appalachian trail – Page 3 – Virginia Trail Guide

Appalachian Trail – Black Horse Gap to Jennings Creek

May 17, 2016June 28, 20176 Comments

This 14.6 mile stretch of Appalachian Trail offers many splendid views as you closely follow the Blue Ridge Parkway.

View the Full Album of Photos From This Hike

Blackhorse Gap to Jennings Creek — Our first overnight backpacking trip of the season allowed us to watch the green of spring creeping its way up the mountainsides.

Day One…

When you are gifted a sunny 75-degree weekend in April, you must snatch it up and go backpacking! At least, that is my belief on the matter. We had just such a weekend in mid-April this year, so we decided to get out there and work on completing some more Virginia Appalachian Trail miles.

We’ve already completed all the miles between Jennings Creek, VA and Harpers Ferry, WV, so we decided to pick up the next section south – Black Horse Gap northbound to Jennings Creek. It was a relatively short route for an overnighter – twelve miles the first day and just three miles the second day. We always try to do about 20 miles on a one-night trip, but access to road crossings for our shuttle drop-off made fifteen miles the best logistical option for this trip.

We looked up shuttle options in our AWOL Guide, and ended up hiring Homer Witcher to give us a ride to our start point. Homer is a great trail ambassador – he’s in his 70s and still finds the time and energy to run on the AT most days. He, his wife, and children are all avid, lifelong hikers – completing multiple section and thru hikes. He told us he and his wife are planning another thru in 2017. We greatly enjoyed talking to him on the ride over to Black Horse Gap.

Walking the Appalachian Trail — The signage for the AT along the Blue Ridge Parkway is nice. Below: Our start point at Black Horse Gap; Adam hikes through a rhododendron thicket; We had nice views through the trees for most of this hike.

About a half hour later, we found ourselves standing along the Blue Ridge Parkway at Black Horse Gap. We found the trail easily and started our northbound walk. Over the first few miles of hiking, the AT crosses the Blue Ridge Parkway a couple times – at Taylors Mountain and Harveys Knob. Both crossings offer panoramic vistas of the valley below. Most of the views in this section include a nice look at Sharp Top, one of the areas most popular mountains for day hiking. The terrain along this stretch of trail could best be described as rolling – there were lots of ups and downs, none dramatic. We passed a large group of Boy Scouts hiking along the trail. They turned out to be pretty much the only people we saw on our hike.

By 12:30, we reached our lunch stop at Bobblets Gap shelter. We ate and assessed our water supply. We knew we’d have another chance to resupply water at around the 8 mile mark, but read that the water source at Bearwallow Gap was iffy and seasonal. I still had over two liters of water, some in my Camelbak and a full Smartwater bottle. Adam filled his Camelbak to three liters and also had a full Smartwater. Our planned campsite at the Cove Mountain Shelter is dry (no spring, no stream) and the closest water source to camp is three miles away in either direction, so we tried to guess how much water we would need to cook and hike the next day. It’s a delicate balance between carrying too much heavy water and not enough, risking dehydration.

After lunch, we leapfrogged the same group of scouts again. They had decided to skip the shelter since they had moms and lunch waiting for them at a road crossing ahead. The post-lunch hiking was decidedly more uphill than the morning hiking. We gradually climbed, crossing the parkway two more times at Peaks of Otter and Mills Gap. At Mills Gap, we were able to get rid of our lunch trash at a roadside trashcan – being able to get rid of garbage is a real treat for any backpacker! We took a rest at Mills Gap, reclining on a picnic table in dappled shade. The temperatures weren’t that hot – maybe high 60’s, but the sun was incredibly strong and relentless through the mostly leafless trees. We both got sunburned despite using sunscreen.

Beautiful Views from the Blue Ridge Parkway — The trail crossed the parkway numerous times – usually near vistas. Below: One of many road crossings with a view; Blooming columbines; A huge retaining wall under the parkway; Bobblets Gap Shelter; Lunch and shelter log; A very dank water source.

After a little more climbing from Mills Gap, we started a nice descent to Bearwallow Gap and the VA43 road crossing. We passed a murky, dank wildlife pond along the way – maybe it’s the bear wallow! At the road crossing, we sat like a pair of hobos under the Blue Ridge Parkway road sign. People driving past looked at us like we were a novelty. There turned out to be plenty of water in the seasonal stream at the crossing, but neither of us had drunk much more water so we decided not to resupply again. That wasn’t the best idea – more about that later!

We crossed VA43 and immediately began the climb up Cove Mountain. Within the first hundred feet there was a sign reminding us about the dry conditions at Cove Mountain Shelter. We still were certain we had plenty of water. As we ascended, I said to Adam “This isn’t bad! The trail looked WAY steeper on the map!” Adam replied, “I hope you’re not jinxing us.” Well, I totally jinxed us. The trail got much steeper and due to past forest fires, we were climbing in direct, unrelenting sunshine at the hottest part of the day. We both went through much more water than we had planned for. I chewed gum to try and preserve what water I had left. We passed a couple small campsites along the ridge of Cove Mountain. We contemplated stopping for the day, but decided to press on to our planned stop.

Climbing Cove Mountain — Cove Mountain (one of several mountains by this name in the Blue Ridge) was the only tough part of the day. Below: Sitting like a hobo at the road crossing; It’s not nice to shoot at hikers; Beginning the climb up Cove Mountain; Campsites along the top of Cove Mountain; Adam gets nice views as we begin the descent to the shelter; Evidence of an old forest fire.

The descent of Cove Mountain was incredibly beautiful. I think the area burned in 2011 or 2012, leaving spectacular open views along the ridgeline. I was thankful for such beautiful, distracting views the last couple miles because my feet were killing me. In addition to not refilling water when we should have, I made the mistake of trying out new gear on a long(ish) hike. For many years, I have hiked in Thorlo thick-cushion hiker socks with a pair of silk sock liners. I don’t get blisters -ever- with that combo. This time, I decided to wear my Darn Tough wool socks. They’re super popular with hikers and were always comfortable for me on day hikes – even long day hikes, but apparently I do need the extra cushioning I get from Thorlos when I’m carrying a heavier pack. Lesson learned – don’t mess with the tried and true, especially when it comes to your feet!

We hobbled into camp around 3:30 – almost 12 miles in about 6 hours included stops for lunch, rest, and photography – not a bad pace for our first trip of the season. We set up camp and spent the remainder of the afternoon reading and napping. Despite being dry, Cove Mountain Shelter is an idyllic spot. The shelter is typical, the privy is new, and there was space for a good number of tents both around and on the ridge above the shelter. Recently, I learned an interesting piece of trivia about the Cove Mountain Shelter from my friend Jeff Monroe (of Wandering Virginia). Apparently, this shelter used to sit at Marble Springs (where we camped on the second night of our Jennings Creek to the James River section). When the area around Marble Springs became designated wilderness, the shelter was moved to its current location on Cove Mountain.

Road Around Mountain — It was neat to see Rt. 43 wrapping around the mountain. Below: The Cove Mountain Shelter; Tents and bear bags.

Before dinner, Adam found a good tree and slung the rope for our bear hang. As we prepared dinner, we rationed out our water, so we’d have enough for breakfast and our second day of hiking. We were both pretty thirsty and wished we had filled up to the maximum at Bearwallow. We even ended up drinking our dishwashing water. Lots of ‘Leave No Trace’ folks always drink their wash water, but it’s also acceptable to broadcast water away from camp. We usually broadcast. But this time, we enjoyed a lovely ‘tea’ flecked with a mélange of buffalo chicken, macaroni and cheese, and crème brulee. Mmmm! Even after conserving water, we really didn’t have much left for both breakfast and tomorrow’s hiking.

As we were finishing dinner, Boy Scouts started rolling into camp – first two, then five more, then another four, then the final three an hour later. We were sure they had come off the trail at VA43. They’d been hiking since 9:30 a.m. – many of them were first time backpackers, a few were first time hikers! The troop was from Roanoke Rapids, NC. They were nice folks, but clearly new to backpacking, as they took the time to remove our bear hang from the tree, thinking it was litter! Adam was not happy about having to get the rope back over the precarious branch, but in the end he agreed it was a little bit funny.

Good Night — We got to watch sunset from the hillside above the shelter. Below: The sun goes down over the Blue Ridge; Enjoying our view!

After dinner, we hiked up the hill behind the shelter to catch sunset. The view was lovely! As soon as the sun went down, it got cold pretty quickly. The dry, breezy conditions precluded a campfire, so we crawled into our tent a little after 8:00 p.m. I fell asleep but was woken several times during the night to sounds of foxes, whippoorwills, and owls! Despite the interruptions, it was a peaceful night and I was so glad to be out in the woods again!

Day Two…

We knew our next day on the trail was going to be quite easy. We woke up early before the Boy Scouts were even stirring. It was quite chilly, so we were probably moving a little faster in the morning to get the blood flowing. We packed away all of our stuff and enjoyed a breakfast of Little Debbie Peanut Butter Pies and coffee. The plan was to have hot granola with Nido, but we didn’t have enough water left to make both hot cereal and coffee, so coffee and cookies won. We left the shelter area and were on our way in a little over an hour. Just about .2 miles away from the shelter, we came to a nice western morning view from the top of Cove Mountain. The trail continued to ascend, but it was hardly noticeable. From camp, the trail ascends about 200 feet in .8 miles. At this point, the trail descends the rest of the way. We were impressed with the views through the trees along the way.

View from Cove Mountain — A couple tenths of a mile past camp, we got a nice view from Cove Mountain. Below: Tents in the morning sun; Adam hikes along the Appalachian Trail; Christine descends toward Jennings Creek.

The trail on the descent was easy walking for the most part. The trail had just a few longer switchbacks on it, but it was a nice, peaceful walk in the woods. It was just a short amount of time before we could hear the sound of water from Jennings Creek and around 3.2 miles we were back at Jennings Creek Road. We took a right and crossed over the creek for some picturesque creek scenes before getting to our car on the left side of the road.

Descending to Jennings Creek — Adam makes his way downhill through the evergreens. Below: Pretty Jennings Creek; The parking area at the AT crossing; We saw zebras on the way home.

We had previously planned to get to Sonic in Waynesboro for a celebratory lunch and a stop at Rockfish Gap Outfitter’s Anniversary Sale (where I got a new Osprey Atmos pack), but arriving at the car around 9 a.m., we knew we had some time to kill. We decided to stop on our way at the Virginia Safari Park near Lexington. If you are a fan of animals, this is a must-see place to visit. We drove through the loop (we could even see rhinos through the window) with a bucket of feed while zebras, emus, alpacas, elk, and yaks tried to rip it from our hands. After driving through the loop, we also walked through their other exhibits, where we could see giraffes at eye level, walk among kangaroos, and see other animals through cages – tigers, hyenas, and monkeys. I believe this was our third time visiting and there are always new additions every time we visit.

This section of the Appalachian Trail has some wonderful scenery on it. If you are looking for a shorter, overnight trip with lots of views along the way, this hike won’t disappoint – just plan for water.

Trail Notes

Distance – 14.6 miles
Check out the stats from Map My Hike [Day 1] [Day 2]*
Elevation Change – 1650 ft.
Difficulty – 3. This was a pretty easy backpacking route. It was perfect for our first outing of the season and gentle injury recovery.
Trail Conditions – 4. The trail was in typical Appalachian Trail shape for this part of Virginia – well maintained and nicely graded.
Views – 5. There are many fantastic viewpoints along this route. Most of them come from overlooks along the Blue Ridge Parkway – which you’ll cross multiple times on this route.
Streams/Waterfalls – 0. This is a quite dry stretch of trail. There is a small, low-flow spring at Bobblets Gap and a seasonal stream at Bearwallow Gap. There is NO WATER SOURCE at the Cove Mountain Shelter, so plan ahead.
Wildlife – 3. We saw several deer and had a barred owl and a whippoorwill in camp.
Ease to Navigate – 4. The trail is well marked and easy to follow. There are road crossings and several other trail junctions, but the white blazes are easy to follow in most places.
Solitude – 3. We actually saw very few people on this hike considering the beautiful weather and its proximity to the parkway.

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.

Download a Trail Map (PDF)

Directions to trailhead: To drop off first car: Take exit 168 off of I-81 toward Arcadia, VA. Turn on to State Route 614/Arcadia Road off the exit. Arcadia Road becomes Jennings Creek Road. After 4.5 miles, you will see a large gravel parking lot after crossing Jennings Creek and you will see a sign for where the Appalachian Trail crosses. Park in this lot. Coordinates 37.529352, -79.622693 To drop off second car and start your hike: Continue down Jennings Creek Road from where you parked (not arriving the way you came). In 1.8 miles, turn right on to State Route 618/McFalls Creek Road. Go 4.1 miles and then turn right on to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Follow this for 8.6 miles until you reach the small pulloff on the right side for Black Horse Gap. With not much space here for a vehicle, you will likely want to park along the side of the road. Just a few feet on the fire road, you will see the sign for the Appalachian Trail junction. Coordinates: 37.424611, -79.757202. Head right and start on the trail.

Appalachian Trail – Ashby Gap to Bears Den Rocks (The Roller Coaster)

March 7, 2016November 17, 201612 Comments

This 13.5 mile Appalachian Trail section includes quite a bit of the infamous AT ‘Roller Coaster’. The trail is rocky and the ups and downs are pretty constant. There are two nice viewpoints along the route, good camping spots/shelters, water sources, and a finish at Bears Den Hostel.

View the Full Album of Photos From This Hike

View from Bears Den Rocks — The view from Bears Den Rocks is a fitting finale for this section.

Adam Says…

The infamous “Roller Coaster”…. for years we have heard of how tough this stretch of the Appalachian Trail is and this was our chance to experience the grueling ups and downs that gives this section its epithet. We have previously covered 3.9 miles of the northern section of the Roller Coaster in our coverage of the AT from Harper’s Ferry to Bear’s Den. The distance between the southern and northern terminus signs marking the Roller Coaster covers 13.4 miles. From looking at elevation maps, we realized that most of the ups and downs are in the section between Bears Den and the Rod Hollow Shelter. There are about 10 significant climbs along the Roller Coaster that range from 250-450 feet of climbing (and typically over just about a quarter of a mile). This is a great section of trail if you want to get in shape. Since there aren’t a lot of views along the trail, you will find a lot of hikers on the trail are either trying to cover AT miles or are training for long-distance hikes or longer trail runs.

We dropped off our first car at Bears Den Hostel and paid our $3 day-use parking fee. We had arranged for a shuttle to pick us up and he was there within a minute of us arriving. Many times on the trail, you meet interesting people – he was a business consultant, counselor for people with drug addictions, and a school bus driver (and finds times to shuttle hikers). When we heard about how he balanced everything in his life, we were truly amazed. He dropped us off on the side of the road on US50 and we found the white blaze to head north on the Appalachian Trail.

Golden Woods — The woods were beautiful and golden along our route. Below: It would be nice if hikers didn’t leave hitch-hiking signs (trash) in the woods; Adam passes along an old stone wall; Some trees were still brilliantly colored – even at the end of October.

