Shenandoah National Park

West Virginia!

After a brief stop in Harper's Ferry, WV (where we walked about 10' on the Appalachian Trail! Woo!) and splurged on real beds (crazy!) for Paul's birthday, we went on to Shenandoah National Park in Virginia!

Shenandoah National Park runs along a group of mountains (yes, they call them that on the east coast) that runs north south through the state. There is a scenic road that runs from the north all the way to the south end of the park and is full of scenic overlooks and trailheads that allow access into the heart of the park. We decided to drive along part of the scenic route, check out one of the waterfalls, and hike to one of the peaks in the park.

When we got to the park we stopped at the first overlook we came to. It was quite beautiful, looking over the tree covered rolling hills that surround the overlook. You could see out beyond the edge of the forest into the towns to the East as well. The next overlook we stopped at had a very similar view. It was definitely still beautiful, but not as exciting after having seen the first. We stopped and hiked down to Dark Hollow Falls. The trail was quite cool and wound through a beautiful deciduous forest. We got to the falls (sadly it wasn't very full this time of year) and enjoyed the cool canopy of trees, then headed back to the car.

When we arrived at the car we noticed that the scenic views had changed from scenic views of the surrounding countryside to scenic views of clouds. And fog. So... that changed our plans a bit. Because lets be honest, the view of clouds from the top of a hill is not quite as exciting as the vista of a forest over rolling hills. We drove a ways down the park, but the fog just hung in there, so we decided it was time to say goodbye to Shenandoah and head for the next adventure ahead!

Personnel:
Honestly, we have no idea... we didn't even see any of them. But I am sure they are nice!

Climate/weather:
The weather was a little bit cool and damp, but not unpleasant. Sadly after the clouds rolled in it made it hard to enjoy the beauty of the park.

Facilities/signage:
The only facilities we used were of the natural variety, and, frankly they didn't have great coverage... The signage at the trailheads and marking the trails to the waterfall weren't great. We had a fair bit of confusion about which trail we were supposed to be on (we were actually aiming for Ruby Falls and ended up at Dark Hollow Falls, and after seeing the flow at Dark Hollow we decided it wasn't worth it to continue the search for Ruby Falls).

Hiking experience:
As noted above we had some trouble finding the trail we wanted, but the trail we ended up on was a good place for a leisurely stroll. The trail was wide and easy to follow, not strenuous, and very pretty.

Driving experience:
The main road was very easy to find and follow (there is really only 1 road to follow) and it has plenty of beautiful pullouts, definitely green and lush country! If we had not encountered the fog I think it would have been one of the best drives we have been on in the East Coast area.

Camping options:
We didn't see any campgrounds as we were driving through (but we weren't looking). There are several in the park that have quite a few sites, and of course the AT runs through the park so there are backcountry opportunities as well.

Hammockability:
This park does indeed have trees (and not a lot of underbrush as we discovered earlier), so you can definitely put up hammocks here. There are also bears, (this seems like a trend) so bear practices are once again in full swing... in your hammock...

Scenery:
This park was full of beauty. Fall was just starting to change some of the trees to their autumn colors, and walking through the forest trail we were surrounded by lush green everywhere. The waterfall we stopped at looked like, when full, it would also have been very scenic. Lots of trees, hills, and streams to check out.

Nearby food:
There are quite a few towns just outside the park, you will probably never be more than about 1/2 an hour from some sort of food option as you drive through.


We didn't stay too long in this park mostly because of the fog, but it was definitely beautiful, and getting moreso with the onset of fall. Driving along is great, but you will really only see the tops of the forest below you. If you really want to get in and experience the park, take to the trails!

Next stop is Congaree National Park in South Carolina!