State(s): Virginia
Link: https://www.nps.gov/shen/index.htm
Days: 3
Month: March
Hotel: Vrbo
Hikes: 9 = 13.9 miles
Ice Cream: Main Street Flavors, C & C Frozen Treats, Flotzies, Bruster’s
The day before we started exploring Shenandoah, we drove to the Flight 93 National Memorial. After we were done there, we drove to the Shenandoah area. The park was completed by us, 2 of our parents, and our 12-year-old niece, Natalie.
This is a big park with lots of hiking options. One thing we noticed, was “easy” is not equivalent to easy at other parks. The trail rating system here doesn’t take into account terrain – it also allows for very steep trails to be considered easiest if they are shorter, this doesn’t mean it’s actually easy.
Day 1
Our first stop was at Pass Mountain Overlook. We saw several deer along with the beautiful mountains.
Thornton Hollow Overlook was next up. It didn’t disappoint, we immediately saw 3 deer!
We were in awe of the beauty of the park so we decided to stop at another overlook, Rattlesnake Point. This also had great views of the mountains!
On the way to Range View Overlook, we encountered a lot of deer, and I mean a lot. There were easily 30+ deer on the sides of the road throughout the drive between Rattlesnake Point Overlook and Range View Overlook.
For our first hike, we headed to Compton Gap Trailhead to hike the Fort Wyndham Rocks Trail, an easy 0.8 miles out and back trail. The trail had dirt and some rocks in it. At the end of the trail out, there was optional rock scrambling. We happily took part in the rock scrambling, it was fun!
Then we headed to go see the Shenandoah National Park Sign, we always try to take a picture of the sign!
Dickey Ridge Visitor Center was up next. The visitor center was closed but we took the opportunity to use the restrooms.
Next, we headed to Signal Knob Overlook, as with the others, this had a very nice view of the landscape.
After the short break, we headed to the Lands Run Falls Trail, an easy 1.2 miles out and back trail. It was mostly dirt and rocks. There was some decline in the way down, and incline on the way back. Once back to the car, we ate a quick PB & J lunch.
Then we headed to Jewell Hollow Overlook. As with the previous overlooks, this one also had some nice view. Here, you could walk to the edge and also go up some rocks.
Next up was Mary’s Rock Trail from Meadow Spring, a 2.9 mile moderate hike. The path was dirt and stones with tree logs for steps. Throughout the hike there was 830 feet of elevation gain. There were plenty of rocks along the way to sit on. At one point we heard a distinct rattle sound a bit away from us. We made it to the top and were rewarded with more amazing views! The way back was mostly down. Coming back we were able to find Bird Rock.
We then headed to Rancho Viejo for dinner. Everyone in our group liked the food!
We had to reward ourselves with some ice cream. This time it was Main Street Flavors. We were hoping for some homemade ice cream but it ended up having Hershey’s Ice Cream. It was still good though!
Day 2
We started our day hiking the Stony Man Trail, an easy 1.6 mile hike. This is an extremely popular hike so we recommend doing this first thing in the morning. In the loop at the end, before coming back, there there’s a big rock area you can climb around on. Very nice view but it was also very windy. At one point it was a challenge to keep our balance.
On the way to the next area, we saw a while turkey running around on the side of the road. We were heading to Millers Head Trail but the area was closed so we decided to stop at Crescent Rock Overlook where we could see Hawksbill, Nakedtop, Hershberger Ridge, and Shenandoah Valley.
Then we headed to Fishers Gap Overlook, another nice area to view the beauty all around.
Harry Byrd Visitor Center was up next. We were able to get our stamp and some souvenirs. At the other side of the parking lot, we started the Story of the Forest Nature Trail, a 1.8 mile easy hike. It was very peaceful for most of it but did get windy. The trail was mostly dirt and rocks but overall pretty flat. At one point we crossed a cool rock bridge. Later we passed over a metal bridge. We came across 3 deer laying down; as we approached, they jumped up. A bit further, there was a group of 7 more on the side of the path. After that we lost count as we came across more groups of deer.
It was time for another overlook, this time Old Rag Overlook.
For our next hike, we headed to the Upper Hawksbill Summit, a 2.1 mile easy+ hike with 520 feet of elevation gain. The path was a mix of gravel, rocks, and dirt. Even though this is considered easy, it has some pretty steep parts to it, especially the second half out. At the summit, there’s two compasses that point out places you can see in the distance. For this hike, me and my mother-in-law took the same way back. Colleen & Natalie took the harder way back.
Then we headed to the Limberlost Trail, an easy 1.3 mile hike. The trail is mostly flat with gravel. This was a nice casual stroll to end our hiking for the day. It had some peaceful flowing water.
Our final stop in the park was the Hazel Mountain Overlook. It had cool rock formations.
Once we were done in the park, we headed to Front Royal, past the north end of the park. We walked around a bit but a lot of stuff was closed (which we found odd) and had some homemade ice cream at C & C Frozen Treats. The brownie batter was amazing.
Although a bit far, we headed to Southern Kitchen for dinner. The southern fried chicken was amazing!
After dinner we decided to run back to the park to try and catch the sunset. We headed to Pinnacles Overlook. We arrived there 8 minutes before sunset but the sun was already lower than the mountains. We still had some cool views but didn’t directly see the sun.
Day 3
We finally had a good morning for sunrise; up to this point every morning was cloudy. Buck Hollow Overlook was the place. We arrived there 40 mins before sunrise. We were so happy we got up early and made the journey, it was beautiful!
As the sun was still low, we stopped at Stony Man Mountain Overlook for another view of the sun rising across the mountains.
Next up was The Point Overlook. What made this one different though was a cutout in the wall where you can walk down and out to a rock platform to get even more impeccable views. This turned out to be a pretty cool little adventure.
Then we headed to Bearfence Rock Scramble. There was 311 feet of elevation in the 1 mile moderate loop. Along the way there were lots of rocks to conquer. We were rewarded with amazing unobstructed views. We had so much fun! My mother-in-law was even able to do it, we were very proud of her! This ended up being the group favorite.
Our next stop was the Rocky Mount Overlook which had more nice views.
After we were done with the overlook, we headed to Loft Mountain Wayside – it was closed but we used the outside tables to eat our lunch. Once we were done eating, we headed across the street to hike the Frazier Discovery Trail, an easy+ 1.2 mile trail. There was quite a bit of incline. This trail wasn’t well maintained, it was more rustic, which added to the fun. In some sections fallen trees blocked the path so we had to play limbo or climb over them. After seeing the bear warning sign before we started, we were hopeful to see bears but unfortunately, we didn’t.
We decided to end our park visit and check out Luray Caverns before they closed. It was very cool – the caves were huge!
For dinner we stopped at El Amigo Food Truck. Two of our orders were not correct but the tacos were very good.
Our last night there we decided to check out Flotzies for soft serve ice cream. As with most ice cream, it was good!
Day 4
This day we headed home. We stopped at Patrick’s Pub and Eatery in Cumberland, Maryland. The southern fried chicken sandwich, pot pie, Patrick’s mashed potato bowl were all very good.
Once we made it to McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, we made a pitstop at Bruster’s where they make homemade ice cream! Yum!
