Paul & Tara Visit the National Parks: September 2020

Visited: Sept 2019

Nearby city: Charlottesville, VA; North Entrance: Front Royal, VA; South Entrance: Waynesboro, VA

“Shenandoah National Park is lovely. It is possibly the most wonderful national park I have ever been in, and, considering the impossible and conflicting demands put upon it, it is extremely well run. Almost at once it became my favorite part of the Appalachian Trail.”

-Bill Bryson in “A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail

Just a few hours drive from our nation’s capital, Washington DC, lies the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. Shenandoah National Park preserves a pristine wilderness along this narrow ridge. One can traverse the length of the ridge along the 105-mile long Skyline Drive. This road offers spectacular scenic views of the Shenandoah River Valley to the west, and the rolling hills of the Virginia Piedmont to the east.

Native Americans hunted and gathered in these forested mountains for generations. During the Civil War, Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson utilized his intimate knowledge of these mountains to conceal troop movements from the Union and raid the Northern armies.

After the Civil War, the land was used for logging and mining ventures, but neither proved very successful. The area did find success as a tourist destination, and became a popular getaway for Washington DC denizens seeking a refuge from the bustling city to camp, relax, and enjoy nature.

George Freeman Pollock built the Skyland Resort (which still serves National Park visitors today) and lobbied DC politicians to designate the area for federal protection. In 1924, Shenandoah National Park was established. Pres. Herbert Hoover purchased a cabin near the park, known as the Rapidan Camp, and would occasionally use it as a weekend getaway. The Rapidan Camp is now a part of a park, and can be visited through guided tours offered by the NPS. During the Great Depression, the CCC built the Skyline Drive and many of the trails and facilities in the park.

We stayed in the Skyland Resort. It was wonderful to stay in the park boundaries. It had a great restaurant. We tried the poutine, turkey and gravy, crab cakes, and a huckleberry ice cream pie for dessert. So delicious. There was also live music. We highly recommend staying at the Skyland Resort. Our favorite part was watching the sunset from our room.

There are so many hikes in the park. One of the most popular (and shorter ones) is the 1.5 mile round-trip to Dark Hollow Falls.

We also did the 2 mile hike to South River Falls. Unfortunately, because our visit was in September, the waterfall was basically dry. Oh well...😀 it was a pleasant, beautiful hike. We also hiked to the top of Stony Man, the second highest peak in the park. This is an easy 1.5 mile hike right off the Skyline Drive, very close to the Skyland Resort.

The picture below is the upper viewpoint for South River Falls. Like I said, the waterfall was practically non-existent at this time of year. We decided not to go all the way down to the lower viewpoint.