We pushed into the woods and soon the sounds of speeding cars was behind us. We started off with a gradual climb. We were hiking near the end of the peak of fall color, so looking all around we saw brilliant colors of yellow and orange in the trees around us. One of the challenges of hiking after many leaves have fallen is that it can make it difficult to ensure you are still on the trail. We were able to navigate easily with all the white blazes on the trees marking the AT, but retrace your steps if you don’t see any for a while. Early on this section, you come across a couple of streams at 1.4, 2.0, and 2.8 miles. At 3.6 miles, we reached the side trail for the Rod Hollow Shelter (.1 miles west of the trail). We wanted to eat a snack, so we made our way to the shelter to find the small shelter, as well as a covered picnic table for overnight campers to cook food away from where they sleep. The shelter also has a privy and a piped spring left of the shelter if you need a reliable water source.

Heading back to the trail, we continued north and at 4.2 miles, we reached the sign marking the southern end of the Roller Coaster. We knew we had some significant work ahead of us for the rest of the way. The first hill rose up steeply and descended to a spring at Bolden Hollow. At the bottom, I tweaked my knee – ugh! This gave me shooting pains for the rest of the trail. I knew I had to decide to push on to the end of the hike or turn around and bail. I decided to put on a knee brace (I always keep one in my pack) to give it some support. This helped for about half a mile, but the pain was almost unbearable. Every step was filled with pain that was begging me to give up. I just thought of all the amazing thru-hikers that fight through pain on most days of the trail and decided I wasn’t going to let myself surrender. We pushed onward and upward, reaching the next peak at 6.3 miles. At 7.1 miles, we reached a footbridge that goes over Morgan Mill Stream and also has a small campsite off to the side. We stopped here for an extended break to eat some lunch. At 7.6 miles, we reached the gravel road known as Morgan Mill Road. Crossing the road, there is a slight up and down before reaching another stream at 8.3 miles.

Rocky Climbs on the Roller Coaster — Much of the roller coaster was quite rocky! Below: Rod Hollow Shelter; You are about to enter the Roller Coaster; Descending one of the roller coaster’s hills.

After a mostly level part of the trail (relatively speaking), we then began to ascend up Buzzard Hill. Near the top, we took a small side trail that led us up to a nice viewpoint. I rested a bit on a tree overlooking the valley and then we proceeded back to the main trail. The trail descends steeply from Buzzard Hill and now for overcompensating for my one knee, my other started to hurt. Time to put on another knee brace (from Christine’s pack this time). We made it to another stream (yes, lots of water sources on this trail) and rose up another steep section to get to Sam Moore Shelter at 9.7 miles. We stopped for a snack and another rest before making the final push. I knew there was only one more major hill before the last push up to Bears Den, which gave me a small glimmer of hope.

We pushed up the next ascent, which then descends to another stream at 11.0 miles. Another small bump of a climb was ahead and we came to another footbridge at 12.2 miles. From here, it was just about .5 miles of a steep climb that led to Bears Den rocks. We took some time to enjoy the views from the rocks. So many people just drive to Bears Den and take the short trail to the rocks to enjoy the gorgeous views; but today, we truly earned it. I took a little time to reflect on how I battled through this pain and I can’t believe I made it. We took the trail leading us off the AT and to the Bears Den hostel. We went down the gravel road and made it back to our car. It was an exhausting day.

Overall, if it wasn’t for my injury, I don’t think the Roller Coaster is as hard as most people make it out to be. It does have lots of ups and downs and you may wonder why they didn’t make the trail go around some of these hills instead of up every one of them. The ascents and descents are relatively short, so you don’t have to do a grueling 5 mile climb up one steep mountain. If you are in good hiking shape, you should be able to handle the elevation. I would also recommend going in the peak of fall color – while there aren’t a ton of views until the end, the forest through this area is pretty when filled with color.

Christine Says…

Our hike of this section is significant because it closed a gap in our continuous Appalachian Trail miles! We’ve now hiked an unbroken 265 miles from Harpers Ferry to a road crossing south of Bryant Ridge Shelter (near Lexington, VA). We still have many, many miles to go, but 265 miles makes a noticeable mark on a trail map! Our tentative plan is to start working on the miles in southern Virginia later this spring, but with an elderly pet we don’t like to leave behind and a case of ankle tendinitis, I’m not sure how far we’ll get this year.

The roller coaster terrain wasn’t as challenging as I expected it to be. The hills were mostly small and short, and there is doubtlessly tougher terrain many places along the trail. I think the section’s harsh reputation might come from a couple things. First, climbing uphill feels like it should come with a reward in form of a vista; you climb uphill – you earn a view! On the roller coaster, the ups and downs mostly happen a tunnel of forest with nothing particularly noteworthy to see. Hikers call terrain like this PUDs – short for pointless ups and downs. They can be a little demotivating. I mean, honestly, if there is nothing to see at the top of a mountain, you may as well walk around it rather than over it! Second, I think most thru-hikers are ready to get out of Virginia by the time they reach the roller coaster. After 500+ miles in the state some hikers are feeling emotional doldrums known as the Virginia Blues, and the ups and downs just add to the tedium.

Pretty Spot to Eat Lunch — A pretty spot to eat lunch along Morgan Mill Stream. Below: A nice campsite along the stream; Another stream crossing; A burned area provided some more open views.

But, we’re not thru-hikers, so the hike of the roller coaster was just another fun day on the trail for us. I wish Adam hadn’t been in so much pain for most of the hike. At a road crossing, I suggested he bail out. I offered to run ahead and come back with the car to get him. I give him a ton of credit for gutting it out and hiking through the pain. He really didn’t want to miss any of the miles. You never know what you’ll see along the AT – even the most mundane miles can bring unexpected sites and experiences. For example, on this section we passed the 1,000 mile marker! It was just a plain sign stuck to an unremarkable tree, but still a memorable site to pass by.

The view from Buzzard Hill was a nice surprise on this hike. Our AWOL guide marked Bears Den as the only view along the way. (note: each vista worth seeing is typically marked with a camera icon in the guidebook). According to AWOL’s opinion, Buzzard Hill didn’t warrant a camera icon. I would disagree – the view was definitely worth a stop and the big dead tree on the rocky outcropping was fun to climb on. We took a long, restful break at the spot.

Another noteworthy thing we passed on the route was a glimpse through the trees of Mount Weather Emergency Operations Center. We could see a firing range and several large buildings in the compound. The center is a major relocation site for the highest level of civilian and military officials in case of national disaster. On 9/11, many members of congress were evacuated to this spot. It’s interesting that such a key feature of our national security lies so close to the trail!

Old Tree on Buzzard Hill — Buzzard Hill had a nice view. Below: More views; Sam Moore shelter: Snacks and our AWOL page for this hike.

By the time we got to Sam Moore shelter, both of us were vaguely wishing we had done this stretch as an overnight. We had originally considered making it our last backpacking trip of the season, especially since there were so many nice camping spots and water sources along the route. But the weather was chilly and there was rain in the forecast, so we opted for a hot meal and the comfort of our own bed.

We arrived at Bears Den around 3:00. We took photos and spent some time enjoying the last weekend of peak fall color. Eventually, we hobbled back to our car and headed back toward home. On the way, we stopped at Woodstock Brewery for beer and flatbread pizzas. It was Halloween, and the brewery staff was dressed in elaborate costumes. My favorite was probably the bartender dressed as a squirrel. One of their beers is called ‘Tipsy Squirrel’, so the costume was especially fitting. I joked that we were dressed up as smelly, tired hikers — which was not far from the truth!

Christine climbing on Bears Den Rocks. Below: Our last big descent on the Roller Coaster before reaching Bears Den; The 1000 mile marker on the AT; One last stream crossing.

Trail Notes

Distance – 13.5 miles
(Check out the stats from Map My Hike)*
Elevation Change – 3200 ft.
Difficulty – 4.5. The trail has lots of ups and downs and this is a long distance, but is great for training for longer distance hikes.
Trail Conditions – 4. The trail was well-maintained. A lot of the Roller Coaster is rocky, so it makes for some careful footing.
Views – 4. The views from Buzzard Hill are decent, but the best views are from Bears Den rocks.
Streams/Waterfalls – 3.5. Most of the streams aren’t scenic, but there are lots of them which provides great water sources.
Wildlife – 2. There wasn’t a lot of larger wildlife on the trail, but we did see some deer and a fence lizard at Buzzard Hill.
Ease to Navigate – 3.5. Leaves on the ground made this tougher. The confusing parts of the trail were finding the trail leaving the summit of Buzzard Hill and finding the right path leaving Bears Den rocks back to the hostel.
Solitude – 3. For most of this section of trail, we rarely came across anyone. Bears Den rocks should have lots of people enjoying the views.

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.

Download a Trail Map (PDF)

Directions to trailhead: First car: The Bears Den Hostel is located near VA-7, almost halfway between Berryville and Purcellville. From Berryville, take VA-7 East for about 8 miles before turning right on SR-601. Go .5 miles and turn right (you will see a sign on the right for Bears Den). Go .5 miles down the gravel road until you reach the parking lot. Leave one car here for your finish to your hike. Coordinates: 39.110111, -77.853890. Second Car: From Bears Den, head from the parking lot back to SR-601. Take a right and follow SR-601/Blue Ridge Mountain Road for 10.5 miles until you reach US-50. Turn right and park the second car on the side of the road. The AT crossing is just west of the “School Bus Stop 1000 feet” sign. Coordinates: 39.017014, -77.964454

Appalachian Trail – Ashby Gap to Front Royal

January 19, 2016January 19, 20167 Comments

This 21.2 mile route along the Appalachian Trail crosses Sky Meadows State Park and the G. Richard Thompson Wildlife Management Area. There are a couple nice vistas along the way, but it is mostly a quiet, wooded walk. This section of the trail has three shelters – one of the most luxurious (Jim & Molly Denton) and one of the oddest/smallest (Dicks Dome). Christine is going to cover the first day and Adam will pick up the second.

View the Full Album of Photos From This Hike

The View from Sky Meadows — If you take the Ambassador Whitehead Trail off the Appalachian Trail in Sky Meadows, you will get some nice views of the Piedmont. Below: Adam crosses the four lanes of Route 50; Making our way uphill to the high point of Sky Meadows; Once you finish climbing, you clear the woods and come out into the open fields of Sky Meadows State Park.

Day One (6 miles total – 4.8 on the Appalachian Trail and 1.2 walking around Sky Meadows State Park)…

Most typical couples want to spend their anniversary in a cozy bed & breakfast inn or possibly out for a fancy multi-course dinner. Not us — we go backpacking — especially when we’re given a sunny weekend in the middle of peak fall color season! We took a Friday off of work so we could have two nights out on the trail. I was coming off a knee injury, so we picked a section with gentle terrain and several shelters/campsites spaced to allow for shorter mileage each day. The section between Ashby Gap and Front Royal fit the bill perfectly. It was also a good chunk of miles we hadn’t hiked before.

To make transportation easier, we hired a shuttle driver for this trip. None of the recommended shuttle drivers listed in our AWOL Guide were available, so we turned to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy’s list of shuttles. ‘Sharon’s Shuttles’ was prompt and affordable. The mother-daughter team has been shuttling hikers for over a decade now. We also arranged for a parking spot at the Mountain Home Bed & Breakfast in Front Royal. For just a couple bucks a day, Mountain Home will give you safe, off-road parking spot at their inn. (There is a small AT lot on Rt. 522, but we don’t recommend leaving a car there overnight.) Mountain Home also has a clean, well-equipped hiker hostel! The proprietors are past thru-hikers, so they’re a great source of information for the trail and the local Front Royal area.

Views from Sky Meadows — Pretty views at our lunch spot. Below: It’s nice to have a table to sit at for lunch; Leaving the high meadows area of the park; Hickory Tussock caterpillar.

We met our shuttle driver at the inn around 10 a.m. She drove us the 20 miles to our start point at Ashby Gap. As she pulled into the parking area above Ashby Gap, she said ‘I’m going to drop you off here because someone left a headless deer at the other end of the parking lot’. Gross! I am glad she gave us the warning because that is not something I want to see! I imagine the headless deer had a nice set of antlers that somebody wanted to keep. 😦

By 11:00 a.m., we were on our way! We followed a short spur trail from the parking area downhill to its junction with the Appalachian Trail. Headed south, we reached the busy road crossing of Rt. 50 after just several hundred feet. Cars were zipping by at 55+mph, so we made a run for it as soon as it was safe. After crossing the highway, we had a steady 1.75 mile climb up to the high point of Sky Meadows State Park. Most AT hikers probably walk across the high meadows of the park without detouring, but we decided to turn onto the Ambassador Whitehead Trail and enjoy a scenic view while we ate our packed lunch. At the viewpoint, there was a picnic table and a nice look down into a valley dotted with farm houses. I had been warm enough hiking in short sleeves, but as soon as we stopped I got cold really quickly. The brisk wind across the open meadow was enough that I pulled out my down jacket!

After lunch, we hiked the remaining mile within Sky Meadows, crossing into the G. Richard Thompson Wildlife Management Area. Near a trailside campsite, our paths crossed with two young guys hunting small game. They came out of the thick woods, and totally startled us. They were friendly enough, but it was pretty obvious they were mostly out to smoke pot and drink beer rather than actually hunt! As we walked along, we passed thick tangle of old grape vines. Some of the vines still had bunches of grapes. I tried a couple – they were very sour!

Tangles of Vines and Weeds in the Wildlife Management Area — The G. Richard Thompson Wildlife Management area. You can probably make out some of the old grape vines in this photo. Below: Arriving at Dicks Dome; The rickety bridge across Whiskey Hollow stream; The shelter is small and oddly shaped.

We descended from higher, more open areas back into the woods. Over the last mile of trail before reaching our first campsite at Dicks Dome, we passed under power-lines and crossed a shallow spring. A small sign marked the spur trail to the shelter. The path was heavily covered with leaves and a little hard to follow. It looked like no one had passed by in days. Dicks Dome sits almost a third of a mile off the AT. A rickety, sagging bridge takes hikers across across Whiskey Hollow stream to the front of Dicks Dome Shelter. The shelter is a tiny, geodesic dome that might comfortably sleep three people. It was built by a scout group in 1987 and has seen better days. It’s so run down and small that the PATC is currently working on building a new shelter uphill from the dome. When it’s complete, it will be called Whiskey Hollow Shelter.

When we’re out backpacking, we leave the shelter space for thru-hikers and sleep in a tent. We spent some time looking around the shelter area for a decent tent site. There was nothing – everything flat was mucky and wet and everything else was on a slope. Because of the lack of tent sites, we ended up setting up camp on the completed deck of the unfinished shelter. There were no signs saying ‘keep out’ or ‘do not use’, so we figured the deck would be the easiest and most comfortable place to pitch our tent.

It was still really early in the afternoon – maybe 2:30, so we set up camp and filtered water. I took a nap while Adam read a book. Around 4:30, we collected a stack of small firewood so we could have a campfire that evening. The new shelter had a nice firepit with benches around it! We relaxed, played cards, and made spaghetti for dinner. As the sun sank lower in the sky, the temperature dropped quickly. What had been a warm, pleasant day turned into a cold night. We started our campfire and tried to stay warm!

Campfire — Our little campfire next to the shelter. A nice fire ring and benches were already there. Below: Our camping deck; The woods around the new shelter site were lovely; Cards at camp.

