Shenandoah National Park Was Absolutely Worth Stopping For During A Road Trip Through Virginia
Why Have I Never Visited This Park Before??? It Was Fantastic!
I have spent years cruising up and down I-81 between my hometown in Knoxville, Tennessee and various destinations in Virginia, Maryland, and up to the northeast. I have always seen the signs for Shenandoah National Park from the interstate but I never made the time to stop here before for whatever reason.
On my last trip to visit family in DC, I finally said enough is enough and we planned an overnight stop in Harrisonburg, VA with at least one day in the park. And I am kicking myself for not having done this before. We had a fabulous time in our 24 hours in the area.
Shenandoah National Park is only 15-30 minutes from the I-81 depending on which entrance so that was easy. And it was easy to continue on from the park to Washington, DC the next day by hopping on I-66 in Front Royal. It was a great way to break up what is usually a 7- 8 hour car trip that feels like forever to me by the time we get there. I may always stop in Shenandoah from now on if I can, if only to watch the sunset from an overlook. It was that great.
There are far more hiking options than I thought there would be in Shenandoah, 5 campgrounds to choose from, 3 park lodges and some cabins in the park if you don’t do camping, and nearby Harrisonburg (3o min from the park) has even more options for lodging and food. (We stayed at the Hyatt Place in Harrisonburg.)
You can find so many gorgeous vistas from everywhere on Skyline Drive it seemed like. I had been missing out on what could have been years of family memories from repeat visits to Shenandoah National Park by not stopping before now.
Do You Have Kids That Aren’t Into Long Walks In The Woods?
Then Shenandoah is absolutely the park for you.
It has the most amount of amazing views for the least amount of effort of any national park I have been to. Get out of the car and 30 minutes later, boom, magical mountaintop views. Skyline Drive is like a drive-thru-window of mountain vistas that delivers straight to your car without you having to even get out. It is addicting-- you just want to keep going and going to see what’s around the next curve.
If you just want to know about the hikes we did and less about the other stuff (overlooks and driving time on Skyline Drive, where we stayed, what we found at the waysides to eat, etc) then skip over to “Our Family’s Four Fun Hikes In Shenandoah National Park.”
One of oh so many fantastic pictures in exchange for a stupidly small amount of effort in Shenandoah National Park, this one being the Blackrock Summit Trail.
Sunset view from the Rockytop Overlook. You can see why people were set up at some of the overlooks with cameras and chairs to watch the show.
A Little Background Info About The Park
History
The name Shenandoah is of Native American origin but no one is completely sure of the specifics. Wikipedia has an interesting read on the possibilities though.
Shenandoah National Park was officially dedicated by FDR in July, 1936 but was the result of years of effort by business people in the area to create a park to attract tourists. Skyland Resort was actually created in the late 1800s as a vacation destination for city folk and then incorporated into the park when it was established.
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the Great Depression was heavily involved in building Skyline Drive as well as landscaping around the park. There was some controversy in establishing the park as there were several hundred mountain people that lived here and many did not want to move away. The Visitor Center at Big Meadows does a good job telling the stories of the CCC men and the locals displaced by the park formation. You can also learn about the park on its NPS website.
Orientation
Shenandoah National Park runs along a ridgeline of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The Shenandoah Valley is between the park and the Appalachian Mountains to the west. I-81 runs through the valley as does the Shenandoah River and the towns of Luray and Harrisonburg are off the interstate. (There is also a town called Shenandoah in the Shenandoah Valley so for those counting at home that makes at least 4 things named Shenandoah in one area- a national park, a river, a valley, and a town. It gets confusing.)
The national park runs almost north-south, with the 105 mile Skyline Drive forming the backbone of the park.
***Each mile is marked with a sign on Skyline Drive. The important landmarks of Shenandoah National Park will be listed with their mile marker. You should note them so you know when you are getting near trailheads/ waysides/ etc when you are driving.
There are 4 entrance stations to the park:
Front Royal entrance (mm 0) is at the northern end nearest Washington, DC.
Rockfish Gap entrance (mm 104.6) at the southern end near Waynesboro, VA.
Thornton Gap entrance (mm 31.5) is in the middle on Hwy 211 near Luray, VA.
Swift Run entrance (mm 65.5) is in the middle on Hwy 33 near Harrisonburg, VA.
These entrance stations kinda divide the park into 3 sections in my head:
the northern section from Front Royal to Thornton Gap- about 31 miles
the middle section from Thornton Gap to Swift Run Gap- about 34 miles, the most popular section
the southern end from Swift Run Gap to Rockfish Gap- about 40 miles, maybe the least visited section of the park
Click on maps below to enlarge, maps courtesy of Google Maps and the National Park Service with my own annotations
Shenandoah National Park Entrance Fees
$30 for a 7 day pass for your car
Annual Shenandoah pass for $55
$80 for an “America the Beautiful” National Park Pass that covers entrance fees at all National Parks for a year
Buy the Shenandoah pass online to save time or get the America the Beautiful National Park Pass if you think you are going to more than one national park this year.
