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| A portion of the falls in January |
Parking Coordinates: N 37.85144 W 079.07922
Length: 1.7 mile each way (3.4 miles total)
Difficulty:moderate-strenuous just because of incline
Payoff: waterfall
Parking Fee?: yes, $3 per vehicle
Rock Scrambling?: no
Free Camping Opportunities?:
Pet Friendly Hike?: yes, on leash
Longer Post about Crabtree Falls
Parking Coordinates: 38.35612, -78.54493
Old Hotel Trail/Cole Mountain Loop
Parking Fee?: yes, $3 per vehicle
Rock Scrambling?: no
Free Camping Opportunities?:
Pet Friendly Hike?: yes, on leash
Longer Post about Crabtree Falls
Parking Coordinates: 38.254326, -78.682919
Length: 3.2 miles total (this is an out-and-back)
Difficulty: moderate (downhill to the falls, uphill back)
Payoff: waterfall (although it was hardly more than a trickle when we visited)
Parking Fee?: yes - it is in Shenandoah National Park, so NP rates apply.
Rock Scrambling?: no
Free Camping Opportunities?:
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| View from watch tower |
Parking Coordinates: 38.16125, -79.26927
Length: 8.5 miles total (this is an out-and-back)
Difficulty: moderate-strenuous
Payoff: waterfall, vistas, watch tower
Parking Fee?: no
Rock Scrambling?: no
Free Camping Opportunities?: yes, at top by watch tower there is flat space and a fire pit
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| Hightop Mountain vista |
Parking Coordinates: 38.35612, -78.54493
Length: 5.6 miles total (this is an out-and-back hike)
Difficulty: moderate
Payoff: gorgeous views
Parking Fee?: yes - it is in Shenandoah National Park, so NP rates apply.
Rock Scrambling?: no
Free Camping Opportunities?:
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| Casey at the Humpback Rocks overlook |
Parking Coordinates: 37.968386, -78.896785
Length: ~1 mile each way (it can be done as an out-and-back or a slightly longer loop)
Difficulty:moderate-strenuous just because of incline (but there are benches along the way)
Payoff: gorgeous views
Parking Fee?: no
Rock Scrambling?: no
Free Camping Opportunities?:
Humpback rocks is a short, but steep little hike with a payoff of beautiful views. I was less than impressed with the trash that was present at the overlook, leading me to believe that on a pretty weekend day, this is likely a very popular hike. On the bleak, rainy Thursday that I hiked this one, we were the only hikers on the trail. The beginning portion of the trail is wide, steep, and gravel with benches at intervals along the way. The upper portion of the trail gets a bit rockier. We made it from the parking lot to the top and back to the car with a snack break in a bit over an hour.
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| Eastern overlook |
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| Western overlook |
Parking Coordinates: 37.759528,-79.190377
Length: 5.6 miles round trip
Difficulty: easy-moderate
Payoff: beautiful views to both the East and the West
Parking Fee?: no
Rock Scrambling?: only a bit at the top
Free Camping Opportunities?:
Pet Friendly Hike?: yes
Longer Post about Mount Pleasant
This was a fun little hike with gorgeous views. What was unique about this hike was that there were actually two different overlooks, just a few tenths of a mile from one another that looked out in opposite directions. We first hiked this in the winter, and encountered only one other individual while we were there, which made for a nice, quiet experience. The second time we did this, in the early summer, it was also a relatively quiet hike.
Payoff: beautiful views to both the East and the West
Parking Fee?: no
Rock Scrambling?: only a bit at the top
Free Camping Opportunities?:
Pet Friendly Hike?: yes
Longer Post about Mount Pleasant
This was a fun little hike with gorgeous views. What was unique about this hike was that there were actually two different overlooks, just a few tenths of a mile from one another that looked out in opposite directions. We first hiked this in the winter, and encountered only one other individual while we were there, which made for a nice, quiet experience. The second time we did this, in the early summer, it was also a relatively quiet hike.
Old Hotel Trail/Cole Mountain Loop
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| Part of the meadow on the ridge |
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| Boo at an overlook |
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| Boo in the meadow |
Parking Coordinates: 37.759528,-79.190377
Length: 6.4 miles roundtrip
Difficulty: moderate
Payoff: beautiful views in all directions, vast meadow at the top (perfect for lunch or a nice nap)
Parking Fee?: no
Rock Scrambling?: no
Free Camping Opportunities?: yes
Pet Friendly Hike?: yes
Longer Post about Cole Mountain
This is such a fantastic hike. To do it as a loop, park at Hog Camp Gap and take the Hotel trail to the left from where you enter the trail from the parking area. Follow this blue blazed trail until you reach at intersection with the AT. At this point, bear right onto the AT and follow the AT northbound until you reach the meadow. It does seem like you walk a ways along the ridge before you actually reach the meadow. Continue on the AT northbound until it intersects with the road you first came in on. Turn right onto the road and walk uphill along the road for ~.2 miles until you end up back at your car. To shorten the hike, you could just do an out-and-back along the AT. Although the loop isn't particularly short, it's not especially challenging, because most ascents are gradual.