We climbed into our tent around 8:30. It was already completely dark, and we wanted to put the fire out completely before it got too late. We knew the nighttime lows on this trip were going to be unseasonably cold, so we had both borrowed 0 degree sleeping bags from the Adventure Program at JMU. Isn’t that a great work perk? I was able to rent a nice-quality Big Agnes bag for just a few dollars! We normally don’t backpack when it’s cold, so we both just have summer bags rated for 32 degrees. I’m a cold sleeper, so I knew it wouldn’t be enough to keep me warm on this trip. I was thankful I had rented the bag… because it was COLD! I slept in a hat, gloves, thick socks, and a silk baselayer. I was comfortable and warm enough. It took me a while to fall asleep, but I eventually did. I think I ended up sleeping over ten hours that night. I guess that’s what happens when you sleep and wake by the natural light!

Day Two (15.2 miles)…

We woke up in the cold at the first sign of daylight and made a warm breakfast of granola, Nido, and hot drinks (coffee for Christine and cider for me). We packed up everything quickly and made our way back on the trail. Some people like to have a leisurely morning when backpacking, but we like to be up at sunrise and back on the trail as soon as possible. The cold helped us get moving quickly since we knew we would warm up once the blood started flowing.

From Dicks Dome, we had only had a few tenths of a mile before we were back on the AT. The hike started off with some ups and downs, enough to get my blood going enough that I wanted to take off my outer fleece. After 2.5 miles, we reached a junction with the Trico Tower spur trail which leads to a communication tower. From this junction the trail descended a bit and at 3.2 miles, we passed a reliable spring. While a lot of the hiking in the morning was uneventful, we marveled at how beautiful the trees looked in the fall. The ground was covered with color and the sun shining through the tree tapestry gave us a reminder that the hard work of carrying packs was worth it.

At 4.5 miles, we reached the Manassas Gap Shelter. It was a little early for lunch, but we decided to stop and eat since we knew there was a reliable spring and a table to cook. We combined a macaroni & cheese meal with a buffalo chicken meal and topped it with bacon to make a glorious warm lunch. Once we had stopped, we could feel the chill of the wind, so it was back into our outer layers while we stopped. After resting a bit at the shelter, we pushed on.

A sign and a short spur trail led out to Barringer Point. The view was mostly obstructed. Below: Adam hikes along the trail; Old stone walls; Passing under I-66.

Descending from Manassas Gap, we came upon a large stone wall at 5.5 miles, which skirted the trail for a good distance. The trail continued to descend and we reached Tuckers Lane at 6.8 miles, which had some parking for the trail. Here, we hung a left and passed some houses with people doing yard work. I’m sure they are used to seeing lots of hikers, but it would strike me funny to see people coming out of the woods often right across from my house. You walk along the road for a while until you pass underneath I-66. The loudness of all the traffic made me feel eager to escape back into the wilderness. At 7 miles, you cross US-50 and continue on to a footbridge to stay on the AT. You pass over some railroad tracks before your hike begins a steep ascent.

At the top of the ascent, the trail opens up to a beautiful grassy bald with a bench at the top of the hill. The views were somewhat obstructed, but this is a nice stop for a picturesque scene. My guess is that a lot of people park at Tuckers Lane and do this as a short out-and-back of about 2 miles, a nice spot for a picnic. Due to the cold wind whipping along the bald, we didn’t stay but a minute. At the top of the ascent, the AT enters the woods and descends again. On the descent down, the trail did open up through some gorgeous farmland. We walked along the trail and enjoyed the views – the scenery exemplifies Virginia mountains and farmland. At 8.8 miles, we reached VA 638. We crossed the road and rock-hopped a small stream at 8.9 miles.

A Meadow View — The nice view after Tuckers Lane. Below: Train tracks near I-66, Some color along the trail; Rolling landscape.

At 10 miles, we arrived at the Jim & Molly Denton Shelter around 2:30 p.m. The temperatures were supposed to rise more that day, but the heavy cloud cover and brisk wind kept it from warming up at all during the day. Our plan was to stop for the night here and we found a nice campsite away from the shelter. This shelter is one of the plushest we’ve seen along the trail – it has a solar shower, separate cooking pavilion, nice Adirondack chairs, and even horseshoes to keep you entertained. We stopped for a snack before working on setting up camp. There, we met a very nice lady by the trailname of Puddles. She had thru-hiked the trail several years ago. We struck up a long conversation with her and loved her outlook on life; she has had a lot of trials in her life, but her positive attitude and love of nature keep her going.

The temperatures were dropping quickly while we ate our snack. With the foreboding skies and whipping wind, we knew we were going to be in for an even colder night. I really didn’t feel that the sleeping bags we rented were any warmer than what we personally owned (I know bags are often debated about how warm they stay with the gear-reviewing community). We talked it through and felt it may be best to try and push on to see if we could make the rest of the trip before it got dark. It was a shame to leave such a perfect spot, but we felt it was the best decision. As we had lollygagged a bit, we knew we needed to get going right away.

Descending the AT — On our way to the third shelter along this section. Below: Passing through a fence opening; The Jim and Molly Denton shelter (check out the full photo album to see more photos of this luxurious stop!); The Mosby Campground.

From the Denton Shelter, the trail was a gradual uphill. We passed a powerline at 11.1 miles and then arrived at the spur trail for the Mosby campsite at 11.8 miles. Christine checked out the campsite while I waited on the trail. She came back and talked about how nice and spacious the campsite looked. What I didn’t know was that Christine wanted to camp here for the night because her knee was hurting and she wasn’t sure she had any more miles left in her. However, I didn’t pick up on her subtle signals and suggested we move along. When we’re backpacking, we both reach a threshold somewhere between 10-12 miles when things start being less fun for both of us. When you’re a weekend backpacker, you never really get the chance to build up the trail legs you need to easily carry a pack 15-20 miles a day.

At 12 miles, we crossed a forest service road. The trail stayed level for a while before a long descent that leads to Bear Hollow Creek. The sound of the creek was nice to hear and we soon came across a large fence to our right of the trail. This serves as the boundary for the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute land, an area used to preserve and study animals. We kept hoping to see elephants or cheetahs through the chain-link fence (not that they necessarily house any), but nothing was to be seen. We knew we were at the end of the trail as we reached this fence area and at 15.2 miles for this day, we reached US 522. We took a left on the road and reached Mountain Home in a short distance. We shambled into our car totally drained. We made our way to Spelunkers in Front Royal, our favorite place for a burger and shake after a long hike in the nearby area. We knocked off another section of the AT in Virginia and that is something we were proud of as we slurped up the last remnant of shake from the bottom of our cups.

Walking along the fenceline of the Smithsonian Conservation facility. Below: Back at Mountain Home B&B; Their cute hiker hostel; The inside of the hostel is clean and well-equipped.

Trail Notes

Distance – 21.2 miles
(Check out the stats from Map My Hike [Day One] [Day Two – Part 1] [Day Two – Part 2])*
Elevation Change – 3717 ft.
Difficulty – 3. The (unexpected) distance we covered on the second day was challenging, but overall this was a relatively easy backpacking trip.
Trail Conditions – 4. The trail was in great shape with pleasant, non-rocky conditions.
Views – 3. We had nice views from Sky Meadows State Park and then some slightly obstructed field views on the second day.
Streams/Waterfalls – 2. There were only a couple very small streams on this section. They were sufficient as a water source, but not that scenic.
Wildlife – 2. We saw one deer on the second day, but that’s about it!
Ease to Navigate – 4. The White Blazes are frequent and easy to follow.
Solitude – 2. We saw relatively few people along the section. We saw two people hunting small game in the wildlife management area. There were two weekenders and one SOBO thru-hiker at the shelter.

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.

Download a Trail Map (PDF)

Directions to trailhead: To get to Mountain Home, take exit 13 off I-66W to get on VA-55W. Turn right on to VA-55W and follow it for 4.7 miles. Turn left on to US-522S and go 3.5 miles until you turn on to Remount Avenue and reach Mountain Home. To get to Ashby Gap from Mountain Home, head back on US-522 and now go north. In 3.5 miles, take a right on to VA-55E and follow that back to I-66. Head east on I-66 from 9.1 miles before taking exit 23/US-17N. Turn left on 55-E and go .5 miles before turning left on US-17N. Follow US-17N for 7.1 miles. Turn left on to US-50W and go 1.1 miles. Turn right on 601/Blue Ridge Mountain Road. About 1 mile up the road, you will see a small gravel parking lot on the left to park.

Mount Monroe (NH)

November 29, 2015September 4, 20182 Comments

Introductory Guide to Visiting the White Mountains

Mount Monroe is the fourth tallest peak in New Hampshire’s Presidential range. You can hike to its summit from the valley floor – the Ammonoosuc Ravine trail is the most popular route – or you can make it an easy day hike by driving the auto road and starting from the summit of Mount Washington. This option makes a 3.8 mile hike with just 1,343 of climbing. It’s a laid back way to visit this area with minimal effort.

View the Full Album of Photos From This Hike

Mount Monroe Summit — Clouds cleared as we stood on the Mount Monroe summit. From the top of Monroe we could see the weather towers atop Washington.

Adam Says…

We hiked just about every day on our vacation, and hiking in the Adirondacks and the White Mountains usually involves tough climbs along granite-filled pathways. We wanted to do one of the mountains in the Presidential Range in New Hampshire, but our bodies were asking something easy. So, we decided to drive up to Mount Washington and hike down and over to Mount Monroe.

We got an early start to try and beat the traffic and crowds on the slow-going Mount Washington Auto Road. The drive up can be a harrowing experience. As you are skirting the edges of precipitous drops, you are praying that another car isn’t coming down the mountain (another reason to get an early start). The views are breathtaking on a clear day, but the driver may have to focus on the road more than the scenery.

Descending the Crawford Path — We made our way down the Crawford Path/AT from Mt. Washington. You can see the area is extremely popular on pleasant summer days. Below: Adam at the Crawford Path; One of the Lakes of the Clouds Croo members carries supplies; MWOBS equipment in the fog.

We found our way to the weather observatory building and found the white blaze which signified the Appalachian Trail (here called the Crawford Path). The fog was thick on the mountain as it often is. We made our way descending on the Crawford Path, following the cairns that guided us down a path off the summit. There are people that have gotten lost and died on this mountain and I can understand why. With limited visibility a person could easily miss a cairn. Add the high winds and quick weather changes and this can truly be a dangerous place. We had enough visibility to see the next cairn ahead and once we were off the highest parts of the mountains, we had better visibility of the trail. At .2 miles, we came to a sign that showed that we had 1.4 miles to the Lakes of the Clouds hut, one of several huts maintained by the Appalachian Mountain Club.

The descent was very rocky and slow-going, but we managed to make it to Lakes of the Clouds fairly quickly. The fog had us completely socked in and we couldn’t even see Mount Monroe when we arrived. Lakes of the Clouds is probably our favorite of the huts in the White Mountains. The remoteness of the hut, the serenity of the mountain-top lakes, and the views of the valley and Mount Washington make this such an amazing experience. We ate some lunch inside the hut and decided to wait a while. We eventually got some glimpses of Mount Monroe from inside the hut. The clouds started to blow off somewhat. At one point, I told Christine that I thought we should make an attempt to reach the summit. My thought was if the clouds continued to blow, we may get a glimpse of views from the summit. So, we gathered our gear and hiked up in the fog. The wind had picked up, but we were hoping this was a good thing as it would carry some fog off with it.

Hut Comes into View — The hut comes into view. Below: Lakes of the Clouds Hut with Mount Monroe looming in the background; Christine arrives at the hut; Inside the hut… it was surprisingly uncrowded!

The hike up Mount Monroe was steep but only a short few tenths of a mile. We got to the top (the summit marker is only a small metal nub sticking up from a rock) and within minutes the clouds began to part and we got gorgeous views down below. We timed our trip perfectly and there was only two other people at the top. Our ability to see views for a while seemed to rotate in patches around the mountain as clouds continued to pass. It eventually opened up all around us and we were glad we made the break for it when we did. After taking an ample number of photos, we descended back to Lakes of the Clouds and then back up to Mount Washington. The fog got thicker again as we made our way back to the summit of Mount Washington. We posed for our ceremonious summit photo and then got back to our car to descend back down the mountain.

Christine Says…

Many people think a hike only counts if you start from the bottom of the mountain. Call me a cheater, but I don’t care! This summer, we took the auto road to the top of Mount Washington so we could enjoy exploring the alpine zone without doing all the work. In 2013, we hiked up the Ammonoosuc Ravine and on to the summit of Washington. On that trip, we skipped summiting Mount Monroe due to time constrictions. This trip gave us a chance to make up for what we missed!

Climbing Mt. Monroe — Adam makes his way up Mt. Monroe. Below: Climbing the mountainside; Tiny people perched on an outcropping; Christine near the summit.

All week long, we had been checking the MWOBS higher summits forecast. Thursday, August 7 looked like it would be the best chance – with clearing skies, calm winds, and warm temperatures. We paid our toll and made our way to the top. The auto road has been open since 1861 and climbs 4,618 feet over 7.6 miles. It’s a beautiful drive with great views for much of the way – only problem… we were in the clouds! Our clear day turned out to be not-so-clear at all! Every now and then, the veil would thin enough that we could make out the hulking shapes of Clay, Adams and Madison across the gulf.

We were both a little disappointed with the clouds, but you never know how the weather is going to change on Mount Washington. We pushed forward with hopes for clearing skies.

From the summit buildings, we looked for white blazes and found our way to the marker for the Crawford Path (which is also the Appalachian Trail in this part of the state). From there, we hiked 1.5 miles to Lakes of the Clouds Hut. The trail is all rocks and is marked with a combination of cairns and blazes. The clouds were so thick it was almost like walking through white cotton candy. The oddest part was the warmth and utter windlessness of the day. I’ve never been in the Presidentials on a dead calm day. I think the lack of a breeze was a big part of the reason the clouds were able to linger on the summits for such a long time.

Even in full cloud cover, the terrain of the mountain is incredibly beautiful! It feels almost other-worldly. Eventually, the clouds cleared enough that we could make out Lakes of the Clouds Hut in the distance. There were many, many people scrambling both up and down the mountain. It’s definitely earned the nickname ‘Lakes of the Crowds’. Adam and I decided to hang out in the hut for a while and see if we could outlast the clouds -they did seem to be thinning.

Lakes of the Clouds — The lake was even prettier on the hike back. Below: Climbing back up Mount Washington with Monroe in the background; Christine takes a final look back; The cog tracks at the Washington summit.

As we sat at one of the long tables, we saw the side of Mount Monroe emerge from the clouds. If we were going to get a view, our time was now! We made the short half-mile climb to the top of Monroe. Although the mountain is a short, easy climb from Lakes of the Clouds, it’s still New Hampshire’s fourth tallest peak at 5,384 feet. The summit was still in the clouds when we got to the top. But as we sat on the summit, a breeze picked up and within a matter of five minutes the view had completely opened.

We could see Mount Washington with the observatory towers on top. We saw Franklin and Pierce off in the distance. We could see the cog station and the grand Mount Washington Hotel. We could even see tiny hikers walking the Appalachian Trail below the summit. It was breathtaking!

After a while, the clouds started to filter back in. I was so grateful they opened for the briefest few minutes for us to enjoy! We made our way back down to the hut, which had emptied out of the crowds from just 45 minutes earlier. I guess everyone took advantage of the same opening in the weather! We snacked on cake made by the Croo and then set out to climb back up Mt. Washington.