You can buy passes at the entrance gates as well with cash or card but online is much faster plus sometimes the fee stations are closed so you have to buy online anyway. And cell service in the park is spotty so you don’t want to wait until you are in the park to try and download the website. Online ahead of time for the win!
Visitor Centers
*Pro-Tip- even if the Visitor Center is closed, the bathrooms usually stay open year-round.
The Harry F. Byrd Visitor Center is at Big Meadows (mile marker 51) basically smack in the middle of the park. It has bathrooms, a bookstore, a ranger station, detailed exhibits on the history of the park which I enjoyed and the nephew found boring, a short movie about Shenandoah, and a nice viewing area overlooking Big Meadows. This Visitor Center is open year round although it closes on Tues/Wed in winter (Nov- March). It is next to the Big Meadows Wayside, a camp store/grill restaurant/gift shop.
There is another, smaller Visitor Center near the Front Royal entrance at mile marker 5, the Dickey Ridge Visitor Center. It also has bathrooms, a bookstore, a park movie, and rangers available to answer all your questions. The exhibit room is really small and focuses on the animals you will find in the park and has a neat topographic map of the park as well. Behind the Visitor Center is big grassy area with great views to the west. Not a bad place to spread a picnic blanket. Dickey Ridge is closed in the winter (Nov- March) as well as Wed/Thur in spring and late fall.
Waysides
This is what they call the gift shop/camp stores/small grill counters in Shenandoah. There are 3 waysides in the park- Loft Mountain, Big Meadows, and Elkwallow, evenly spaced along Skyline drive about 25 miles apart. They are usually closed in the winter, especially the grill counters.
The camp stores were some of the best I have ever seen, especially the one in Big Meadows. The Loft Mountain camp store is actually in the campground, a little ways away from the Loft Mountain Wayside.
I have pictures and more info about Big Meadows and Elkwallow Waysides below in my overly detailed description of our trip because we stopped at those two.
*Pro-Tip- Big Meadows Wayside has a gas station, the only one in the park. Something to keep in mind.
How Long Does It Take To Drive Thru Shenandoah National Park?
You can only drive 35 mph in the park because A), it is the speed limit and B), the road is curvy and C), there are many, manycdeer. And bears. And hikers on trails all crossing Skyline Drive at various points. You really can’t go much faster than the speed limit, especially when it’s dark. Because you can only go 35 mph, each section takes you about an hour to drive.
Plan on about 3 hours to drive the entire 105 mile Skyline Drive if you don’t stop at all.
Plan on 4 hours if you stop at some of the overlooks and do one short hike.
Plan on about 5- 6 hours if you stop at interesting overlooks, stop to eat at a wayside/ lodge, and do 1-2 short hikes.
Plan on a solid 10- 11 hours if you drive all 105 miles of Skyline Drive, do all 4 of the hikes we did, take lots of pictures at overlooks, eat a picnic lunch at a wayside, and tour the main Visitor Center. That is about how long it took us, split into a late afternoon and most of the following day.
We had a standoff with this deer as we tried to figure out who was going first. We saw a 10:1 deer to car ratio while driving in the southern section of the park in late afternoon in October so you definitely shouldn’t speed.
What We Did In Shenandoah National Park
ALL THE NITTY GRITTY DETAILS
I will give you the blow- by -blow account of our one and a half day trip if you are the kind of person (like me) that likes to know all the little things so you can better plan out your time. Of course, life happens, but I find that the more info I have, the better I am able to pivot or rearrange plans to accommodate blisters, pouring rain, and surly teenagers. So I have all the approximate times it took us to drive from place to places, all the overlooks we stopped at, and all the information I gathered before our trip about lodging options. As GI Joe says, “Now you know. And knowing is half the battle.”
If you want even more details and pictures from our hikes, I included those in a separate blog because this one got a little unwieldy. “Our Family’s Four Fun Hikes In Shenandoah National Park”
Day 1- Rockfish Gap To Swift Run Gap
5:15 pm- entered park through Rockfish Gap gate
6:11 pm- Blackrock Summit Trail- 1 mile RT, easy, 45 min, hike to a rocky summit with 360 views
7:07 pm- Rockytop Overlook- watch sunset
8 pm- arrival at hotel in Harrisonburg
Map of our stops between Rockfish Gap entrance and Swift Run Gap. Map courtesy of the NPS. I outlined our major stops in red but not every overlooked we stopped at. That would be almost all of them. So pretty!
Knoxville,TN To Shenandoah NP
We were driving up to DC to see some family for Fall Break in early October 2022. We left Knoxville, TN at 12 pm and arrived at Rockfish Gap (the south entrance to Shenandoah National Park) at 5:15 pm.
There is a fee station at Rockfish Gap entrance and we showed the ranger our National Park pass to enter. We asked if there were any park alerts we needed to know about which is a hard-learned lesson of mine from showing up at closed trailheads. We also asked about good places for the sunset which is how we got our first trail recommendation- Blackrock Summit- which is where we headed next.
