The woodlands of Bull Run Regional Park will be awash in periwinkle in April as the Virginia bluebells bloom. Peak bloom this year is expected at the end of the first week of April.
“There are definitely earlier blooms and later blooms, so even if you miss peak, you’re likely to see something,” says Matt Felperin, the roving naturalist for NOVA Parks.
The Centreville park is home to one of the East Coast’s largest stands of bluebells, with the trumpet-shaped perennials carpeting more than 150 acres along the banks of Bull Run and Cub Run.
While they are called bluebells, some of the ephemerals are in fact pink or white. The acidity of the soil determines the color, like it does with hydrangeas. “On very, very rare occasions, you can find white blossoms. You’ll see shades of the blue that can be pretty pale and look like white, but there are flowers out there that are stark white, and those are very rare,” Felperin says.
When you go to the park (hint: consider visiting at sunrise), you will want to stay on the Bluebell Trail, a 1.5-mile loop. Keep your impact as minimal as possible: no walking on or picking the flowers. And unlike a walk through a sunflower field, you can also expect to see plants, amphibians, and birds along the trail.
You may also come across some fallen branches. “There’s one thing that I can advise people to do: It would definitely be to wear appropriate footwear because it’s a messy, messy trail that time of year,” he says.
“I’d recommend visiting on an early weekday morning because it’s very pretty and you’re less likely to run into crowds. Because if you go on a weekend, like mid-morning through the afternoon, it is just absolutely packed. For the best experience, even if you go really early morning on a weekend, that’s actually pretty good. That’s kind of a well-kept secret, but I’m OK with spoiling it,” Felperin says.
The naturalist will lead morning photography workshops on April 6, 11, and 13, when the flowers look their best. “There’s the magic to the early morning light dappling the forest with that really nice soft and golden color,” he says. “It works very well with the bluebells. You see the color a lot better than later in the day when the sun rises higher.”
Bluebells at Bull Run:
Where: Bull Run Regional Park, 7700 Bull Run Dr., Centreville
Parking: Use the Atlantis Waterpark parking lot
Hours: Sunrise to sunset
Cost: Free for residents of Arlington, Fairfax, or Loudoun counties and residents of the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, or Falls Church; $8 per car for residents of other jurisdictions
You Can also Find Bluebells at These Parks:
- Hemlock Overlook Regional Park, 13220 Yates Ford Rd., Clifton
- Lake Accotink Park, 7500 Accotink Park Rd., Springfield
- Riverbend Park, 8700 Potomac Hills St., Great Falls
- Ball’s Bluff Battlefield Regional Park, Ball’s Bluff Rd. NE, Leesburg
- Manassas National Battlefield Park, 6511 Sudley Rd., Manassas