On the way back up the mountain, the cotton candy clouds dropped over us once again. By the time we reached the top of Washington, they had partially cleared off again. We had our photo taken at the summit marker. We spent a little time in the summit building, too. Over the summer, they completely renovated the weather observatory museum. It’s really nice and spacious, but they took away a few of our favorite exhibits – including the funny video of people trying to eat breakfast in famous Mount Washington winds.

The high summits went in and out of the clouds all day, but I still think we chose the best day of the week to visit. Other days had thunderstorms and hail. Compared to that, passing cloud cover is no problem! All in all, we ended up hiking about 4 miles with 1,350 feet of climbing. It was a fun and easy way to visit a challenging mountain.

Trail Notes

Distance – 3.8 miles
(Check out the stats from Map My Hike)*
Elevation Change – 1343 feet
Difficulty – 3. The elevation isn’t too tough, but the rockiness of the terrain adds to the difficulty.
Trail Conditions – 2. Very rocky and many of the rocks are quite loose. You have to always watch your feet.
Views – 5. On a clear day, they are quite spectacular.
Waterfalls/streams – 0. Non-existent.
Wildlife – 1. You won’t see any wildlife above treeline here other than a few birds.
Ease to Navigate – 2.5. Marked down because you have to follow cairns and occasional blazes. This can be extremely tough in foggy or bad weather. On a clear day, this will be much easier.
Solitude – 2. In the summer, you will always find people along the trail. Mount Washington always attracts a lot of people. You will likely also find many people in Lakes of the Clouds.

Download a trail map (PDF)

Directions to trailhead: From Gorham, NH head south on NH-16 for 7.8 miles. Take a right to get on to the Mount Washington Auto Road. Pay at the gate (in 2015 was $28 per car and $8 for each additional passenger) and follow the road to the parking lot at the top. Coordinates: 44.269644, -71.302659

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.

Siler Bald (NC)

August 23, 2015September 4, 2018Leave a comment

Introductory Guide to Visiting Great Smoky Mountains National Park Area

Not to be confused with Silers Bald in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, this 8.8 mile hike in Nantahala National Forest has some of the best views in the southern Appalachians – mountains roll out in every direction from the summit. The hike is moderate and doesn’t require any tough climbing or tricky terrain.

View the Full Album of Photos From This Hike

We thought this video really showcased how amazing the view is from Siler Bald! Sorry it’s so shaky!

Adam Says…

One thing we hoped to do on our trip was to hike some new piece of the Appalachian Trail. While it would have been nice to complete a larger section of the trail, when you only have one car you are stuck with doing some out-and-backs. When we were researching some different options we came upon Siler Bald. My first thought was “Didn’t we already hike this another time?” Oh, that was SilerS Bald, not Siler Bald. I always get a kick out of how many mountains and hikes have similar names. We have come across several Chimney Rocks in our travels. It reminds me of the unoriginal naming of cities in New England. You can find multiple Manchesters, Andovers, Portsmouths, Dovers, and Salems in the New England states, as if their goal is to get you lost when you try to navigate with your GPS. The nice thing about both of these similarly-named balds is they have great views so you can’t go wrong.

There wasn’t a GPS signal when we started this hike, so it was a little difficult to find the starting point. I had a map of the area and we were able to find the parking lot easily enough. The Appalachian Trail crosses over Hwy-64 near the parking lot. The southbound path is easy to find, it takes off from the parking lot. However, the northbound path was harder to find. I crossed the road and walked down the road heading east for about a hundred feet. Then, I saw the AT cut through on a small, overgrown path. I signaled back up to Christine that I found it and we began our hike.

Small Waterfall near Winding Stair Gap — There was a pretty small waterfall near the beginning of the hike. Below: Winding Stair Gap; National Forest Information, Stream crossing and nice campsite.

Heading into the woods, the white-blazed trail starts on a very gradual uphill slope. Like many parts of the AT, this hike can be called a green tunnel – one path cutting through lush, green forest. We reached a waterfall and forest service road in .2 miles, followed shortly by a stream crossing and a nice campsite area. The trail then continues uphill as you pass by Swinging Lick Gap at 1.1 miles and Panther Gap at 2 miles. Right before the sign of Panther Gap, we were startled as 5 grouse took off across the trail just ahead of us. When you are walking along the trail with nothing but the sounds of the woods around you, a big move from the brush can you make you almost leap out of your hiking boots. From Panther Gap, the trail then goes slightly downhill for about a quarter of a mile before going gradually uphill. We eventually reached a junction trail at 4.2 miles. The trail branches off to the Siler Bald Shelter, which is about .5 mile from this junction (this trail eventually loops around to the other side if you see it out after the summit). We didn’t take the trip to the shelter since we were getting hungry and wanted to make our way to the views.

Scarlet Flycatch — There were still some colorful things growing and blooming along the trail.

Continuing on the AT, we met another junction with the Siler Bald summit trail. From here, we took the path up the hillside, requiring us to almost bushwhack through this thick, tall grass and brush for a short distance before we came out of it. We climbed a very steep .2 miles to reach the summit of Siler Bald at 4.4 miles. As you are climbing up, if you look behind you the views start opening up of the mountains around you, but when you reach the summit the views are spectacular. Having hiked without seeing anyone the entire day, we were surprised to see a thru-hiker at the top. He was hoping to get a ride into town, having a craving for a pizza. We talked with him for a while and were pleased to find out he was from Virginia as well. He made a call to have someone meet him at the trailhead and he was off in a flash. We ate our lunch and enjoyed the views all to ourselves. On our way back down, we did come across a few other people that were out for a backpacking trip. This hike is one that has outstanding views for a minimal effort and is not as well-traveled.

Appalachian Trail Near Siler Bald — The trail was green and lush. Below: Tunnels of mountain laurel; There was a shelter on a side trail – we skipped visiting; Making our way up to the top of the bald.

Christine Says…

Three and a half days in the Smokies just aren’t enough! On our 2015 stay, we tried two new hikes in the park (Ramsey Cascades and Gregory Bald), revisited an old favorite (Charlies Bunion), and then picked something new! For our final hike of the trip, we chose a hike outside the park borders – Siler Bald. This hike is located just south of the park in Nantahala National Forest. It offers a spectacular, panoramic vista from a spur just off the Appalachian Trail.

We parked our car at Winding Stair Gap. There is a good-sized lot along Hwy-64. From the parking area, we crossed the highway and picked up the Appalachian Trail heading north. In the first couple tenths of a mile, we crossed a footbridge over a pretty small waterfall. On the other side of the bridge, there was a kiosk with information about the forest. Shortly after the sign, we crossed a wider stream with a lovely backcounty campsite next to it.

Almost to the Top of Siler Ba — This was about the moment we realized ‘Wow… mountains everywhere!’ Below: Siler Bald scenery.

We hiked along, enjoying the abundance of interesting wildflowers and fungi. The climb was steady and slow. It was by far the easiest hike of our trip. We chuckled at the random sign posts in the woods declaring that a particular spot was a ‘gap’. None of the gaps really seemed to be low points between mountains, nevertheless their were signs indicating that we had passed through Swinging Lick Gap, Panther Gap, and Snowbird Gap. Other than enjoying the pleasant weather and small things along the trail, there’s nothing grand along the way to Siler Bald. The grandeur all comes shortly after you reach a grassy clearing about 4 miles into the hike.

From the grassy clearing, climb the spur trail steeply up through the meadow for .2 miles. When we visited, the meadow was full of tall grasses and daisies. At the very top, we reached a flat opening that looked out across what seemed like all of the southern Appalachians. We had great views of Standing Indian mountain, Wayah Bald, Lake Nantahala, and even into Georgia.

Storm Clouds — Storm clouds started to roll in. Below: Mountain views on the descent; Small waterfall

There’s a marker at the top of the bald declaring the mountain’s name and elevation (5,216 feet). There’s also an established fire pit and plenty of room for several tents. What a place to watch both sunrise and sunset!

Adam and I ate our lunch (so many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on this trip), took lots photos, and spent some time chatting with a fellow Virginian we met atop the summit. Rambling Wreck was his name, and he was doing a flip-flop thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail. He was really the only person we saw all day until we were almost done with our hike.

As we enjoyed the bald, darker clouds started to roll in. We knew thunderstorms were forecast for later in the day, so we decided to make our way down. The descent from the bald is nearly as magnificent as being on top – walking downhill with all the mountains laid out before me was breathtaking! I was probably paying too much attention to the view, because the toe of my shoe got hooked on a root hidden by deep grass. I took one of those epic falls that happen so fast you can do nothing to stop and catch yourself. I faceplanted and ended up with several deep, painful bruises, but nothing that stopped me from hiking on. When you’re a regular hiker, these things are bound to happen sooner or later!

The hike down went quickly and soon we arrived back at our car. We decided to make the drive out to the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC) for our next stop. On the way, we were pounded by thunderstorms. I’m glad we missed them on the trail! At the NOC we grabbed an outdoor riverside table at Big Wesser Brew and BBQ (one of our favorite spots) and shared nachos and a couple beers. Super day!

Trail Notes

Distance – 8.8 miles
(Check out the stats from Map My Hike)*
Elevation Change – 1737 ft.
Difficulty – 3. The climbing on this trail is all easy to moderate until the last couple tenths of a mile, up to the top of the bald.
Trail Conditions – 4. The trail was nice, smooth, dirt with very few rocky sections.
Views – 5. Breathtaking, expansive, amazing, beautiful!
Streams/Waterfalls – 2. There were a couple small streams and a small waterfall near the beginning of the hike.
Wildlife – 3. We saw some bear scat on the trail, so I’m sure bear sightings happen in this area.
Ease to Navigate – 3. The trail is clearly blazed and the spur to Siler Bald is pretty obvious.
Solitude – 4. We saw one thru-hiker atop the bald and one group of four men backpacking together. It has immensely more solitude than trails in GSMNP.

Download a Trail Map (PDF)

Directions to trailhead: GPS coordinates for this trailhead are 35.12175, -83.54435. It is located on US 64, 11 miles west of Franklin, NC. There is a spacious parking lot at Winding Stair Gap. From the parking lot, cross the road, head east about 100 feet, and begin hiking north along the Appalachian Trail.

Appalachian Trail – Jennings Creek to the James River

June 27, 2015July 1, 20158 Comments

This 28.6 mile Appalachian Trail section is one of the toughest northbound sections in Virginia – you climb, and then you climb some more. The first nine miles are essentially ‘green tunnel’. The middle section has several great views. And, the last part is an easy downhill coast to the James River. We did this section over two nights – Adam will cover days one and three, and Christine will do day two.

View the Full Album of Photos From This Hike

The Appalachian Trail is sometimes called ‘The Green Tunnel’. Our first day of hiking was a good example of that nickname. Below: Bryant Ridge Shelter is one of the nicest along the AT in Virginia; Adam reads the shelter log; The closest we came to a view on day one.

Day One (8.7 miles)…

We started off our day by driving to the James River footbridge parking lot. I had arranged a shuttle to pick us up at 10 a.m. and then drop us off at our starting point at Jennings Creek. We enjoyed some breakfast at Cracker Barrel, but still arrived at the parking lot around 9:30 that morning. There were a few people in the parking lot that were getting ready to start hikes or taking breaks. One guy was hiking southbound to Roanoke and said he was looking for a ride to Glasgow so he could buy batteries to charge his phone. I found some extra batteries for my GPS, so I handed them over to him and told him I hoped it got him a little closer to Roanoke.

As 10 a.m. came and went, I got a little nervous that our ride might not show. I had some hope when a car pulled in to let off some thru-hikers, but it turned out not to be our ride. by 10:20 a.m., I thought we needed to see if we could figure out what was going on. There is absolutely no phone signal at the footbridge, so Christine waited in the lot while I drove until I could get a signal to make the call for the shuttle driver. I ended up having to drive for several miles before I got one bar and ended up having to leave a message. I turned around to get back to the parking lot and when I arrived, there was the shuttle driver with Christine. Whew! We loaded up our stuff and got on the road. Turns out, he had written down 10:30 for the trip. We were just glad we didn’t have to hitchhike or beg someone else to take us.

Our shuttle driver, Ken, was retired and spends most of his time during the spring, summer, and early fall taking care of AT hikers. He helps shuttle people where they need to go and picks up packages for AT thru-hikers to deliver to them. After talking with on the ride to our start point, we could tell that he is one of those true Trail Angels that just makes hiking the AT a bit easier for everyone.

Camping at Cornelius Creek Shelter — We arrived to Cornelius Creek Shelter around 4:00 p.m. — before the crowds started rolling in. We got a very nice site behind the shelter. Below: Adam collected water from Cornelius Creek; Little Debbie Peanut Butter Creme Pies are a great dessert. They don’t get crushed. They’re soft and chewy. And they pack in 410 calories; Enjoying downtime at camp.

It was probably about 11:15 when we finally started our hike. The Jennings Creek area had lots of parking and it was a nice place to pick up the trail. We headed northbound on the white-blazed AT, which started with a steep climb from the road. After 1.6 miles, we had climbed 1000 feet and reached the top of Fork Mountain. The trail then descends about 800 feet and we reached another stream past a powerline at 2.8 miles. The trail continues along the stream for a while, giving you a great water source if you need it. At 3.8 miles, we reached the Bryant Ridge shelter, which was a great spot to eat lunch. We joined a couple of thru-hikers (one from Germany) at the shelter, who were eating a quick snack and filling up water from the stream. The Bryant Ridge shelter was one of the nicer shelters and even had a high loft and a window that let in some nice sunlight.

After fueling up here, we had a big climb ahead of us. From the shelter, the trail climbs up and up. At 6.9 miles, we had climbed about 2000 feet from the shelter and reached a sign noting a small sidetrail on the left to a campsite. We continued our climb and at 8.1 miles, reached the top of Floyd Mountain. The trail from here began to descend and we reached the sign that pointed to Cornelius Creek Shelter at 8.7 miles. This day there was nothing exceptional to see on the trail, but we were at least glad to be settling in at camp.

When we arrived at the shelter, we noticed the thru-hikers we had seen at the Bryant Ridge shelter were setting up in the shelter. The trail behind the shelter that led to the privy had lots of campsites, but some of those were already taken. It was only 4 p.m., but we felt we needed to stake our claim quickly so we set up camp in one of the remaining spots behind the shelter. Within minutes, we already had others setting up other tents nearby. We knew this was going to be a crowded night. After we set up our tents, I went to go get water by the stream near the shelter. There was a pileated woodpecker climbing up a tree just a few feet away from me. I enjoyed having this moment with this often-skittish bird. The woodpecker eventually flew off and I was joined by someone also filling water. It turned out he was a JMU student who worked at our rec center and we had some mutual acquaintances.

When we got back to our campsite, we began to make dinner, read books, and started a small campfire. Right around dusk, a large group of boy scouts arrived and there wasn’t much room. The only place left around was right near us; we were worried how they would keep us up but they were very respectful and kept it relatively quiet. As we overheard them talk, we heard they had a rough day. They had driven up and got lost somewhere on the trail and while they had parked just half a mile away from the road, they had walked for miles trying to find this shelter. They had rushed to set up camp and start to cook their dinner in the dark. One scout named Max was hungry when they arrived and asked what they had for appetizers. We got a laugh when we heard the scout leader tell him he could have a handful of unsalted nuts. I guess Max learned that the backcountry isn’t Applebee’s. After the fire faded, we crawled into our tent and drifted off to sleep.

