Shenandoah National Park Hiking Tour

Shenandoah National Park is situated along a 75-mile stretch of ridgeline on the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains in northwestern Virginia.  On average, the Blue Ridge rises about 3,000-feet above the rolling farmland of the Shenandoah Valley to the west and the foothills of the Piedmont to the east.

Shenandoah Park also is a hikers’ paradise; 520 miles of trails lead to the summits of the Blue Ridge and offer the remarkable vistas for which the park is famous.  From the ridge top viewpoints, the undulating Shenandoah Valley to the west, the foothills and quaint, historic towns of the Piedmont stretch as far as the eye can see.  This is the Shenandoah that we’ll visit in the context of our 6-day hiking trip.

Our Shenandoah National Park Hiking Tour assembles in Charlottesville early morning of Day 1 and drive directly to the park’s south entrance at Rockfish Gap.  We’ll spend much of this day bagging several of the reasonably accessible summits, including Black rock and Hightop.  Later that afternoon, we’ll head to Waynesboro for our first of two overnights. The magnificent waterfalls of the Doyles River and Jones run will be our focus on day 2 in the context of an 8-mile loop that includes a section of the Appalachian Trail.

We’ll begin our journey northward through the park on Day 3 and hike Rapidan Camp-Laurel Prong-Hazeltop Loop Trail. Along the way we will pass President Hoover’s summer Whitehouse.  We’ll then head to the Skyland Lodge, where we’ll spend our final three nights. On day 4, it is off to the South River Falls trail as well as the Bearfence Mountain trail.

We’ll explore beautiful White Oak Canyon and Cedar Run on Day 5 along a trail that offers Shenandoah’s largest collection of waterfalls set in one of the park’s deepest canyons.  Following the hike, we’ll return to Skyland for our final evening.  Day 6, we’re headed for the 4,056-foot summit of Hawksbill Mountain, Shenandoah’s highest peak, and its breathtaking 360-degree view of the surrounding Blue Ridge.  We’ll join another section of the Appalachian Trail to complete this 3-mile loop and ultimately return to Charlottesville, where our Shenandoah National Park Hiking Tour concludes.

Total Hiking Mileage - 33.4 miles

^ Top