush.

Another example of L. michauxii

 Coreopsis verticillata (Whorled Coreopsis).

Helianthus divaricatus (Woodland Sunflower)

 Rudebeckia hirta (Black Eyed Susan)

Impatiens pallida (Pale Jewelweed)

Monarda media (Purple Bergamot)