Day Two (12.2 miles)…

Sunlight started filtering into our tent a little before 6:00 a.m. I unzipped my sleeping bag, stretched my legs, and changed from my camp clothes back into my hiking clothes. While Adam worked on packing up the tent and our sleeping gear, I made breakfast. Typically, we eat oatmeal, a honeybun, and some cheese. The goal for breakfast is always to eat lots of calories so we can hike for a while before needing a snack. On this trip, we swapped out the oatmeal for granola with Nido. Nido is a full-fat, enriched powdered milk found in most grocery stores’ Latino section. The Nido was fantastic – creamy, rich, and delicious with our maple-pecan granola.

After breakfast we were all geared up – backpacks on and ready to hike out – when suddenly I felt water running down the backs of my legs. Crap! At first I thought I had squished my Camelbak hose open, but it turned out to be a bit more serious. Even though the ‘locked’ arrows on my Camelbak lid were properly aligned, I guess the threads were still uneven. As soon as the gear inside my pack pressed against the reservoir, water started leaking out. All in all, a little over a liter of water gushed out into the bottom of my pack.

Adam took my Camelbak and the filter back down to the spring and refilled it while I worked on drying the spilled water. My pillow, sleeping pad, and sheet were all pretty wet, but I was most concerned about my sleeping bag. It was in a water-resistant compression sack. It felt wet on the outside, but I didn’t want to take the time to unpack it to check the inside. I guess my fate would be determined at camp that night! Within 10 minutes of the spill we were back on the trail.

View from Black Rock Overlook — Our first view came relatively early on Day 2. Black Rock Overlook was very nice. Below: Walking through tunnels of flowering rhododendron was very pleasant; Spiderwort along the trail; Adam approaches the summit of Apple Orchard Mountain.

I was pretty grouchy about all the wet gear, so I walked quietly behind Adam ruminating on the impending case of hypothermia I would probably get from sleeping in wet down. After a mile, we reached our first view of the day – a gorgeous vista from Black Rock Overlook. The view is located on a spur trail a couple hundred feet off the AT. After enjoying the mountainous view and taking a few photos, we headed down the trail. The going was pretty gentle for a while. We passed junctions with the Cornelius Creek and Apple Orchard Falls trails. We hiked to the falls and along Cornelius Creek earlier in the spring. It’s a great dayhike in this area.

After passing the junction with the Apple Orchard Fall Trail, we soon reached a gravel road at Parkers Gap. A flight of wooden stairs led uphill from the road. At the top of the stairs, we found two coolers of ‘trail magic’ for thru-hikers. One cooler had ice and bottled water and the other had a variety of snacks – fruit, cookies, and candy. We left the treats behind and began the tough 1.5 mile climb to the summit of Apple Orchard Mountain. On the open, grassy summit of Apple Orchard, we enjoyed more excellent views and a snack. We were even joined by a small garter snake trying to warm in the sun. The FAA radar dome sitting atop the summit is huge and plastered with NO TRESPASSING signs.

Summit of Apple Orchard Mountain — It felt good to take our packs off and enjoy the summit of Apple Orchard Mountain. Below: There are views from both sides of Apple Orchard; A snake in the grass; The FAA Radome atop Apple Orchard.

About a third of a mile north of Apple Orchard, we passed under The Guillotine – a round boulder perfectly balanced and wedged between two rock faces. Pretty neat! The trail went through a short and steep rocky section before reaching a pretty, sunny meadow. About a mile after the meadow, we popped out on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

We crossed the road and picked up white blazes again. We enjoyed pleasant, easy trail for another third of a mile to the Thunder Hill Shelter. We stopped in to rest and check out the shelter log. After leaving the shelter, the trail continued gently along. It was one of the prettiest parts of our hike – so many wildflowers! My favorite bloom to spot was a large patch of yellow lady’s slippers covering a hillside. They’re not as common as the pink ones, so it was a real treat to see so many at once. About 1.5 miles past the shelter, we reached the Thunder Ridge Overlook and decided it was a great spot to stop for lunch. Nearly 7 miles of hiking had burned off my breakfast and I was ravenous.

Adam Goes Under the Guillotine — Shortly after descending Apple Orchard Mountain, Adam passed under the Guillotine – an interesting rock formation along the trail. Below: The descent from Apple Orchard was a bit rocky; A pretty meadow after the Guillotine; Thunder Hill shelter.

The viewpoint had a constructed stone platform and a superb view! Across the valley, we could even see the huge talus slope of the Devils Marbleyard – another popular dayhike in the area. We got out our Alite chairs and food bags and settled in for a nice long break. I had cashews, dried pineapple, a big handful of Sour Patch kids, and an asiago cheese bagel filled with cheddar cheese slices. I felt so re-energized after I ate! By this time, I had ceased thinking about wet gear and hypothermia and was just really enjoying my day. While we were eating lunch, clouds moved in and a breeze picked up. We ended up moving on sooner than planned because I actually got sort of chilled. Before we hiked on, we made a quick detour up to the parkway so we could throw all our garbage away in a real trashcan instead of continuing to carry it with us. When you’re backpacking, always take advantage of trash cans!

View from Thunder Ridge — You can see Devils Marbleyard from the Thunder Ridge viewing platform. Below: The trail had a large patch of yellow lady’s slippers; The platform at Thunder Ridge gave us a nice place to eat lunch and take in the view; After Thunder Ridge, we had a long descent through green woods into Pettites Gap.

The next 3.3 miles covered a huge descent with only a few tiny bumps of climbing. It was fast going and we reached Pettites Gap around 2:00 p.m. We knew we had one short but difficult climb ahead of us before reaching camp, so we took our packs off, leaned back against a huge old tree, and ate another snack. We knew the last climb would feel pretty brutal – and it did not fall short of that expectation!

High Cock Knob was beautiful – covered with blooming rhododendron and mountain laurel. But it was extremely steep and rocky. It also had a false summit! We got to the top of a tough climb and started descending and thought ‘Yay… we’re done!!!’, only to have an even steeper ascent staring us in the face a few hundred yards later.

The climb down High Cock was equally steep – covered with loose, treacherous rocks. Several southbound hikers passed us coming the opposite direction. All of them asked ‘How much more climbing!?’ On the way down, Adam had an awful allergy attack. His throat almost closed and he had a difficult time catching his breath. It was pretty scary and he says he really doesn’t remember the last half mile of hiking. Fortunately, it mostly passed and his breathing eased.

View from High Cock Knob — There was one obstructed view from High Cock Knob — our toughest climb of the day. Below: Entering the James River Face Wilderness; The Appalachian Trail leaving north from Pettites Gap; The trail over High Cock passed through dense rhododendron and mountain laurel.

Arriving at Marble Spring was like reaching an oasis in a desert! The large grassy campsite had a huge fire pit with log seats, a spring-fed water source, and plenty of room for multiple tents. We chose a secluded tent site uphill from the fire pit. I hung my sleeping bag on a branch to dry – it was a bit damp around the feet. Everything else dried out over the course of the day in my pack. Hooray – hypothermia was no longer an issue. We collected water. I napped in the tent while Adam read a book outside. Being at camp is the best! Around 6:00, I came out of the tent, ready to eat – again! Dinner was lasagna with extra cheese and mocha pudding for dessert.

When we first got to camp, we were alone. But, over the course of the afternoon, a group of four West Point grads out for the weekend and two thru-hikers arrived. Compared to the dozens of people camped the night before at Cornelius Creek, sharing a large campsite with six people felt really quiet and solitary. One of thru-hikers climbed into his tent long before sundown and never came back out. Everyone else (us, a thru-hiker named ‘Captain K’, and the four West Pointers) shared a campfire and conversation. It was interesting to hear everyone’s assessment of the trail that day. It was universally agreed that High Cock Knob was a tough way to end the day! While we sat around the fire, a whitetail deer circled us like a vulture for over an hour. Weird – maybe she wanted to the grassy area to graze? Eventually, the sun slipped behind the mountains, we ran out of firewood, and everyone headed off to their tents for the night. It was a long, hard day of hiking, but it had been full of beautiful views, colorful wildflowers, and blooming trees. One more day to go!

Marble Spring Campsite was spacious and grassy with a nicely flowing spring. Below: Our comfortable campsite; A peek into our backcountry kitchen.

Day Three (7.7 miles)…

We were woken up a little earlier than normal by the sound of a fox screaming and then an incessant whippoorwill that sang for about an hour straight at the first glimpse of sunlight. We started off our third day with an earlier start than the previous day (also thanks to no leaking water bladders) and made our way from the Marble Spring campsite heading north again on the Appalachian Trail. Captain K also was getting ready for his day of hiking and was hoping to get to town to get his resupply package. We told him we would give him a ride to town if he was still at the parking lot.

Mountain Laurel — On our third day, we enjoyed abundant blooming mountain laurel along the trail. Below: Mountain laurel; Catawba rhododendron; You can see the radome atop Apple Orchard mountain in the distance.

Day two had been a tough, long day on the trail, so I was wondering if I had enough energy for the third day. I was surprised to find that Day three was much easier. A lot of that was because it was mostly downhill, but my muscles felt surprisingly ready to tackle the day. Our moods were also boosted by how pretty the trail was. While yesterday was a day filled with tons of rhododendron, today seemed to want to match it equally with mountain laurel along the trail.

The trail started off with a flat section. At .5 miles, we reached a junction with the south side of the Sulphur Spring Trail. At 2.3 miles, we reached the junction with the Gunter Ridge Trail and at 2.8 miles, we reached the junction with the north side of the Sulphur Spring Trail (the Gunter Ridge trail is part of the Devils Marbleyard loop). The trail begins to descend more steeply at this point and we reached Big Cove Branch at 3.6 miles. The trail continues to descend until you reach Matts Creek Shelter at 5.5 miles.

First View of the James — We started to see views of the James River through the trees. Below: Stream crossing; Nice views from the trail on day 3; Adam arriving at Matts Creek Shelter; Walking along Matts Creek; Cliffsides along the river; View of the footbridge from a distance.

The Matts Creek Shelter was fairly run down and from reading the entries in the trail log, the privy was scary as well. We ate a quick snack here, but quickly moved on. At 6.3 miles, the trail ran parallel to the James River, at time providing glimpses of this impressive river. We started to see people kayaking in the river, people going out for a quick stroll on the AT, and a couple of trail runners. We knew we were getting close to the end of our trip. At 7.5 miles, we reached the James River footbridge. At the footbridge was a family that had backpacked with a couple of kids. One of the kids (about 11 in my approximation) had asked us how far we went and we told him. He was impressed, since he had backpacked from Petites Gap (about a 10 mile trip). I told him that I thought he could do it one day, since he still had a smile on his face after backpacking 10 miles. I told Christine I think we just witnessed a kid that just found his love for backpacking. We crossed the James River footbridge and made our way back to the car.

Crossing the James River Foot Bridge — We crossed the Foot Footbridge at the end of our hike. Below: Scarlet Flycatch wildflowers; Footbridge from different angles.

When we got to the parking lot, Captain K was there. He said he had arranged someone to pick him up, so he was going to wait there for his ride. Before we had left, we had filled up a cooler with ice, put in a few drinks, and hoped they would be a cool reward for when we were done. I offered him a cold soda, which he gladly took. The day was already getting quite warm, but we were able to escape into our air-conditioned car. We drove to Lexington to eat lunch at Macado’s and then had a few beer samples at Devil’s Backbone to celebrate.

I’m so proud of how far we have come since Backpacking 101. We feel like we now have the confidence and ability to do multi-day trips with heavy packs. Every backpacking trip we go on, there are new challenges, new things to learn, and adventure just around the corner.

Trail Notes

Distance – 28.6 miles
(Check out the stats from Map My Hike* [Day One] [Day Two][Day Three])
Elevation Change – 8100 ft. (Several official sources calculated this elevation total, my less reliable hiking phone app put it closer to 6,000.)
Difficulty – 5. We are not going to sugar coat it – this was a very tough section with lots of climbing.
Trail Conditions – 4. The trail was dry and not too rocky. Stream crossings were small, shallow, and easy.
Views – 4. Views from Black Rock Overlook, Apple Orchard Mountain, and Thunder Ridge were all excellent but none were true 360 degree views. We also enjoyed some nice views through the trees on the descent to the James River.
Streams/Waterfalls – 3. Matts Creek was lovely. And, of course you have to say something about the James River!
Wildlife – 4. We saw deer, snakes, and had a whippoorwill and a screaming fox at night two’s camp.
Ease to Navigate – 4. Follow the white blazes and you practically can’t get lost. The only thing slightly tricky was the big hairpin turn at Marble Spring.
Solitude – 2. We chose to hike this section on Memorial Day weekend… with perfect weather… during the thru-hiker bubble. While we didn’t see crowds on the trail, camping spots were very crowded.

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.

Download a Trail Map (PDF)

Directions to trailhead: To drop off first car: From I-81, take exit 188A to merge on to US-60E towards Buena Vista. Go 3.9 miles and then take a right on to US-501S at the Hardee’s. Follow 501S for 14.9 miles until you reach the parking lot on the right for the Appalachian Trial crossing. To get to starting point for this section: Take a left out of the parking lot and go 5.6 miles on US-501N. Take a left on to VA-130W and go 6.2 miles. VA-130 ends here. Take a left to go on to US-11/Lee Highway heading south and then take the exit for I-81S. Go 1.7 miles and take a right across from the Exxon to stay on US-11S. Go .4 miles and then merge on to I-81S. Go 7 miles and take exit 168 to merge on to VA-614 toward Arcadia. Turn left on to VA-614/Arcadia Rd. Follow this as it becomes Jennings Creek Road. At 4.7 miles, you will reach the parking area and where the Appalachian Trail crosses the road. Head north to start your hike.

Appalachian Trail – Punchbowl Mountain to the James River

June 12, 2015June 20, 201510 Comments

This 11-mile Appalachian Trail stretch had spectacular views of the valley and the James River!

View the Full Album of Photos From This Hike

View From Bluff Mountain — Adam takes in the view from Bluff Mountain. Below: The pond at Punchbowl Mountain Shelter; The shelter itself has seen better days; The Ottie Cline Memorial – put it place for a child lost in the mountains in the late 1800s.

Christine Says…

When Adam and I first started hiking sections of the Appalachian Trail, we focused on the trail through Shenandoah National Park. The park is close to our home, making it easy for us to bring two cars for a shuttle. We did short sections – most of our day hikes ranged from 6 to 8 miles. We did a couple sections as overnights, covering 10-12 miles total over two days. When we first started, those hikes really challenged me – but they also made me want more!

We’re now traveling further from home to complete sections, so we push to complete bigger miles to make the travel time more worthwhile. We’ve also found friends and businesses to help us shuttle along the way.

We met Lynchburg friends, Dennis and Tina to do this AT section from Punchbowl Mountain down to the James River. We’d never met them in person, but we’d chatted online about hiking and the Appalachian Trail for almost a year. We were really thankful for their good company on this hike!

We met early Saturday morning at the Foot Footbridge across the James River. ‘Foot Footbridge’ isn’t a typo. The bridge is named after hiking enthusiast, Bill Foot, who worked tirelessly (while also fighting cancer) to see that the bridge was built. It’s a beautiful and impressive bridge across the James River, and there is nothing else like it along the Appalachian Trail.