Rockfish Gap Entrance To Blackrock Summit Trail
50 min/ mm 104.6 to mm 84.4
We stopped at overlooks along the way that had great views, which turned out to be a lot of them. So it took us just under an hour to drive the 20 miles from the entrance to the Blackrock Summit trailhead parking lot. The southern third of the park (from the Rockfish Gap entrance to the Swift Run entrance) is the least crowded and we hardly saw anyone.
We did notice a couple of people set up at 1 or 2 of the overlooks to watch the sunset. They had chairs, blankets, and snacks and we decided that was gonna be us on our next visit. Such a great idea.
Click on pictures below to enlarge
6pm- Blackrock Summit Trail
Easy 1 mile RT loop, 30-45 min, 175 ft elevation gain
Yays- awesome view, fun rock scrambling, excellent sunset or sunrise watching, short length
Nays- young kids might have trouble climbing up rocks to very top
pets allowed
If you rock scramble up to the top of Blackrock Summit, you can get some incredible views of the sunset.
We pulled into the well- marked and decently large parking lot for Blackrock Summit at mm 84.4 a little after 6 pm. This is a loop trail so you can take the Appalachian Trail or Trayfoot Mountain Trail up to Blackrock Summit and the other one back. It doesn’t really matter which one you choose first. Both trails were mild inclines and in good condition.
The summit is actually a huge pile of boulders called a talus slope which you can rock scramble up to the very top (this might be hard for young kids as the boulders were quite big). Or you can stay on the trail that circles around this rock pile and you will still have great views.
We saw no one on this trail but I heard from other people that Blackrock Summit is a popular trail so the parking lot can get full weekends in the fall or everyday in the summer. So go early to beat the crowd or go late like us.
If you have younger kids, this trail is a designated TRACK Trail meaning there is a brochure and a sign next to the trailhead sign giving kids activities to do. The activities were cute, like think about what you would put in your backpack if you were hiking the AT. See the website for more info.
Click on pictures below to enlarge
Blackrock Summit To Harrisonburg
1 hr 10 min/ mm 84.4 to mm 65.5 + 21 miles on Hwy 33
We got back in the car from the trail at 6:50 pm and continued driving north towards the Swift Run Gap entrance (mile marker 65.5). We stopped at a couple more overlooks on the way because they just kept having incredible views so it took us about 45 minutes to get to the Swift Run Gap gate instead of the 30 min it should have.
From the Swift Run Gap entrance, you exit the park and get on Hwy 33 heading east to Harrisonburg. There were a lot of signs. It took us just under 30 min to get to our hotel in Harrisonburg from the park. We were there by about 8pm.
Sunset views from Big Run Overlook were fantastic
But my nephew and I agreed that Rockytop Overlook was the best, though. A huge view of the horizon and the setting sun.
Where We Stayed In Harrisonburg
We stayed in Harrisonburg at the Hyatt Place, one of the newest (built in 2021) and nicest Hyatt Places I have stayed in. It had wonderful views of the mountains and a 5th floor restaurant/ bar that had a open air deck which was pretty cool.
After a long day of driving and exploring, it turned out I was too tired to shower and then head back out to downtown Harrisonburg for grub so it was really nice to be able to just walk down the hall to the restaurant. The food was pretty tasty and not terribly overpriced given it is a hotel restaurant.
The hotel breakfast was one of the better ones as well- your typical eggs, breakfast potatoes, oatmeal, and other hot stuff as well bagels, toast, cereal, and fruit. We also really liked the room- 2 queens and a sofa area so you could sleep 5-6 if needed to. There was more than enough room for the 2 of us, so nice to spread out a little after a long car trip. Two thumbs up for the Hyatt Place Harrisonburg!
Click on photos below to enlarge
Day 2- Swift Run To Front Royal
This was a much busier and longer day than Day 1.
7:15 am- Left the Hyatt Place Harrisonburg
8 am- 1st hike- Bearfence Trail: 1.1 miles RT, moderate, 311 ft elevation gain, 1 hour, excellent 360 views, lots of rock scrambling, our favorite hike of our trip
9:30 am- 2nd hike- Dark Hollow Falls: 1.5 miles RT, easy, 1 hour, 440 ft elevation change, beautiful waterfall hike
11 am- Picnic lunch at Big Meadows Wayside
11:30 am- Harry F. Byrd Visitor Center at Big Meadows
1:30 pm- 3rd (and last) hike- Upper Hawksbill Trail- 2.1 miles RT, easy, 520 ft elevation change, 1 hour, hike to Hawksbill Summit, the highest point in the park
3:15 pm- Elkwallow Wayside- bathroom break and snacks for the car
4 pm- exited the park via the Front Royal entrance and drove on to Arlington, VA to stay with relatives.
