Bluebells are peaking at Riverbend Park, and you don’t want to miss them. Best time to visit is from March through April. Visiting this weekend is a must.
The popular Fairfax County, Virginia park puts on the best Bluebell show I have seen. Truly, this is one of the most beautiful trails I have hiked. Like walking in a fairytale sea of blue. Go along the Potomac riverbank (on the Virginia side, natch!) to enjoy a non-strenuous stroll along a sunshine-dappled carpet of delicate Bluebells.
You can walk either way from the visitor center but we recommend taking a left for more abundant Bluebells. You’ll be glad you did.
They also have modern bathroom facilities and picnic areas and you can bring your children to learn more at the nature center.
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Getting there
All you need to do is enter “Riverbend Park” into your map app for directions. It’s easy to drive to this idyllic nature hike. If possible, loop the trail a number of times to really take in the beauty.
Wildflower calendar
Heads up — yes, the Bluebells are spectacular, but remember Riverbend Park puts on a wildflower show almost year ’round. To see all the different varieties of wildflowers, you have to visit Spring, Summer, and Fall.
The seasons of wildflowers at Riverbend Park
Visit March through April and you’ll find Bloodroot, Blue Cohosh, Common Blue Violet, Cut Leaved Toothwort, Dutchman’s Breeches, Dwarf Larkspur, Early Saxifrage, Fleabane, Great Chickweed, Harbinger-of-Spring, Hepatica, Jack-in-the-Pulpit, Mayapple, Pale Violet, Periwinkle, Short’s Rockcress, Rue-Anemone, Solomon’s Seal, Spring Beauty, Spring Cress, Squirrel Corn, Showy Orchis, Virginia Bluebell, Wild Ginger, Yellow Corydalis, Yellow Trout Lily, and Yellow Violet.
The warmer months of May and June bring the blooms of Clayton’s Bedstraw, Common Buttercup, Common Nightshade, Golden Ragwort, Kidney-leaf Buttercup, Puttyroot Orchid, Ramps, Speedwell, St. John’s-wort, Sweet Cicely, and Virginia Waterleaf.
July through October boast the blooms of Beechdrops, Black Cohosh, Black-Eyed Susan, Boneset, Dodder Vine, Evening Primrose, Hog-Peanut, Honewort, Late Purple Aster, Mistflower, Small White Morning Glory, Sunflower, Tall Agrimony, Tickseed, Touch-Me-Not, Virgin’s Bower, White Vervian, and White Wood Aster.
Winter, spring, summer, or fall — DC has got it all!
What blooms when?
The National Park Service provides a list of the region’s common wildflowers and when they bloom. Learn more here. Tell us which wildflower you are most excited about seeing. What season does it bloom?
Flower Power
I hope you can enjoy this spiritual escape. It is so close to the craziness of the city and the rest of the DC metro area and the best river walk in the area. The healing power of nature can’t be denied. I think you’ll agree.
Is there a special place where you get close to nature? Please share it with us. We love learning and experiencing new things.