After Adam and I got acquainted with Dennis and Tina in the parking lot, we hopped in our car and made our way along the Blue Ridge Parkway to our start point – the Punchbowl Mountain Overlook. We left off here last fall after completing a 17 mile section from Hog Camp Gap.

The morning began with our only significant climb of the day- about 1400 feet over two miles to the summit of Bluff Mountain. About half a mile into our ascent, we detoured to visit the Punch Bowl Shelter. The shelter is a little bit run down and sits next to a murky, muddy, mosquito-haven of a pond. The shelters to the north and south of Punch Bowl (Brown Mountain Creek and Johns Hollow) are both much nicer places to stay the night.

Dwarf Irises — The wildflower display was in full force when we hiked this section of trail. We saw dwarf irises, pink lady’s slippers; native pinxter azaleas, wild geraniums, rhododendron, mountain laurel; wild bleeding hearts; scarlet flycatch (in the full album), and spiderwort (in the full album). It was gorgeous!

After our short stop, we continued our climb to the spectacular open top of Bluff Mountain. We were swarmed by no-see-ums and gnats, but we still enjoyed the (almost) 360 views and watching the morning fog burn off the valley. The remains of a fire tower foundation still sit on the summit. Immediately upon leaving the summit, we stopped at the Ottie Cline Powell memorial. The marker tells the sad tale of a little 4-year old boy lost in the mountains in 1891.

From there, we had four miles of gentle downhill or practically flat ridge walking. It was delightful! Wildflowers were blooming like crazy! The woods smelled fresh, green, and earthy. Even though it was a warm, humid day, the cool mountain breezes made for perfect hiking weather. Along the ridge, we passed junctions with a couple trails – Saltlog Gap and Saddle Gap. I’ve heard these trails are pretty overgrown and don’t know much about them. From there, we enjoyed several great views along the ridge. The views far exceeded my expectations for hike, and I really enjoyed the bird’s eye view of the James River. About 7 miles into the hike, we passed the junction with the Little Rocky Row trail, and reached Fuller Rocks – another lovely view point.

After that view, we descended the mountain along 21 switchbacks. At first the descent was pretty steep, but eventually it moderated and entered a stand of enormous old trees. Dennis even took the time to hug a couple of them.

At 9.2 miles, we took the short side trail to visit Johns Hollow Shelter. The camp is located in a peaceful, open spot in the woods. The shelter is typical, but the tent area behind the shelter is especially nice. There was lots of flat, grassy space to pitch

Hiking Along the Appalachian Trail — Walking along the trail lined with yellow flowers. Below: Everything was turning brilliant spring green, Views from the ridge; Descending toward the James River.

After leaving Johns Hollow, we hiked about another half mile in the woods before crossing a gravel forest road. After the road, we quickly reached Rocky Row Run – a beautiful mountain stream that eventually feeds into the James.

The stream was very scenic and we all enjoyed the sound of the flowing water. There were lots of blooming wildflowers and rhododendron along the creek. We crossed a couple small wooden bridges along the way, before popping out on the side of Route 501. From there, we crossed the highway and returned back to the Foot Bridge and parking area at 10.6 miles (11 if you include mileage from shelter visits).

We all decided to walk across the bridge to check out views of the James! It was a beautiful view – especially looking back to all the distant rocky outcroppings we had stood upon earlier in the day. Standing on the bridge, my mind drifted to the next section south – wondering what it would be like and what challenges and gifts would lie ahead on the trail.

Dennis and Tina – thanks for hiking with us! Can’t wait to meet up again.

Adam Says…

This section of the Appalachian Trail was one we had contemplated doing for a while. We have covered now a section of contiguous miles that includes from this point up to Front Royal. It is easier to say, “We have walked from Front Royal to the James River” than to say “We have walked from Front Royal to a place off the Blue Ridge Parkway north of the James River”.

As Christine mentioned, when traveling further away from home the next concern is wondering if we need to bring two cars or figuring out if we can get someone to help us shuttle. It can be hard to find some friends that want to go trekking in the woods for over 10 miles. So, we were very glad to meet Dennis and Tina. They have done this section a number of times before but were willing to do it again with us.

This section was a surprise to us. We hadn’t seen enough nice pictures from these overlooks to know if it would be worthwhile to check. But, we hiked on a very clear day that made the scenery gorgeous.

View of the James River — A nice view of the James River looking in the direction of Apple Orchard Mountain. Below: Dennis points out landmarks from above; This fallen was perfectly balanced across several other standing trees. It looked like the mast of a ship; Tree hugger!

After meeting up, we drove to our starting point on the Blue Ridge Parkway. We met a few guys in the parking lot that were doing a multi-day backpack as well. We crossed the parkway and headed up the white-blazed Appalachian Trail, heading southbound. The beginning of the trail started a steep ascent. It was already a warm, muggy day, so with the extra work of going uphill I got sweaty very early in the hike. In .4 miles, we reached the side trail to the Punchbowl Shelter. The side trail was mostly downhill to the shelter. When we arrived, there was nobody staying there. The shelter is in a nice shady spot, but we could tell the insects were swarming near the pond. We checked out the trail log in the shelter and then made our way back up to the Appalachian Trail.

The trail continues to be mostly a steep climb until you reach the top of Bluff Mountain at 2.0 miles. There were great views to the west from the trail. The bugs were relentless (at least to me) from this open area, so while I would have liked to stay up there longer, I wanted to quickly get back into the woods and away from the bugs. We saw a brilliant indigo bunting flying around the treetops from the overlook. As soon as you get out of the clearing and back into the woods, you see the memorial for Ottie Cline Powell on the ground to the left.

Lovely Rocky Row Run ran along the last mile of the trail. Below: Johns Hollow shelter has a large, grassy field suitable for pitching multiple tents; An interesting cliff face along the trail.

The trail then begins a steep, downward descent. At 3.5 miles, you reach a junction with the Saltlog Gap Trail, but stay on the AT. The trail mostly levels out as you walk along a ridge for a while. At 4.6 miles, you reach a junction with the Saddle Gap Trail. Staying on the AT, the trail begins to climb a more gradual ascent until you reach Big Rocky Row at 6.1 miles. The views from this area were my favorite, as you got to see the James River below snaking through the landscape of mountains.

From here, the trail descends and you reach Little Rocky Row at 7.3 miles, also giving you nice views along the way as you walk down the ridge line. The rest of the hike is basically all downhill from this point until you reach the James River. At 9.2 miles, we reached the a short side trail that took a very sharp turn to Johns Hollow Shelter. We checked out this shelter and came across another two section hikers that were enjoying a week along the AT. There was a nearby stream for replenishing water and a privy. After eating a quick snack, we returned to join the AT again.

The trail again was mostly flat or downhill. We crossed the stream at 9.4 miles and then crossed the gravel VA 812 road to continue on the AT. As we were walking along, Dennis started talking about black snakes and within minutes we saw one directly on the trail as if he had summoned it. The forest through this section had many larger trees along the way and then opened up to beautiful rhododendron plants that were aligning the stream on both sides. It was such a serene setting. At 10.3 miles, we reached the Lower Rocky Row Run bridge. We crossed the run and then at 10.6 miles we were back at US 501. We crossed the road which had the trail lead us right to the parking lot where we started.

We already plan to get back together sometime with Dennis and Tina for a backpack trip sometime in the near future. It is always great to find like-minded people to experience the outdoors together!

The Mighty James — Our hike concluded on the northern side of the James River. Below: Kayakers on the river; The Appalachian Trail crosses the James on a long footbridge.

Trail Notes

Distance – 11 miles
(Check out the stats from Map My Hike)*
Elevation Change – 2062 ft.
Difficulty – 3.5. 11 miles is a little on the long side, but after climbing to the summit of Bluff Mountain early in the hike, the rest of the terrain is easy to moderate.
Trail Conditions – 4. Consistently well-maintained trail. Some parts of the trail are narrow along a steep hillside, but still easily passable.
Views – 5. Super views from Bluff Mountain, nice views along the ridge, and then amazing views of the James River.
Streams/Waterfalls – 3.5. The final stretch of this hike follows pretty Rocky Row Run, and of course – you end at the James!
Wildlife – 1. We saw a black snake.
Ease to Navigate – 4.5. Just keep following those white blazes south. The trail is easy to follow and well-marked.
Solitude – 3. We saw a fair number of hikers along the way, including quite a few northbound thru-hikers, but you never feel like the trail is crowded.

Download a Trail Map (PDF)

Directions to trailhead: To drop off first car: From I-81, take exit 188A to merge on to US-60E towards Buena Vista. Go 3.9 miles and then take a right on to US-501S at the Hardee’s. Follow 501S for 14.9 miles until you reach the parking lot on the right for the Appalachian Trial crossing. To get to your start point: Leaving the parking lot, turn right on to US-501S. Go .8 miles and continue straight to take VA-130 E. Go 2.8 miles and then turn left on to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Turn right on to the Blue Ridge Parkway and go 9.8 miles until you reach the small parking lot for Punchbowl Mountain where the Appalachian Trail crosses the parkway. Cross the road and you will see the Appalachian Trail marker which has the trail leading uphill.

Appalachian Trail – Harpers Ferry to Bears Den Rocks

June 6, 2015June 13, 201810 Comments

This 20.5 mile Appalachian Trail section had some views and a ton of pleasant ridge walking! We joined up with our friend, Kris, and tackled it on an unseasonably hot spring weekend. Adam will cover day one and Christine will take over with day two!

View the Full Album of Photos From This Hike

Potomac River in Harpers Ferry — We crossed the Potomac River at the beginning of our hike out of Harpers Ferry. Below: When we parked at Bears Den, we got to play with this adorable puppy while waiting for our shuttle driver; We had our official ATC section hiker photo made; It was Flip-Flop Kick Off when we visited; The ATC had vendors and information tents set up; Someone brought a hawk; Finally getting our hike underway!

Day One (12.3 miles)…

This section of the Appalachian Trail had us doing something we had not done before – arranging a shuttle. We have covered most of the AT within an hour or two of where we live using our own two cars to shuttle. But as we hike further from home, self-shuttling has become inconvenient and costly. If you are thinking of covering any sections of the AT, I would strongly recommend picking up the latest version of The A.T. Guide by David “AWOL” Miller (often referred as the AWOL Guide). It’s a must-have for planning purposes. Included in the book are elevation profiles, things to see along the trail, road junctions, as well as information on nearby towns, where to find the post office, grocery stores for resupplies, laundromats, hostels, and shuttle providers. This book is updated yearly, so the information provided is very current and helpful. Many thru-hikers carry these books along and they will often rip out pages of the AT once they have covered them, hopefully finishing the trek with nothing more than the binding. I will admit that it felt a little odd to call a number of an individual that I found in a book to find a ride, but these shuttle providers are some of the unsung heroes of the trail, helping to make the logistics of the trip much easier along the way. We worked out a pick up time and agreed on a price.

I arranged for our shuttle driver to meet us at Bears Den. We got there early, so we were able to explore a bit before our shuttle arrived. Bears Den is a hiker hostel, providing showers, lodging, and mail drops for long-distance AT hikers. Day-use hikers pay $3 to park in the lot. Bears Den looked like a stone cottage you would find in Europe. The grounds were kept up nicely and we were excited that this would be the endpoint on the trip. We met up with our shuttle driver, who took us on a scenic, horse-country drive to Harpers Ferry. The shuttle driver used to be the manager of Bears Den, but now just lives nearby. In addition to being a shuttle driver, he’s also a former thru-hiker (as many of these shuttle drivers are – after hiking, shuttling is one way they give back and keep in touch with the AT community.) On the ride, he told us about his favorite parts of the trail, what we would see, and even some tales about other shuttles he had provided. He explained that he had gotten one call in the wee hours of the morning recently to pick up a hiker that had been bitten and sprayed by a rabid skunk. Too say the least, these trail angels really go the extra mile for the hiking community.

Leaving Harpers Ferry on a tree-lined path. Below: Red columbine – a favorite wildflower; The climb out of Harpers Ferry is steep and has very few switchbacks; Leaving the National Park area.

We asked to be dropped off at the Appalachian Trail Conservancy & Visitor Center in Harpers Ferry, WV. Thru-hikers and section hikers typically stop by the ATC Visitor Center and have a photo taken in front of the building. ATC staffers take a photo, assign you a hiker number, and have you write information about yourself on the border before adding it to a photo album. You can go back years later and check out all the people that have made it this far along the trail. Since this was the section that brought us through Harpers Ferry, it was time for us to have our photo done. Our trail names are “12th Man” (for my love of the Seattle Seahawks) and “Sugar Rush” (for Christine’s love of candy before tackling a big climb). It was fun to finally be officially added to the hiker album.

We had looked in advance and had seen the ATC was having the Flip Flop Kick Off weekend event. The hope was to have the hikers split their trip at this halfway point in WV to keep hikers from clustering together too much. One example would be north-bounders going from Georgia to Maine to stop here at this midway point and then go up to Maine and hike back down to WV. They had a cookout, vendors, games, and wildlife exhibits along the back lawn (throughout the weekend they were hosting pack shakedowns, talks, and bands). When we walked through with our backpacks, we heard a few people getting excited that ‘hikers were coming’. I didn’t have the heart to tell them we were just out for the weekend, but based on how clean and fresh-smelling we were, I’m sure most of them could have guessed we weren’t out for the long haul. We didn’t stay long at the event, since it was getting close to 11AM and we hadn’t even started our hike yet.

One of the volunteers pointed us to a blue-blazed trail that led to the Appalachian Trail. On our way to meet the AT, we walked across the grounds of former Storer College, a historically black college that opened its doors as a school to educate freed slaves. Open for 88 years, Storer’s funding was cut in 1955 after the Brown v. Board of Education ruling came in to desegregate public schools. The school was forced to close. The blue blazes continued down a series of steps and before we knew it we were on the Appalachian Trail. We turned right to head south along the trail, heading downhill. The trail came to a quick road crossing and then headed up to the large bridge along US-340 that crosses the Shenandoah River. We walked along the roadside on the bridge with cars whizzing by, but the view off the side of the bridge was breathtaking. This river is dotted with large and small boulders in the rapid-infused river, causing this to be a hotspot for kayakers.

So Many Redbuds — The woods were brilliantly colored with blooming redbuds. Below: Crossing powerlines gave us an open view; Taking a rest at Keys Gap on the VA/WV border; Christine does blister first-aid for Kris.

At the end of the bridge, the trail leads down stairs and goes under US-340 to the other side. The trail then begins its steepest climb in this section as you ascend towards Loudoun Heights. At 1.4 miles, you cross over WV 32 and at 2.0 miles, we reached the top of Loudoun Heights and a sign for the VA-WV border. Take a right to stay on the Appalachian Trail. The trail goes downhill and levels out for an easy walk and we had our lunch along the side of the trail. At 4.4 miles, we came to some power lines, which created some open views to the side. The trail begins to climb slowly. At 5.9 miles, we arrived at Keys Gap parking lot and took a short break to fix a blister forming on Kris’ foot. We crossed over WV 9 and continued our slow ascent. At 8.9 miles, we reached the side trail that led to the David Lesser Memorial Shelter. This shelter was a nice stop and there was even a swing to kick our feet up and enjoy a snack. We were tempted to stay here for the evening, but decided to push onward. At 9.4 miles, we reached a small side trail that led uphill a short distance to a view at Buzzard Rocks.