Click on maps below to enlarge, maps courtesy of the NPS, I outlined our stops in red
7:15am- Hyatt Place Harrisonburg To Swift Run Gap Entrance
30 min/ 21 miles on Hwy 33
Trying To See The Sunrise
My only negative about the Hyatt Place Harrisonburg was that breakfast didn’t start until 6:30am. While we wanted to see 7:15 am sunrise in the park (30 min away from our hotel), we knew it would be a long day so we also wanted to have a big breakfast. Our plan was to be at breakfast right at 630 am when it opened, eat quickly, and get on the road to get to the park as close to sunrise as possible. Trying to have the best of both worlds.
Of course as so often happens on trips, we didn’t quite execute as planned. We didn’t end up leaving until 7:15 am so did not enter the park at Swift Run Gap until about 7:45 am. The entrance station wasn’t manned yet but they had a sign to purchase your pass online through recreation.gov. The park gates are open even when the entrance stations are closed. We have an America the Beautiful pass so didn’t have to purchase a Shenandoah pass.
7:45 am- Swift Run Gap To Bearfence Trailhead Parking Area
about 13 min/ mm 65.5 to mm 56.5
Even though we got to the park about 30 min after sunrise, the light was still beautiful. Most of the overlooks near Swift Run Gap face west so while it was nice to see the light move over the misty Shenandoah Valley below, they were not good for watching the sunrise itself. The only east facing overlook between the Swift Run Gap entrance and the Bearfence Trail parking lot is South River (about mm 62.8, about 3 miles north of Swift Run Gap ) and it is more of a meadow overlook and you can’t see much of the horizon. It wasn’t good for the sunrise.
If you wanted to watch the sunrise and were entering through Swift Run Gap, I would head south to Bacon Hollow Overlook (mm 69, about 4 miles south from Swift Run Gap) or climb carefully to the top of Bearfence Mountain (parking area mm 56.5, about 9 miles north of Swift Run Gap) in the dark and wait for the show.
8am- Bearfence Trail
1.1 mile RT, 1 hr 15 min, moderate difficulty, 311 ft elevation gain
Yays- the VIEW!!!, super short length, fun rock scrambling
Nays- young kids will need a lot of help, some steep dropoffs, definitely skip if rainy/ icy
no pets allowed
This maybe our favorite trail we did on the whole trip. Again, super short investment of time and effort for huge rewards of gorgeous 360 views. And also again- more rock scrambling, even more than on the Blackrock Summit trail.
*** Bearfence Trail would be my recommendation if you only do one trail in Shenandaoh National Park. It has the views, the rock scrambling, the AT-- everything I thought that made Shenandoah awesome.
The views looking east from the best bit of rock scrambling on Bearfence Trail. You can see why we loved it! And notice the blue blaze by my nephew’s feet. You are following those across the rocks.
Bearfence is a loop trail where one half of the loop requires some moderate scrambling over large rock outcroppings and the other half of the loop is the Appalachian Trail. There is a common viewpoint at the end that both halves reach but it is nothing compared to the 360 views you get on the rocks. You do this trail for the rock scrambling section.
The decently large parking area at mm 56.5 is across Skyline Drive from the trailhead. It is a short trail but it takes longer than you think because the rock scrambling slows you down. So does stopping for all the pictures. Following the trail on the rocks is fairly easy once you get the hang of spotting the blue blazes. I circled them on some of the pictures below so you can see what I am talking about.
We did not see anyone on this trail midweek in October which was fantastic, but I bet that is not the case in summer or on weekends. Bearfence is one of the more popular trails in the park. I would absolutely make the effort to go very early or maybe late in the day and try to skip the most congested times. Navigating the rocky ridge with lots of other people would be dangerous and time consuming- basically ruining what I thought was a magical trail.
Click on images below to enlarge
Bearfence Trailhead To Dark Hollow Falls Parking Lot
10 min/ mm 56.5 to mm 50.7
There were only a couple of overlooks in between these two trails and only one we stopped and took a picture at, The Point Overlook. It was because you could see all the way out to the mountains on the far side of the Shenandoah Valley so got a good view of the valley.
You can see the town of Elkton and across the Shenandoah Valley to the mountains on the far side from The Point Overlook. I think that knob in the middle is the Massanutten Ski Area just outside Harrisonburg.
9:30am- Dark Hollow Falls Trail
1.5 miles RT, easy, 1 hour, 440 ft elevation change
Yays- really nice waterfall, short length, opportunities for splashing in a stream for kids
Nays- busiest trail we hiked, I hate going downhill first and having to come back up
No pets allowed
Dark Hollow Falls was a pretty series of cascades that made a nice endpoint of a fairly short hike. Not the most spectacular of waterfalls but worth seeing nonetheless.
Our second hike of the day was Dark Hollow Falls, one of the most popular hikes in Shenandoah National Park. I usually skip the busiest trails in a park but it was right next to Big Meadows where we wanted to have lunch so it was a convenient stop. Plus, I had heard that the waterfall was quite pretty so off we went.
