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Monday 8am - 5pm Tuesday 8am - 5pm Wednesday 8am - 5pm Thursday 8am - 5pm Friday 8am - 5pm Saturday 8am - 5pm Sunday 8am - 5pm

Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve

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Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve

Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve is permanently protected for people & wildlife.

09/01/2026

Gather ‘round the (pretend!) campfire and step into a world of indoor camping fun. Snooze in a tent with your own cozy sleeping bag, toast make-believe marshmallows, and explore the sights and sounds of the forest through hands-on activities in the Nature Center’s. Then head outdoors to see if you can spot woodland wildlife in their natural habitats. This seasonal exhibit runs throughout Fall.
No registration required!

08/31/2026

If you’ve been on our trails lately, you may have guessed the theme of our August Storytime Gone Wild & Nature Walk...

Here are a few clues:
• You might have walked right into some of their intricate artwork.
• They have eight legs and are excellent at pest control.
• They are the forest’s absolute best weavers.

SPIDERS! We went arachnid crazy, crawling into the fascinating world of these eight-legged arthropods (not insects!). If your reaction is less than web-ceptional, we get it. Spiders can be frightening, but don’t let these creepy-crawlers scare you away – they are the superheroes of our forest ecosystem!

We read stories about our arachnid neighbors, learning how spiders are both predator and prey: acting as a vital protein source for birds, lizards, frogs, and even small mammals while hunting billions of pests daily, including mosquitoes, flies, and aphids!

Then we crawled out on a spider safari! Our brave young naturalists spotted beautiful orb weavers and funnel webs glistening in the morning sun - we even gently caught a giant wolf spider (from the Lycosidae family, see photos 15-16 if you dare). We also identified Cellar Spiders (photo 13) and Crab Spiders (photo 14). The group did a great job spider-spotting!

After our off-the-web walk, we gathered to spin an epic community web (first photos); a beautiful reminder of the artistry spiders put into their masterpieces. Young naturalists were then able to weave their very own webs to take home, using sticks collected on trail; just like the webs we admired in nature, each one was very unique!

We hope that this next generation of nature enthusiasts will look at spiders with fascination instead of fear. It is easy to get tangled-up in misconceptions. Thank you to all the families who came out to explore, learn, and conquer their spider-scaries with us!

Here are our favorite spider stories right now:
• The Busy Spider by Eric Carle
• Jumper by Jessica Lanan
• The Itsy Bitsy Spider
• The Big Book of Bugs by Yuval Zommer

Nurturing the next generation of naturalists, one web at a time at Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve, Loudoun’s only nature preserve!

08/30/2026

Welcome to the second installment of Recent Wildlife Sightings captured from our trail cameras here at Banshee Reeks Nature Preserve! These clips range from mid/late July through August.

“In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks.” -John Muir

Black Bear (Aureus americanus americanus)

Bobcat (Lynx rufus rufus) strolling along

Buck lying down for the night and getting up three hours later with a big stretch.

Group of 3 Coyotes (Canis latrans)

11 Wild Turkeys (Meleagris gallopavo)

Coyote carrying away the leg of a deer

Buck jumps away

Male Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis). The Northern Cardinal, adopted in 1950, is the official state bird of Virginia.

Hawk

Striped Skunk (Mephitis mephitis)

2 Raccoons (Procyon lotor lotor) playing together

Group of 3 White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), the last stops to scratch its nose

Virginia Opossum (Didelphis virginiana)

3 Squirrels chasing each other up and down the fallen tree

08/29/2026

We had a beautiful Full Moon Hike last night!

08/24/2026

Is there a “good” way to bid farewell to the summer season? Well, we think we may have found it: fresh summer air, sunshine dappled forest trails, cold on-trail popsicles, a 10/10 cotton candy sunset sky, the last lightning bugs, a campfire with friends, and sticky sweet s’mores (or just a giant stick of marshmallows)!

Several families joined us for our August Popsicle Hike and Sunset S’more Stroll. We couldn’t have asked for better weather to explore some of the most beautiful trails here. The morning group set off for Goose Creek by way of Cathedral Trail (Master Naturalist Kelly Roach’s favorite trail at the preserve) and the views did not disappoint…

Spectacular spiderwebs were the stars of the show (check out that second photo!) as well as some marvelous mushrooms + snail, caterpillar & toad friends! The meadows were so alive with pollinators. There were many blooms to admire, but the bright orange Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) and red Trumpet vine (Campsis radicans) were favorites.

