Shenandoah National Park Travel Guide

 chewy3326 Says:  The Doyles River is a wild and beautiful stream that plunges down the side of Big Flat Mountain near the Loft Mountain development in the South District. A hike along the river takes you to two major waterfalls, as well as numerous smaller plunges. A combined hike of this... 

 chewy3326 Says:  An enjoyable hike that doesn't require driving on Skyline Drive is the trail to Shenandoah's Furnace Mountain. It's 4.2 miles round trip and requires an elevation gain of 1300 feet, and leads to a good rocky viewpoint near the summit of Furnace Mountain. The trail starts a... 

 chewy3326 Says:  A very good Shenandoah hike is the 2.7-mile, 720-foot elevation gain hike to Rose River Falls. From the trailhead, follow the sign toward Rose River Falls. The trail begins to descend, gently first, then more steeply through a fairly typical Shenandoah woods. At the bottom... 

 chewy3326 Says:  One of the most spectacular streams in Shenandoah is the Overall Run in the park's North District, which cascades down Twin Falls and a series of smaller waterfalls before dropping 93 feet into a deep, rocky gorge. Big Falls of the Overall Run is the highest waterfall in the... 

 chewy3326 Says:  The slightly more difficult but probably more scenic route to the summit of Mary's Rock is from Panorama, at the Thornton Gap entrance. This route is also a good option in winter, as Skyline Drive may be closed but this trailhead is still easily accessible since it's close... 

 chewy3326 Says:  From the viewpoint at Mary's Rock, an easy scramble up a couple of rocks puts you at the summit of Mary's Rock, which, at 3,514 feet, is the eighth highest peak in the park. The view from the summit is a full 360 degrees, and includes Pass Mt, the Peak, Mt Marshall, Hogback... 

 chewy3326 Says:  For some of the best views in Shenandoah National Park, hike the moderate trail up Mary's Rock. From the Meadows Spring Trailhead, walk across Skyline Drive and head south a little bit to a wooden sign reading "no fires." From there, the blue-blazed trail starts and heads... 

 chewy3326 Says:  A short 1.2-mile round trip stretch of the Appalachian Trail leads from grassy Beagle Gap to the summit of Bear Den Mountain. This trail has a decent amount of views, but also has plenty of human-related artifacts, so it's not the best place to escape into the natural world.... 

 chewy3326 Says:  I'll spill another Shenandoah secret. This waterfall is fairly remote and unknown because no trail leads to it. Getting to this waterfall requires some nasty bushwacking- possibly a couple stream crossings, plenty of working through thorns and low branches, the potential for... 

 chewy3326 Says:  I'll spill some Shenandoah secrets. Lost Cliffs is a rarely-visited set of rocks on Baldface Mountain that offer decent rock scrambling and views and plenty of solitude. Getting there involves following a rarely-used fire road and then a short bushwack- so this is certainly... 

 chewy3326 Says:  Skyline Drive is the reason most visitors come to Shenandoah. This mountaintop road traverses the entire park, running 105 miles between Front Royal and Waynesboro with over 70 overlooks along the way. The road is an engineering marvel: it literally hugs the crest of the... 

 chewy3326 Says:  The wildest and most remote part of Shenandoah National Park is the huge Big Run Valley, the largest watershed in the park. The valley lies to the west of Skyline Drive in the southern section of the park and is bound by Loft Mt, Big Flat Mt, Brown Mt, and Rockytop, which... 

 chewy3326 Says:  The southern section of Skyline Drive is a 40-mile stretch between Route 33 at Swift Run Gap and I-64 at Rockfish Gap. It passes by some great scenery and is perhaps the most appealing part of the drive as it's also the least frequented- most visitors head north. A summary... 

 chewy3326 Says:  How opinions can change in a short time! When I first wrote this tip around 2005/2006, I wrote off this overlook as one that "doesn't have much of a view." However, as I've become more familiar with the park, I've also come to a much more favorable conclusion about this... 

 chewy3326 Says:  Turk Mountain is a very recommendable trail at the southern end of the South Section of Shenandoah. In the Southern Section, perhaps only Blackrock, Loft Mountain, and Hightop give such a commanding view for such a small effort. The trail to the summit is a 2.2-mile round... 

 128 Opinions

 PR-7 Says:  This URL http://www.shenandoah.national-park.com/hike.htm#horsays it best: "Cell phones have limited range from many trails"If you begin a hike any distance from Skyline Drive, make certain that you are prepared to handle any emergency ON YOUR OWN. Do NOT assume you can use... 

 chewy3326 Says:  During the winter, views all over the park open up. Even though most trees no longer display any spectacular foliage, they still look peaceful and beautiful during the winter. It gets cold- expect temperatures below freezing every night, and temperatures that barely hover...