Dark Hollow Falls was a really lovely waterfall, which was more of a series of cascades to me than one big waterfall, but made for great pictures regardless. The waterfall area and a little downriver of it was a great place to explore, but I would be super careful, especially with kids, as the rocks were enticingly perfect for jumping across but the water was moving fast and the waterfalls were steep. Missteps could have very dangerous consequences in places.
The return trip was less fun than the going because it is all uphill. But just when you think you are ready for a break, you are back to the parking lot. Like almost all the trails in Shenandoah, this would not be for the mobility impaired as there were steps and parts were very rocky. I think almost any age kid could do it though, given an appropriate speed and perhaps some blatant bribery.
The Dark Hollow Falls Trail was one of the busiest trails we hiked in Shenandoah and the large parking lot was fairly full by the time we got back to the trailhead at 10:45 am so I would bet money that parking here on busy summer days would be impossible unless you go early.
Click on pictures below to enlarge
11am- Big Meadows Wayside From Dark Hollow Falls
mm 50.7 to mm 51/ not even enough time to pick a song on the playlist
Our next stop was lunch since we hadn’t eaten since leaving the hotel at 7:45 am and it was now 11 am. And I had a teenager with me so it was about to be an emergency situation. We drove up to the Wayside at Big Meadows from the Dark Hollow Falls parking lot to have a picnic.
The Wayside was fantastic-- a combination camp store, 7-eleven like food mart, a gift shop and bookstore as well as a gas station (the only one in Shenandoah NP). It even has a small grill restaurant and places to sit down and eat inside and out.
The food selection was impressive- ready to go sandwiches, salads, ice cream, chips, and even smoothies. Plus you could stock up on grocery supplies like bread, smore makings, buns, cereal, etc. You could get almost any kind of drink too- water, gatorade, soft drinks, protein drinks, and even beer/ wine. And you could pick up things like TP, paper plates, paper towels, and aluminum foil. So like I said, I was impressed.
The grill restaurant was a walk up counter with burgers, grilled cheese, hot dogs, and milkshakes on the menu. It had soups too and a kids menu so I think everyone could find something here if you aren’t super picky. Prices weren’t bad, especially considering the location, but not cheap.
The camp store was great as well, stocked with everything from matches to tents- I guess in case someone forgot to pack that. It wasn’t big but they had a lot crammed into that corner of the wayside.
The large gift shop had fare that was pretty typical for a national park, everything from books to sweatshirts to wine glasses.
We brought food with us in the car so we just bought some cold drinks and candy from the wayside then took our picnic to the outdoor tables overlooking Big Meadows, which is a large grassy bald. We could see people strolling thru the meadow along a gravel road and it looked nice. A perfect place for a stop with younger kids that needed to stretch their legs.
Click on images below to enlarge
11:30am- Visitor Center At Big Meadows
Next Door To The Wayside
We walked over to the Visitor Center from the wayside and caught a ranger giving an entertaining bear talk, complete with guitar and original song (super corny but so cute). Kudos to him making the job fun. Learned a couple of new things about black bears (didn’t know their eyesight was so bad) before heading into the Visitor Center.
You can start with the 12 minute video called “Experience Shenandoah” but I found it somewhat skippable because it’s not as much about the history of the park but more about the benefits of being in nature and beautiful shots of the mountains and wildlife. I felt like it was a bit interchangeable with any other national park video. Apparently there is a second movie called “The Gift” that is about the formation of the park that you can request and I probably would have liked more. Maybe next time.
The exhibits on the history of the park- its formation, the removal of the locals, the involvement of the CCC in creating Skyline Drive, and desegregation at the lodges and waysides were really well done, with lots of pictures and detailed information, and I tried to spend time reading everything. The 13 year old nephew was less enthused and called it boring because “it is Fall Break and I don’t want to learn school things.” I could grimace, but I remember visiting the Grand Canyon at 17 with my Mom and I am sure she has similar tales.
There is another small gift shop in the Visitor Center and a large ranger desk that was really busy with people asking questions and getting park stamps as well as kid ranger badges.
I think we spent maybe 30 min in the exhibits, 12 min watching the introductory video, plus about 15 minutes outside listening to the ranger’s bear presentation so about an hour total at the Visitor Center.
Click on images below to enlarge
Drive From Big Meadows To Upper Hawskbill Trail Parking Lot
10 min/ mm 51 to mm 46.5
We stopped at 2 overlooks on the way:
Franklin Cliffs Overlook (mm 49)- nice view down to the town of Stanley, VA below and neat because you could see Skyline Drive winding through the ridge on your left.
Spitler Knoll Overlook (mm 48.1) is a grassy bald that was once Spitler Ranch and used for livestock grazing before the park was formed. Wonder if the ranchers argued over who got to check on the cattle up here?