Signing the Shelter Log — Christine signs the shelter log at David Lesser. Below: David Lesser is a fantastic shelter with a covered dining area, sleeping shelter and porch swing; Buzzards Rock is about a half mile south of the shelter; Laurel Springs boardwalk.

Getting back to the trail and pushing on, we came to the Laurel Springs boardwalk at 10.4 miles. This was a long stretch of planks to walk on, which protects the trail from getting too harmed during wetter times. After the boardwalk, the trail continues to climb. Around 12 miles, there is a small trail to the right which gives you the best views of the day. At 12.1 miles, we reached the junction sign that pointed us to the Blackburn AT Center. As we descended the steep trail, we became worried as we saw lots of tents along the hillside (most belonging to a large group of Boy Scouts), wondering if we would have a place to camp. We found the last open site and set up our camp.

I struggled a lot this day. About four weeks earlier, I had pulled a muscle in my back. My doctor said it could take a few months to heal. I had been taking muscle relaxers and alternating ice and heat on my back for weeks. While I felt I could do this trip, I was dealing with a pinching pain with every step and it hurt even worse whenever I was going uphill. This challenge took a lot out of me and by the end, I had enough and wasn’t enjoying myself. Sometimes you just hit rock bottom.

Kris had told us a story about five miles into the trip about how after an extremely long bike ride how she had gone into a store and drank a soda and how great it tasted. Well, that thought of a refreshing, cold soda lasted with me for the rest of the day. After we set up camp, we walked steeply down to the Blackburn AT Center to get water. We talked to the caretakers, Chris and Sandra, for a while and they pointed out where we could fill up our water from their well. Sandra then went into her kitchen and said, “Can I get you a cold soda?” I can only imagine what my face would have looked like at that moment, but I felt such euphoria. The soda tasted like sweet ambrosia to me and their kindness had fully restored my faith in humanity. The caretakers were so nice to us and great conversationalists. They maintain a lot of the trails throughout this area also. The Blackburn AT Center is definitely a place I would like to visit and possibly stay again.

We made our way back up to our campsite for the evening and cooked our meals. We set up a small fire and talked until it got dark. We retreated to our tents, sleeping under a full moon. It was a tough day, but we made it.

Day Two (8.4 miles)…

I love the feeling of being naturally awoken by the rising sun and sound of singing birds. When morning came on this trip, I peeked out the mesh of our tent door and saw the pinks, purples, and golds of dawn spreading across the valley below our campsite. It was gorgeous! The Boy Scouts camped nearby were starting to stir – lots of muffled voices and tent zippers unzipping.

Sunrise over the Blackburn Trail Center. Below: We decided to cook breakfast at the Trail Center instead of at our campsite; Oatmeal, coffee, cheese, honeybuns; Trillium on our way out of the Trail Center.

Adam, Kris, and I were all awake and out of our tents a little before 7:00. I went and got our bear hang down and started deflating my sleeping pad and pillow. We collectively decided to pack everything up and take our stove and food bags down to the Blackburn Trail Center for a civilized breakfast. The picnic table and comfortable seating were more inviting than sitting in the dirt near our fire pit.

Adam had oatmeal and a jumbo honeybun. I had oatmeal, coffee, and cheese sticks. Kris tried a Mountain House egg dish and declared it ‘odd and spongey’ – most of it ended up in the compost pile. After finishing our meal, we said a regretful goodbye to Blackburn. What a great place to camp for a night!

Hiking Along the AT — The first few miles of our morning were easy and pleasant ridge walking. Below: Negotiating a big blowdown; Now entering the roller coaster; Native azalea in bloom.

After the short, steep climb from the trail center back to the Appalachian Trail, the first few miles of hiking for the day were pleasant and fairly flat. We made quick progress – enjoying abundant wildflowers and blooming trees. We passed through Wilson Gap before reaching the northern end of the ‘Roller Coaster’ four miles into our hike for the day. The Roller Coaster is 13.5 miles of steep, closely-spaced, rocky ups and downs. (we just did the northern portion of the roller coaster on this section… more to come on our next section south.)

A little over a half mile into the Roller Coaster we reached the spectacular viewpoint of Raven Rocks. There were already plenty of dayhikers enjoying the view, but we found our own little spot to rest. We all took our packs off and reclined on the rocks. It was a beautiful spot with panoramic views. We were lucky enough to visit when the native Pinxter azaleas were in bloom.

Ravens Rock — Adam takes in the spectacular view from Raven Rocks. Below: Kris rests in the shade; We saw a big black snake; The roller coaster is very rocky set of steep, closely spaced ups and downs.

After leaving Raven Rocks, we had a steep rocky descent that led to a shallow stream crossing. After the stream, there was another steep climb and another steep descent to another shallow stream. I guess it’s called a roller coaster for good reason! Ups and downs, followed by mores ups and downs. By the time we got to this part of the trail, the day had already become fairly hot and humid, and we all felt pretty tired on the climbs. It’s always a little surprising how much tougher climbing can be in the direct sun and heat with a large pack. The oddest part of this section was all the blood we saw on the trail. For about 2-3 miles there were fresh droplets of blood on the ground every 5-6 feet. I guess someone really had a bad day on the roller coaster!

At about 7.5 miles into our hike we descended to Snickers Gap. We stepped out of the woods onto busy Route 7. Cars were flying by at 55-65 mph. We had to cross the road and then walk up the shoulder of the road until reaching the trail again. When your legs are fatigued, it’s hard to run fast across a four lane highway. It was like Frogger with backpacks!

On the other side of Route 7 was our last climb of the day! We walked uphill for another .6 miles to the rocky outcropping of Bears Den Rocks. We spent some time relaxing and enjoying the view before walking a few more tenths of a mile to the Bears Den hostel where we had left our car parked. We posed for a group victory photo in front of the hostel, took off our boots and packs, and sunk into the wonderful air-conditioning of the vehicle.

We were all starving, so we stopped for a quick lunch at the Horseshoe Curve Restaurant right out on Route 7. The restaurant had been advertised in our AWOL Guide and on the back of the trail information kiosk at the road crossing, so we decided to give it a go. Sandwiches, french fries, and cold drinks definitely hit the spot! Even though we were all filthy and tired, we also decided to make a stop at Veramar Vineyard to share some wine and toast our hike. We got a bottle of their Seyval Blanc and found a few Adirondack chairs with a view of the ridge we had just traversed.

It was a great weekend for our first backpacking trip of the season. Honestly, the more I backpack, the more I WANT to backpack! I love being out on the trail!

Trail Notes

Distance – 20.5 miles
(Check out the stats from Map My Hike [Day One] [Day Two])*
Elevation Change – 3882 ft.
Difficulty – 3.5. The distance makes this tough, but overall is manageable.
Trail Conditions – 4. The trail was in great shape. We only came across one tree blowdown the entire trip.
Views – 3. The best views of the trip were from Bears Den rocks at the end of the trip.
Streams/Waterfalls – 2. There weren’t any streams and only one reliable water source on the first day (at the Blackburn AT Center). The second day, there were several streams through the area of the Roller Coaster.
Wildlife – 2. We didn’t see much wildlife on this section. There were lots of pretty songbirds at the Blackburn AT Center.
Ease to Navigate – 3.5. Pay attention to signs for the AT. It should be fairly easy to follow.
Solitude – 2. We saw a good number of people throughout the trail, but most were where you would have expected them – the shelters, hiking a short distance from Harpers Ferry, and at Bears Den Rocks. We also saw several trail runners on the Roller Coaster.

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.

Download a Trail Map (PDF)

Directions to trailhead: To get to Bears Den to leave one car, from I-81, take exit 315 for VA-7 E toward Berryville. Turn left on VA-7 E and go 17 miles. Turn right on State Route 601 and go .4 miles. A sign shows you are entering Bears Den. Go to the second parking lot and leave a car there. Be sure to pay for your day-use fee.
For the second vehicle: Head out of Bears Den and turn left on State Route 601. In .4 miles, take a left on VA-7 W. In about 4 miles, take a right on to State Route 612/Shepherds Mill Road. Follow this for 4.3 miles until it ends at US 340. Take a right here and continue to follow US 340 N for 14.6 miles through Charles Town and approaching Harpers Ferry. At the Econo Lodge, take a left on to Union Street. Follow that .4 miles and take a right on to Washington Street. Follow that .2 miles to reach the ATC Center. If someone is not dropping you off, you should ask inside where you could leave a car overnight, since there are parking restrictions near the center.

Furnace Mountain – Austin Mountain Loop

April 26, 2015May 7, 20159 Comments

This 12-mile loop combines numerous park trails into one great route! You’ll pass by several gorgeous viewpoints, walk along pretty Madison Run, and cross massive talus slopes. It’s a challenging hike with about 3,000 feet of climbing.

View the Full Album of Photos From This Hike

On the Shoulder of Austin Mountain — Adam crosses one of the large talus slopes on the side of Austin Mountain.

Christine Says…

The Austin Mountain – Furnace Mountain Loop has the reputation of being one of the park’s toughest and longest day hikes. Not only is the terrain rocky and rugged, there is also a serious amount of climbing involved. Essentially, you climb up from the valley floor, traversing several mountains along the way – Furnace, Trayfoot, Blackrock, and Austin. While you don’t technically reach the summits of Austin or Trayfoot, you come within a couple hundred feet of these viewless/inaccessible summits.

Most sources begin this hike from the Browns Gap parking area on Skyline Drive. For us, it’s a much shorter drive to start down in the valley, at the park perimeter near Grottoes. We parked along the roadside where Browns Gap Rd meets the Madison Run fire road. This is a popular park entry point for hikers and equestrians alike. It can get crowded if you don’t get an early start on the day.

Crossing Madison Run — Adam crosses Madison Run. Below: Pretty sun rays on the fire road; Walking up Furnace Mountain; Small talus slopes and views on the Furnace Mountain trail.

After walking up the Madison Run fire road for a short distance, the Furnace Mountain trail begins on the right with a rock-hop crossing of Madison Run. For a little over a mile, you’ll ascend Furnace Mountain before coming to a cement post that marks the spur trail to the summit of Furnace Mountain. The spur trail is about half a mile and leads to a fantastic viewpoint. You can see Skyline Drive if you look carefully. If you look across the gorge, you’ll see the huge talus slopes of Austin Mountain that you’ll cross later in the hike. On this particular day, we skipped the side trail to the summit of Furnace. We had hiked Furnace Mountain just a few weeks earlier and knew we had many miles to go and other views to enjoy along the way.

The ascent continues in earnest along the Furnace Mountain Trail. Eventually, you’ll come to a junction with the Trayfoot Mountain trail. Take a left and descend. This trail is an old road bed, so it’s wide and nicely graded. After a few tenths of a mile, you’ll come to another cement marker post. Follow the trail to the right in the direction of Blackrock Summit. This rocky jumble will be your best view on the hike! We chose to eat lunch at this spot. That probably wasn’t the best of ideas, because the strong wind made the summit bitterly cold. It’s no fun to eat PB&J with your teeth chattering and while you’re wearing gloves. Needless to say, we ate quickly!

Overlook on Furnace Mountain — The view from Furnace Mountain. Below: From Furnace Mountain you can see the massive talus slopes on Austin Mountain; Looking back at Furnace Mountain; Junction of Furnace Mountain and Trayfoot Mountain trails.

Rounding Blackrock Summit leads you to the Appalachian Trail. To continue this route, head north on the AT for a couple miles until you reach the Browns Gap parking area on Skyline Drive. This section of AT is fast going – it’s practically flat and uncomplicated. You’ll pass the Dundo picnic area along the way. If you run out of water, there is a clean tap at the picnic area.

From the Browns Gap parking area, follow the fire road downhill for .8 of a mile. A cement post on the right marks the Madison Run Spur Trail. This trail will go steeply uphill to a junction with the Rockytop and Big Run trails. Bear to the left on the Rockytop trail. Follow the Rockytop trail for several tenths of a mile until you reach another cement marker for the Austin Mountain trail. If you hike when leaves are off the trees, you’ll get some great ridge views in this area.

Once you turn left onto the Austin Mountain trail, you’ll have a little over 3 miles to go before you hit fire road again. The terrain starts off easily enough, following a lovely ridge overlooking Dundo Hollow and Furnace Mountain (from earlier in your hike). The views are really nice, and it’s impressive to look back on all the distance you’ve traversed!

Adam on Blackrock Summit — Adam takes in the view from Blackrock Summit. Below: View from the Trayfoot Mountain trail; Arriving at Blackrock summit; Playing on the rocks.

But a little over a mile along the Austin Mountain trail, the talus slopes begin. From there, it’s an endless field of loose rocks for nearly a mile. When you think you’re done with rocks, surprise… there are more rocks! Don’t miss looking up and behind you – the cliff-like wall of Austin Mountain looks like a crenulated castle wall. After you cross the last talus slope, you have a steep, knee-grinding descent back to the Madison Run fire road.

Once you reach the fire road, you just have a easy .6 mile road-walk back to your start point. The stream is especially scenic along this stretch. After getting back to the car, we decided we had earned milkshakes! It was a fun day and a great challenge!

Adam Says…

We decided to try and tackle this loop since we wanted to get some good training for some longer hikes. While we were able to get out and do a few good hikes over the winter months, this was definitely a challenging hike to do before we (or at least I) had gotten my “summer trail legs”. This particular hike did a toll on me, especially the last couple of miles.

Junction of Trayfoot with the Appalachian Trail — The junction of the Trayfoot Mountain Trail and the Appalachian Trail. Below: Hiking the AT; Arriving at Browns Gap and the fire road; The junction with the Austin Mountain Trail.

The water across Madison Run was running a little higher and faster than normal, but we were able to rockhop across and begin our hike. The hike up Furnace Mountain is a steady uphill, but does lead to some nice views along the way. There is one section that has a small talus slope that we thought was impressive, but little did we know what Austin Mountain would bring later in the day. At the junction of the spur trail, we met a couple that was doing the same loop but camped along Madison Run that morning. They had started from the Browns Gap parking area in Shenandoah National Park, but had a day of mostly uphill climbing this day. As Christine mentioned, we decided to skip the overlook and made our way to Blackrock Summit.

Talus Slopes — Huge talus slopes on Austin Mountain. Below: Views from the Austin Mountain Trail; Talus slopes and a view of Furnace Mountain; Descending Austin Mountain.

At Blackrock, the wind was incredibly strong and cold. There was still ice in the crevices between the rocks in most places. We sat out to eat some lunch, but our hands were trembling in the cold, which made for challenging and rushed eating. We quickly got out of there and joined the Appalachian Trail, heading north. We made quick time on this flatter section of trail and crossed Skyline Drive. The trail stays close to Skyline Drive until you reach the Dundo picnic area (which does have bathrooms if you need it).

Passing the picnic area, we crossed Skyline Drive again after 6.5 miles. After crossing the road, we made our way through the parking lot and crossed the gate blocking the fire road. Heading down the fire road was easy walking. At mile 7.3, we spotted the cement post on the side of the road, leading up the Madison Run Spur Trail. This section was steep but short as we reached the crest and junction with the Rockytop Trail. We took a left here which continues uphill and reaches the junction with the Austin Mountain Trail around 8.2 miles. Bear to the left and the trail begins to go downhill finally.