Payoff: beautiful views in all directions, vast meadow at the top (perfect for lunch or a nice nap)
Parking Fee?: no
Rock Scrambling?: no
Free Camping Opportunities?: yes
Pet Friendly Hike?: yes
Longer Post about Cole Mountain
This is such a fantastic hike. To do it as a loop, park at Hog Camp Gap and take the Hotel trail to the left from where you enter the trail from the parking area. Follow this blue blazed trail until you reach at intersection with the AT. At this point, bear right onto the AT and follow the AT northbound until you reach the meadow. It does seem like you walk a ways along the ridge before you actually reach the meadow. Continue on the AT northbound until it intersects with the road you first came in on. Turn right onto the road and walk uphill along the road for ~.2 miles until you end up back at your car. To shorten the hike, you could just do an out-and-back along the AT. Although the loop isn't particularly short, it's not especially challenging, because most ascents are gradual.
Sherando Lake (Lakeside Trail to Yellow Trail to Overlook Rock)
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| Casey and I at the overlook |
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| The trail directly beside the overlook |
Parking Coordinates: 37.920332, -79.006193 (or head to 96 Sherando Lake Road, Lyndhurst VA)
Length: short, but I don't know mileage. Likely less than 1 mile from the parking lot to the top.
Difficulty: moderate (the lakeside trail is easy, but the yellow trail is steep)
Payoff: beautiful views
Parking Fee?: yes. Day use fee to get into the park. $6 for two people. $4 for one.
Rock Scrambling?: no
Free Camping Opportunities?: no, but paid car camping nearby
I used to go to Sherando Lake as a child and was excited for the opportunity to return. This particular trail brought back some memories. It is a short trail, and there are several different paths that hikers can take to end up at the overlook rock. We hiked the lakeside trail from the parking lot (going clockwise around the lake) and made a left at the yellow blazed trail. The yellow blazed trail took us directly to the overlook rock in ~.4 miles. Those .4 miles felt a bit longer because the trail took us upward at a steep grade. From there, we had the option to continue onto the blue trail or retrace our steps. We opted to backtrack down the yellow blazed trail and make a left back onto the lakeside trail, finishing our loop around the lake. The lakeside trail is easy (albeit not handicapped accessible), but the yellow blazed trail added some definite uphill climbing to the mix.
Spy Rock
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| Me on Spy Rock |
Parking Coordinates: 37.841902, -79.131216 (or just drive to 359 Fish Hatchery Ln Montebello, VA and follow the little sign to the lot at the back)
Length: ~3 miles (1.5 miles each way)
Difficulty: moderate
Payoff: beautiful views in all directions
Parking Fee?: no
Rock Scrambling?: yes, to get onto spy rock
Free Camping Opportunities?: yes
Spy rock is a moderate hike with some gorgeous views. The hike begins just past the Montebello fish hatchery (in a little parking lot that you can access via car by driving through the fish hatchery property and following a short, steep gravel road that is marked by a small sign). From the trail access lot, you follow a road (on foot) up the mountain for ~1 mile. There is a point at which the road bears to the left, so make sure you follow the blazes and turn accordingly. While the road is technically vehicle accessible for much of the way, it is on private land and vehicles are not permitted past the parking lot. Following the blue blazes along the side of the road, you will reach the intersection with the appalachian trail in about 1 mile. Follow the white blazed AT for about .4 miles until you reach spy rock. It takes a bit of rock scrambling to actually get on top of the rock, but it is worth it for the view. There is a wide flat expanse that has clearly been used as a campground right at the base of spy rock.
Trayfoot Mountain and Paine Run Loop
Parking Coordinates: 38.206842, -78.749466
Length: 9.5 mile loop
Difficulty: moderate
Payoff: two overlooks (the Blackrock Summit is particularly nice) and some creeks
Parking Fee?: yes, national park entry fee
Rock Scrambling?: yes, to get onto Blackrock Summit; otherwise, no
Free Camping Opportunities?: Camping opportunities with national park entry fee
This was a fun, not-too-popular backpacking loop. The best views were easily from the Blackrock Summit which was a more popular location presumably due to the proximity to the parking area combined with the views. We followed the Hiking Upward directions: https://www.hikingupward.com/SNP/TrayfootMountainPaineRun/
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