Click on pictures below to enlarge
1:30pm- Hawskbill Summit Via Upper Hawksbill Trail
2.1 mile RT, easy, 65 min, 520 ft elevation gain, highest point in the park (4,051 ft)
Yays- easiest trail to Hawksbill Summit, great views at the top, nice wide trail, not very rocky
Nays- a busy trail, thought the views were a little better on Bearfence and Blackrock Summit
Pets allowed
We wanted to hike to the highest point in Shenandoah National Park because we are those kind of people. The views from the summit are really good- maybe not quite as good as from Bearfence or Blackrock we felt, but we also could have been a bit spoiled by this point in time, having been inundated by amazing views for basically a day and a half. So perhaps our judgement was skewed.
This was a nice wide trail that we definitely had our fastest hiking time on as it was also the least rocky. Near the summit is a picnic shelter but there are plenty of rocks at the top to spread out and have a snack as well. There is a viewing platform at the summit as well that has some nifty compasses embedded in the stone walls that point to nearby landmarks.
After some research, we decided on Upper Hawksbill Trail out of the 3 trails to the summit because:
It is longer than the Lower Hawksbill Summit Trail by 0.5 miles, but it is less steep, 520 ft elevation gain versus 690 ft.
The parking area is larger at the upper trail than at Hawksbill Gap, where the Lower Hawksbill Trail (1.7 miles) and the Hawksbill Loop (2.9 miles) start.
Click on images below to enlarge
Upper Hawksbill Parking Lot to Elkwallow Wayside
45 min/ mm 46.5 to mm 24
By the time we got back to the car around 2:30 pm from our hike to Hawksbill Summit, we were ready for a bit of sitting and driving so we did not stop at as many overlooks from this point on as we did in the beginning. Plus, we needed to be in DC by late afternoon/early evening so we needed to start making some time.
We stopped at 3 overlooks between the Upper Hawksbill parking lot and Elkwallow Wayside:
Crescent Rock Overlook (mm 44.4)- looks back to Hawksbill Peak, which we just climbed.
Pinnacles Overlook (mm 35.1) - stop for a great view out to Old Rag mountain, one of the iconic hikes in Shenandoah that we did not have time for.
Tunnel Parking Overlook (mm 32.2)- CCC workers spent 3 months blasting this tunnel out in 1932. I thought the tunnel was more interesting than the overlook since apparently I did not take a picture of the view out. Supposedly this is one of the best places in the park for the sunrise though.
After going thru the tunnel on Skyline Drive, we came to Thornton Gap at mm 31.5, one of the entrances to Shenandoah National Park. We thought about exiting here and heading east on Hwy 211 towards DC which was our final destination that night. It would have saved us about 30 min but we would have missed doing the entire Skyline Drive. So we kept going, because you know, gotta complete the mission. (That decision came back to bite us as it meant we ended up hitting DC traffic near rush hour. So keep that in mind if you are in a similar situation.)
Click on images below to enlarge
3:15pm-Elkwallow Wayside
https://www.nps.gov/places/000/elkwallow-wayside.htm
We pulled into Elkwallow at mm 24 for a snack/bathroom break and to stretch our legs. I really liked the 3 waysides in Shenandoah; I thought it was handy to have a central place to have groceries, good bathrooms, trash/ recycling, gift shop, and a grill restaurant. It is an idea I think more national parks could incorporate to everyone’s benefit.
Elkwallow also has a picnic area next to the wayside that’s shady and nice if you are thinking about getting food and taking it somewhere to eat. It was better than the tables right around the wayside. The Elkwallow picnic area has a separate entrance just south from the Elkwallow Wayside entrance off of Skyline Drive.
The gift shop and convenience store closes Nov- April and the grill restaurant is closed Nov- end of May. But the bathrooms usually stay open year- round.
Elkwallow To Front Royal
30 min/ mm 24 to mm 0
It was time to bring our Shenandoah National Park journey to an end but we managed to stop at 3 more overlooks before exiting the park through the Front Royal entrance. It took us a little over 30 min to drive this last 24 miles according to my photo time stamps and it now occurs to me that I must not have been doing a good job obeying the 35 mph speed limit. Sorry park police?!
Last 3 overlooks we stopped at:
Rattlesnake Point Overlook (mm 21.9)- since our day was pretty clear, you could see Stony Man, Marys Rock, and even Old Rag in the distance
Range View Overlook (mm 17.2)- a pretty spectacular panoramic look back south over much of Shenandoah NP. You can see Hogback mountain on your right, Stony Man, and again, Old Rag way in the distance.
Signal Knob Overlook (mm 5.7)- Our first glimpse of the Shenandoah River- at least the first time we were sure that’s what we were seeing.
Click on images below to enlarge
Rattlesnake Point Overlook. You can see Stony Man and Old Rag in the distance. We were lucky we had such a clear day but it did mean we could hardly pass up any overlooks, they all had such great views.
I put 2 of my pictures together to show the panoramic views from Range View Overlook. It was one of my favorites on all of Skyline Drive. You can see Hogback Mountain in the right picture and Old Rag and Stony Mountain waaaay in the distance in the left picture. You can click to enlarge the pictures above.