The evening group enjoyed a different ecosystem of the preserve through Greenway and Jack Hugus Trails where they lost count of rabbits (30?), deer tracks, and fungi formations. The sunset was a showstopper — literally, stopped the hikers on trail to watch the fiery orange-pink sun set over the tree line. The final fireflies of summer lit the path to the campfire where countless marshmallows were roasted long past bedtimes.

Thank you to everyone who shared these, and many other, special summer memories with us this year at Banshee. Remember that we are still open until 8pm on summertime hours to get out those after-school wiggles — happy trails!

08/17/2026

We hope to see you out here at Banshee Reeks for all of our upcoming events and programs this September! 🥾🏕️🧚🦇🌌

To sign up for programs visit the link in our bio. Contact 703-737-8894 or [email protected] with any questions.

08/06/2026

Check out the amazing wildlife sightings we’ve been able to capture here at Banshee Reeks from the past couple months! Trail camera images and footage allows us glimpses into the lives of local fauna thriving in their native habitat.

Black bear (Aureus americanus americanus) mom and cub 🐻

Bobcat (Lynx rufus rufus)

Curious White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) buck 🦌

Coyote (Canis latrans) carrying away its next meal 🐾

Turkey vulture (Cathartes aura) 🦃

White-tailed (Odocoileus virginianus) deer mom and fawn 🦌

Group of three coyotes (Canis latrans) running 🐾

Group of three raccoons (Procyon lotor lotor) meandering 🦝

Mouse scurrying across log and spider dropping down into view 🐁 🕷️

08/01/2026

We had a very nice ghost history tour last night! Absolutely beautiful. Come to our next one to see what you can find.

07/31/2026

What a slithering success! 🐍
We had a sssuper ssspectacular time during our July Storytime Gone Wild & Nature Walk - Snakes to celebrate National Snake Month in July. Our little nature enthusiasts gathered around to listen to enchanting tales, learn all about our native reptile neighbors, and discover why these misunderstood creatures are so vital to our ecosystem from Instructor and Certified Virginia Master Naturalist Kelly Roach.

An extra ssspecial shoutout to our fantastic guest speaker, Liz Brand, Park Naturalist from Hal and Berni Hanson Regional Park who partnered with us this month. Liz brought so much amazing energy and knowledge, helping our young naturalist learn all about snake behavior, anatomy, and safety.

The absolute star of the show was Hanson Park’s amazing snake ambassador, Skully the Black Rat Snake! Skully was on his best behavior, helping Liz teach everyone why black rat snakes are such great neighbors to have around. The kids loved getting a close-up look (and touch!) at a real-life reptile hero!

After stories and snake time, naturalists of all ages enjoyed creating their very own paper plate snakes to take home and continue the fun. Kelly taught everyone a tasty way to remember how to identify copperhead snakes with their Hershey kiss patterning—ending the morning with chocolate!

A huge thank you to all the families who joined us for July’s wild adventure. We had a packed house and all the curiosity & excitement from the kids made the morning unforgettable.

Here are our favorite snake books right now:
• The Greedy Python by Eric Carle
• Hike and Snake by Keith Baker
• Verdi by Janell Cannon
• I Don’t Like Snakes by Nicola Davies

Nurturing the next generation of naturalists, one slither at a time! Join us for Storytime Gone Wild & Nature Walk every 4th Tuesday at 9:30am: Spiders on 8/25!

07/30/2026

We had a very nice full moon hike last night. As we walked through the forest we saw the mist along the river and heard the wind blow through the trees, we heard katydids and green frogs calling at Beaver Pond, the moon made a timely appearance from behind the clouds, and right after everyone left we had a little visitor in the classroom!

Address

21085 The Woods Road
Leesburg, VA
20175

Opening Hours

Monday	8am - 5pm
Tuesday	8am - 5pm
Wednesday	8am - 5pm
Thursday	8am - 5pm
Friday	8am - 5pm
Saturday	8am - 5pm
Sunday	8am - 5pm

Website

https://www.loudoun.gov/1277/Banshee-Reeks-Nature-Preserve

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