Pretty Madison Run. Below: Crenulations on Austin Mountain; Adam coming down to the fire road; Walking the fire road back to the car.

Right before this junction, my IT bands near my right knee began to hurt. Sometimes when one knee begins to hurt, you tend to overcompensate with the other. We came across a hiker that was hiking up and he warned us there was a mile of loose rock to walk on. We soon reached the huge talus slopes. When you have one leg giving you pain, the last thing you want to see is loose rock footing for as long as you can see. The views of the slope were impressive, as well as looking across the mountainous valley to see Furnace Mountain, but the pain was keeping me from having the best of times. With vultures ominously circling above my head, I felt they didn’t have much faith I would make it. Just when we thought we had reached across the slopes, the trail turns back and works it way down the mountain, giving us lower parts of the slopes and more rocks. We finally reached the bottom of the trail and joined the Madison Run Road at 11.2 miles. It was a flat walk along the side of a picturesque creek until we made our way back to the car in .8 miles.

While this was a tough hike, it was rewarding. This hike has great views, unique geology, and a picturesque creek. If you don’t want to tackle it in one day, it would make a nice backpacking loop, but I would recommend starting at Brown’s Gap to split the hike and leave you camping by the water source of Madison Run.

Trail Notes

Distance – 12 miles Add .5 mile, each way, if you take the spur trail out to the overlook atop Furnace Mountain. You can make a shorter, easier loop if you descend via the fire road and skip Austin Mountain)
(Check out the stats from Map My Hike)*
Elevation Change – 2900 ft.
Difficulty – 4.5. The length and amount of climbing make this tough.
Trail Conditions – 2. While the trail was well-maintained, the footing on the talus slopes brings this score down due to the challenge of walking on loose rock for over a mile of the trail.
Views – 4. You have nice views from Furnace Mountain if you add that spur, but Blackrock Summit and views along the Austin Mountain Trail make it worthwhile.
Streams/Waterfalls – 3. Madison Run is a nice wide stream and reliable water source year-round.
Wildlife –2. We didn’t see much, but there have been bear sightings along the Austin Mountain portion of the trail.
Ease to Navigate – 2.5. There are lots of trails that cross, so pay attention to the signs. The trickiest is around the Blackrock Summit area.
Solitude – 3. You will likely see people at Blackrock summit, but not a lot of activity elsewhere.

Download a Trail Map (PDF)

Directions to trailhead: From I-81, take exit 256 heading east towards Weyers Cave. Go 6.6 miles and take a left on US-340/Augusta Avenue. Go .1 miles and take a right on Cary Street. In .2 miles, continue on to VA-663/Brown’s Gap Road. In 1.9 miles, turn right on to the dirt fire road. Follow this 1.1 miles and you will reach the parking area. Look for the concrete post for Furnace Mountain which will have you instantly rock-hopping across Madison Run to start your hike.

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.

Appalachian Trail – Reeds Gap to Dripping Rock

March 22, 2015April 22, 20159 Comments

This 9 mile hike’s distance could be cut in half if you have a car shuttle. When we hiked it, the Blue Ridge Parkway was closed for ice/snow, so we ended up parking at Reeds Gap, walking 4.8 miles on the Appalachian Trail and then walking 4.2 miles back along the closed parkway. Typically, this would be an easy hike with a couple nice views. In our case, it was a challenging icy hike in (occasional) white out conditions!

View the Full Album of Photos From This Hike

Snow Along the Blue Ridge Parkway — It’s a real treat to walk the Blue Ridge Parkway when it’s closed to vehicular traffic. Fresh snow made the view spectacular. Below: The parking area at Reeds Gap was icy when we arrived; Adam walked along the iced Appalachian Trail; Everything was fully coated with a glaze of ice.

Adam Says…

As we slowly work on completing the entire Appalachian Trail through Virginia, we sometimes end up with small gaps in our contiguous miles. This 4.8 mile section was one of those and it was proving to be our nemesis. We had tried to share a shuttle with friends and park at both ends, but a closure of the parkway made those plans fall through.

Over our Christmas break from work, we tried to hike it by dropping Christine at one end and I would park at the other, passing in the middle, and then Christine hiking to the car and driving back to pick me up. It wasn’t preferable to do it this way because we like hiking together, but we really wanted to cover these miles. But on our way to the drop point, we saw several cars slide off the road (not far from a precipitous, cliff-side drop). Rain from the day before had left a thin sheen of ice on all the shady, curvy spots in the road.

One of the couples in a car that slid off the road was having a heated argument – he wanted to press on through the icy danger, but she wanted to call AAA and have the car towed off the mountain. We decided to backtrack and not risk it (especially not knowing the road conditions ahead), choosing to hike near Humpback Rocks instead. On our way to Humpback Rocks, we saw a park ranger making his way to the slippery road patch. They ended up closing the parkway just south of Humpback Rocks that day. The parkway closes quite often in the winter. Rangers would rather close the roads than risk having to come up and save people on the trails/roads when weather conditions could make it difficult.

Ice Falls — There were several rock face covered with snow melt and re-frozen run-off. They made pretty ice formations. Below: Christine cross the Blue Ridge Parkway at the Three Ridges Overlook. The pavement was like a skating rink; Adam makes his way downhill; In many places branches were bowed across the trail.

After those failed attempts, we decided to try this section again. The weather forecast suggested a warming, clearing day, no snow in the near future. There had been a short bout of freezing rain the night before, so we were a little concerned about roads, but we knew we could at least make it to Reeds Gap and hike from there. When we arrived at Reeds Gap, we found a few other cars there, but it looked like they were attempting to hike Three Ridges. We found the sign for the Appalachian Trail and crossed SR 664 to head north on the white-blazed Appalachian Trail. I was amazed at how icy the ground still was. It was manageable in normal hiking shoes, but still slippery in parts. Every step that I took left an icy footprint behind me, which made the trail look like an old Family Circus comic strip. At the least, they were good breadcrumbs left in case we needed to backtrack on the trail. Some of the branches from nearby trees were iced over and bowed over the trail, causing us to have to lift them over the trail. Some broken off pieces looked like broken antlers littering the ground.

After going about .5 miles, the Appalachian Trail crosses the Blue Ridge Parkway. At this point, the trail descended through some slippery areas, so we decided to put on our Yaktrax to provide some traction. I don’t know how we would have made progress without them. After going just another mile or so, it started to snow. At first, it was just a few flurries, but it was picking up. At 3.5 miles, we came to a sign pointing out a short trail to the Rock Point Overlook. The snow was coming down so fast at this point, visibility was at a minimum. We ate a quick snack and then proceeded. At 4.35 miles, we arrived at the Cedar Cliffs overlook. The snow had been falling so hard, it was hard to find the trail. It was at this point, I realized that hiking along the AT in the snow wasn’t the best idea – all the trees were covered with snow, covering up any white blazes that would have been on the trees. We were so close to finishing this section and didn’t want to turn back at this point. I had Christine stand in one area that we knew was close to the trail and within eyesight while I scouted ahead to try and find a semblance of trail under our feet. Eventually, I found the trail again and we proceeded.

Overlook — Views from the first overlook were practically lost to the swirling snow. Below: Sign pointing the way to the overlook; Snow started coming down harder while we were stopped at the overlook; Within 15 minutes, the icy ground was covered with a generous dusting of snow.

I started to worry at this point about being able to drive back down from the mountain if the roads were going to be bad. We made a decision that when we reached the road, we would hike back along the Blue Ridge Parkway to hopefully save time and get us back to our car more quickly. At 4.85 miles, we arrived back at the Blue Ridge Parkway. We took a right and headed south along the parkway and we were soon very glad we had made this decision. We came across some great views at overlooks along the road that we didn’t have along the trail. And then the snow stopped and the sun came out to start melting the snow, which eased my nerves. The views were outstanding on the way back as we could see a defining line of snow that had hit the mountains and clear fields at the lower elevations.

While this hike had a little bit of danger due to the weather, it was a visual winter wonderland. This is the definition of winter hiking. We arrived back at the gate that was blocking the parkway at 9.0 miles and got back in our car. We decided to hit Devil’s Backbone on our return trip home and then also stopped at some other Nelson County 151 highlights – Bold Rock Cider’s new tasting room and Silverback Distillery. It really was a great adventure and it made me feel very lucky to have a wife that will go on such crazy undertakings with me.

NOTE: From research we have done, the starting point is called “Reeds Gap” in some sources and “Reids Gap” in others. We went with the first spelling since that was how it was listed on PATC and NatGeo maps.

Christine Says…

Finishing this little 4.9 section of AT turned out to be more elusive than I ever would have believed possible. After a few attempts failed due to snow/ice, closed roads, and transportation problems, we finally successfully hiked from Reeds Gap to Dripping Rock!

On the day we accomplished this minor feat, conditions weren’t quite ideal. There had been a bit of freezing rain the night before, but the weather was forecast to warm and clear over the course of the morning. The Blue Ridge Parkway was still closed, so we couldn’t leave a shuttle-back car at Dripping Rock. This wasn’t a big deal – instead of hiking 4.9 miles once, we’d have to hike those same miles twice, making a total hike of almost ten miles. We left our car in the roadside parking on Route 664, next to the Appalachian Trail crossing. Route 664 (Reed’s Gap Rd.) crosses the Blue Ridge Parkway and is kept open year-round.

At Reeds Gap, everything upright was coated with a thick glaze of ice. It was foggy and gray and raw. We headed north on the AT, our feet crunching though the crust of ice. It was so peaceful and beautiful.

We're nuts — Adam questioned how wise it was for us to hike on a day with such rapidly changing weather. Below: There were some broken trees along the parkway; Adam takes in Ravens Roost; A little ‘Christmas Story’ reenactment.

The Appalachian Trail soon crossed the Blue Ridge Parkway at the Three Ridges Overlook. The asphalt was like a skating rink! It looked like regular pavement, but it was as slick as a slip-and-slide. I could totally understand why the park service closed the road!

After crossing, there was a slight descent and the terrain became a little rockier. I started to lose my footing, so Adam helped me into my traction. The ice wasn’t thick enough or hard enough for Microspikes, so we went with Yaktrax. Mine are a touch too small for my boots, so getting them on is a two person effort. I brace on a rock and Adam yanks the Yaktrax with all his might until they snap into place! One day, I’ll buy some bigger ones. 🙂 Fitted with traction, we moved swiftly along with sure, confident footing. Snow started falling – flurries at first, then in earnest. It wasn’t supposed to snow, so we trekked on hoping the skies would soon clear up (like they were supposed to!) Ah… mountain weather at its unpredictable best!

We reached a small sign pointing us to the Rock Point Overlook. As we looked off the rocky outcropping, all we could see was clouds and swirling snow. Every now and then the clouds moved enough that we could see mountains on the other side of the gap. We ate a quick snack and moved on. The snow just kept coming down faster and faster. We started feeling a little worried about getting back to our car and finding Route 664 impassable.

Blue Ridge Parkway — There were many beautiful views along the parkway. Below: It was neat to see the snowless valley below; During the last few miles of walking, the sun came out and melted the snow off the road; Another pretty valley view.

In fair weather, there are more nice views along this stretch of the Appalachian Trail, but by the time we reached the vistas at Cedar Cliffs, we were practically in whiteout conditions. The white snow even camouflaged the white blazes on the trees. It was too bad, Cedar Cliffs had large rock ledges and would have been beautiful in clear conditions. About a half mile past the cliffs, we reached the Blue Ridge Parkway and the pullout for Dripping Rock Spring. We made it – we finished our section! At that point, the snow was still coming down hard and fast. To save time, we had decided to hike the parkway back to our car. It’s easy to move at speed when the terrain is uncomplicated. We still needed traction because the road was extremely slippery and treacherous.

It turned out that the road was the better choice for scenery, too! We saw some of the most spectacular winter vistas from Rock Point, Ravens Roost, and other openings along the way. I felt really privileged to see this scenery that most people don’t get to see when the road is closed to vehicles. As we hiked along, the promised clearing conditions finally happened. The ice on the road melted quickly and we were treated to a stunning display of sunshine and ice – it was like walking through a shimmering crystal forest.

Sunny Skies and Snow — Sunshine and snow make for a beautiful combination! Below: Once the sun came out the snow melted really quickly.

We got back to our car pretty quickly and found the car and the road both free of ice! We headed down the other side of Route 664 (past Wintergreen Resort) to go to Devil’s Backbone for lunch. The brewery was packed! All the other women there were wearing makeup, skinny jeans, and tall boots. I was sweaty, disheveled, and dressed sort of like Rainbow Brite. But whatever… they had (after an hour’s wait) beer and good food.

We decided to take the 151 route home so we could pass Bold Rock and Silverback. Bold Rock recently finished their new tasting room. It’s rustic and elegant – with fireplaces and wonderful farmland views. After beers at Devils Backbone, we skipped drinking cider, but I’m glad we took the time to check out their new facilities.

Silverback is the area’s new distillery. They’ll eventually have whiskey made using local grains. But for now, they have moonshine, gin, and vodka. You can do a flight of tastings of their three spirits – a half ounce of each, either straight or mixed into signature cocktails. We ended up sharing a flight of three mini cocktails – a Moscow Mule, a Gin and Ginger, and Monkey Tea. I’m not much of a liquor/cocktail fan, but the drinks were fun and tasty. I definitely recommend checking these two spots out if you happen to be in the area!

Devil's Backbone — We stopped for lunch at Devil’s Backbone. Below: We checked out the new taproom for Bold Rock. It’s very cozy and elegant. We didn’t stay for cider on this trip; We also stopped by Silverback distillery and shared a flight of miniature cocktails.

Trail Notes

Distance – 9 miles
(Check out the stats from Map My Hike)*
Elevation Change – 1050 ft.
Difficulty – 2. The icy conditions made it more of a challenge, but overall this would be a fairly easy hike with not as much elevation gain. The distance may make it a little more difficult for those that are not used to going this far.
Trail Conditions – 3.5. Again, the ice made this a bit more challenging, but this section of the AT was very well-maintained. There were a few loose, rocky sections.
Views – 4.5. Most of what we were able to see was from the parkway, but I know the other overlooks would lead to panoramic views.
Streams/Waterfalls – 1. There was one small, frozen over stream that might work as a water source.
Wildlife – 1. We saw lots of deer leaping into the woods, but I wouldn’t expect a lot of other wildlife, especially since this is a well-traveled section.
Ease to Navigate – 4. Just follow signs at the posts for the Appalachian Trail. Of course, since we lost the trail at one of the overlooks, we couldn’t give this a perfect score.
Solitude – 3. Due to the nearby parking lot, I would expect this would be a place where people would explore the trail. Of course, most of the cars in the nearby parking lot are likely heading up Three Ridges from Reeds Gap instead.

Download a Trail Map (PDF)

Directions to trailhead: From I-64, take exit 96 for SR 624 toward Waynesboro/Lyndhurst. Turn on to S. Delphine Avenue and go 1.2 miles. The road becomes Mt. Torrey Road/SR 664. In 9.3 miles, turn left to stay on SR 664. Once you reach the top of the road in .8 miles, you will cross the Blue Ridge Parkway. Park at the large parking lot on the other side of the road. Across from the parking lot (and across SR 664), you will see the post and sign for the Appalachian Trail. Head north on the white-blazed trail.

* MapMyHike is not necessarily accurate, as the GPS signal fades in and out – but it still provides some fun and interesting information.