Looking down on the Shenandoah River from Signal Knob overlook, the last overlook we stopped at on Skyline Drive.
Where To Stay When Visiting Shenandoah National Park
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Where You Should Stay Depends On…
Where you should stay might depend on what time of year you are going, how long is your trip, what other activities you like to do, are you a camper or do you like historic park lodges, do you like to go out to eat at night at different places, how old are your kids, how far from civilization do you want to be, and a million more things to consider. (Maybe not a million but you get the drift.)
I would start by answering this question first- What do you care most about doing?
If it’s exploring Shenandoah NP then stay in the park if you can, either in the campgrounds, lodges, or cabins.
If you want to see the park but also maybe tube the Shenandoah River, visit Luray Caverns, explore the food scene in Sperryville or Harrisonburg, visit a winery, go horseback riding, etc, then you might be better off in a hotel or vacation rental in one of the towns around the park near the other activities you want to do.
We stayed in Harrisonburg at the excellent Hyatt Place Harrisonburg because we were only staying one night, we have points with Hyatt, and all the lodges in the park were booked or seemed overly expensive to me for what you get. But on my next trip to Shenandoah, I really want to camp. I drove around several of the campgrounds and they looked nice.
5 Campgrounds In Shenandoah National Park
There are 5 campgrounds to choose from in the park. One is a group tent camping only site but the other 4 take RVs and tents. All of the campgrounds are seasonal, usually closed Oct 31 until March or early May depending on the campground. Big Meadows was kept open until Nov 27 this year (2022), but the rest closed at the usual time.
Reservations are highly recommended for fall weekends or anytime in the summer. You can book up to 6 months ahead of time. The 4 non- group campgrounds keep many sites for FCFS (first come, first served) that you can only get by being onsite at the campground, not by calling ahead. These don’t last long either. In spring, the sites are almost all FCFS in all the campgrounds.
Camping fees are $30 for a regular site 1-6 people, and $75 for a group site 7 or more people. I absolutely recommend perusing the recreation.gov website and looking at individual campsites. It was pretty good for Shenandoah and many of the sites had pictures and reviews. I would start with the NPS map of each campground because it has the bathrooms and amenities more clearly marked, but use the recreation.gov website to decide which campsite.
1.Matthews Arm Campground (mm 22.1)
165 campsites, no tent only sites, 50 sites are reservable- the rest are FCFS
No showers/ laundry, does have potable water and flush bathrooms.
Nearest wayside is Elkwallow (mm 24)
2.Big Meadows Campground (mm 51.2)
221 campsites; 51 are walk-in, tent only sites, most sites are reservable
Showers and laundry available- take quarters
Campsites on the outside of E loop have good views and are right on the AT so you can meet some hikers.
This is the most well-developed campground in the park, lots of amenities including the Big Meadows Lodge and Wayside are nearby.
3.Lewis Mountain Campground (mm 57.5)
NPS website; no recreation.gov website because no reservations here
30 campsites, all FCFS, no tent only sites, no generator free area
Has a small campstore and showers/ laundry- take quarters
4.Loft Mountain Campground (mm 79.5)
207 campsites, about 80 are reservable, 50 are walk-in tent only sites
Showers and laundry available- take quarters, campstore on site
Loft Mountain Wayside nearby
5.Dundo Group Campground (mm 83.7)
3 group sites for 7- 20 people, all reservable
No potable water on-site, vault toilet only
Lodging In Shenandoah National Park
There are 3 lodging options in the park- Skyland, Big Meadows Lodge, and Lewis Mountain Cabins. (Technically there are 4 options as the Potomac Appalachian Club maintains some cabins- some are for public use and some for members-only- check their website for more info).
1. Skyland
Near mm 42 at Skyline Drive’s highest point, Skyland is a group of 28 buildings perched along a ridge with fantastic views. You can stay in their hotel rooms (1 K or 2 Q) or try a more rustic cabin in this historic resort. Get 3 meals a day in the Pollock Dining room, get something for the road from the Grab ‘N Go, or have burgers and beers at the Mountain Taproom.
We didn’t stay here because it was mostly sold out on our dates and the only room was a non-renovated 2Q hotel room for over $200. We got a better deal in Harrisonburg even though that meant we had to drive a bit more.
2. Big Meadows Lodge
This is in the center of the park so very convenient. Has traditional lodge rooms, more modern hotel rooms in separate buildings, and cabins. The views from the back deck of the lodge are fantastic. Has a big dining room in the lodge and a pizza pub downstairs.
We didn’t stay here because it was mostly sold out and what was left was expensive. The less than glowing recent TripAdvisor reviews also gave me pause. But it looked gorgeous ( I love a big historic lodge) when we walked around and it would be my first choice if we decide to stay in the park on our next visit.
3. Lewis Mountain Cabins
If you want to camp but not in a tent, then try these very rustic cabins. Some have bathrooms and some do not. If you want a private bathroom then rent the 2 BR cabin, it just means you get both sides of a 1 BR cabin because the bathroom is in the middle. No AC/ stoves/ refrigerators but you get a grill grate over your fire pit outside and a little porch area.
Vacation Rentals In The Area
You won’t be hurting for choices unless you book last minute. Plenty of options for even large family gatherings, from quaint cabins to large farmhouses. My only caution would be look closely at the map, some are close to the park as the crow flies but not as the car drives.
These are just a couple that I saw that I am looking at for our family when we go back to Shenandoah.
Cozy Country Farmhouse!Renovated & Updated. Great Location In The Valley! I love an old farmhouse, and this 3 BR/ 1 BA one seems just so appropriate for this area. An 86 acre working farm with Shenandoah River frontage and bucolic charm to spare. Only negative is that the one bathroom is downstairs and the bedrooms are up. Avg $160 a night and located north of Elkton.
One-of-a-kind mountain cabin w design touches throughout, near the Shenandoah NP If you are looking for a gorgeous cabin in the woods, this is it. Beautifully designed, this 4 BR, 2.5 BA cabins is actually 2 cabins- a large main one and an attached studio cabin that looks straight out of a magazine. They have kayaks, tubes, and bikes, and the property borders the park near Elkton. Avg $289 a night.
Entire Colonial House Across The Inn At Little Washington VA. If you are a foodie, this might be the place for you. This 3 BR/ 2.5 BA cottage is across the street from The Inn at Little Washington, the only 3 star Michelin restaurant in the DC area. It has a kitchen and a living room on each floor too so lots of room. Close to some other wineries, breweries, and cute restaurants in this area. Avg $217 a night.
FIVE STAR Award Winning Farmstay With Stunning Views This large 6 BR/ 2 BA Farmhouse is for those looking a large family getaway with tons of activities onsite for kiddos like a hayride, a firepit, or hanging out with the rescue animals on the farm. Rave reviews about the fresh eggs and veggies and the friendly owner. Avg $839 a night.
Hotels Near Shenandoah National Park
Again, you need to figure out where you want to be based on your travel plans and what kind of hotel you are looking for. The big chain hotels will be in Harrisonburg, Staunton, and Front Royal while the smaller towns will have quaint B&Bs and cheaper motels.
Why We Stayed In Harrisonburg
The biggest town in the area is Harrisonburg and thanks to James Madison University there, it has a lot more hotels than you might think for a town its size. Basically all the big name chains are here. At only 30 min from the Swift Run Gap entrance to the park and with lots of restaurants and shopping, it is a great place to make your homebase.
We chose the Hyatt Place Harrisonburg, which was a really nice, brand new hotel (built 2021) with spacious rooms, excellent included breakfast, and a super cool 5th floor restaurant with an open deck and view of the mountains. I originally picked it thinking we could explore Harrisonburg after spending the day in the park, but we got to the hotel too late and were too tired to go back out. It was super close to downtown though so maybe next time!
If you like a B&B and your kids are older than 8, check out the Friendly City Inn Bed & Breakfast. We drove by it and it looked like a neat old house and it gets rave reviews for the breakfast and the friendly owners. The have rooms with private bathrooms and multiple beds to accommodate up to 4 people.
Final Thoughts About Our Trip
We loved our short one and a half days in Shenandoah National Park and I can’t believe I have never visited before. It is such an easy stop of off I-81 and it had some really fantastic hikes, especially considering I barely had to do anything to get to an amazing vantage point.
We were pleasantly surprised by the lack of crowds midweek in early October and blown away by the sunrise and sunset views from the hikes and overlooks in Shenandoah. I would absolutely recommend you make that a priority on your visit if you can. If you find yourself nearby in late afternoon, see if you can’t detour over to the park and find an overlook with a view of the sunset. You won’t regret it.
I am absolutely considering coming back, and making it a multiday adventure with probably some camping involved at one of the 5 campgrounds in the park. I would bring my camp chair and set up to watch the sunset each night and be blissfully happy.
I want to hike Old Rag, which is a full day hike and needs advance reservations, plus I want to actually see the sunrise this time from a mountain top perch and not while in the car. The Rose River Loop is supposed to be nice as is the hike up to Marys Rock. Rapidan Camp where Hoover had his mountain retreat sounds intriguing to explore. So lots I still want to see in this park.
Perhaps An Appalachian Trail Adventure???
I think this would be an excellent place to get the kids started on some long hiking on the AT as well, especially since you can hike from campground to campground in parts and there are a couple of inns that will run shuttles for hikers. You could almost have someone run support for you and meet you at the end of everyday if you wanted to carry minimal stuff.
The fact that the AT is never very far from Skyline Drive is a definite advantage to this park for multi-day, distance hiking without backcountry camping, a plus when you are the person that always ends up carrying all the stuff.
Bye for now Shenandoah National Park. Photo of the Front Royal entrance to the park. courtesy of daveynin, flickr, CC BY 2.0
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