SNP central: Staunton River/AT/Jones Mountain

Risking an overload of hiker activity due to Shenandoah's 75th anniversary celebration this past Saturday, I set out on a 20 miler with co-hikers John and Steve not far from the thick of things in the middle of the central district. The hike began around 8:30am at the Graves Mill trailhead on the east side, route 662 from Wolftown. First up, an easy walk along the Rapidan River on the Graves Mill Trail, then up along the Staunton River on the Staunton River Trail. The weather was nice and the "rivers" gently flowing.
The two crossings of the Staunton River were easy with the low water conditions. We took the standard shot of the slab-pile up above the first crossing. The upper portion of the Staunton River Trail had a wild look to it, a bit overgrown, with nettles encroaching on the trail, pretty standard for summer. Not so bad as to warrant attaching the pants legs. The trail is somewhat shorter than the trail markers indicate, at about 3.8 miles.
Enjoying the lack of a blazing sun (the forecast called for "mostly sunny"), we ambled up Fork Mountain Road to The Sag. Butterflies ahead on the road were staying just out of camera range, repeatedly taking off and landing further up the road as we approached. At "The Sag", the short version of this hike would go left and take Jones Mountain Trail to Cat Knob. I've done that segment of Jones Mountain Trail only once! The longer versions involve descending to Laurel Prong via the Fork Mountain Trail, and old switchbacked road. Free of leaves (seemingly overly so), this was an easy descent. I've waded knee deep in leaves here in late autumn. Wide Laurel Prong was an easy crossing on small rocks. Our first encounter of other hikers was at the crossing. A short distance further and we were on the Laurel Prong Trail. The moderate version of this hike would be to take Laurel Prong to Cat Knob, but this was the long route, so right we went, down to to Camp Hoover.
Camp Hoover was open for ranger led tours, and there was slightly more activity here than usual, surely a spillover from Big Meadows a couple miles up trail. I had stumbled upon here once before as a tour began and joined in. This time we were here just for a water, food, and a rest break. On the climb out to Milam Gap, we met only three sets of hikers; the fear of hiker overload unwarranted. It was still early, and I suspect things got busier as the day progressed. Big Rock Falls was pretty as always, and the Mill Prong trails a pleasant and quiet walk. I expected to hear the activity at Big Meadows from Milam Gap, but I forgot that Big Meadows was over a mile away. The Drive was busier, perhaps.
Picking up the AT at Milam Gap, we headed south, climbing Hazeltop. This stretch has what I call the "straightaway", a nearly quarter mile straight line of sight segment of the AT. I zoomed on ahead so I could get pictures at the far end as John and Steve came into view. Just shy of the summit, a short side trail leads to nice views west. Instead of the forecast sun, the sky remained overcast, keeping temperatures comfortable.
The mile stretch of Laurel Prong between the AT and Cat Knob is not a particular favorite of mine, rocky and too many pointless ups and downs (PUDs), but it serves as a frequent connector. The Cat Knob Trail doesn't mess with that- it's a steep one, gaining just under 500 feet in a half mile. On the climb, I found some lost notes from a scout group that had passed through here earlier in the day. The notes indicated an overnight at Jones Mountain Cabin, so they were ahead on the Jones Mountain Trail. It also indicated they'd be at the cabin for lunch, so were hopefully well ahead. I pocketed the notes just in case I caught up with them (but hoping not to).
It was a quiet and peaceful walk out the Jones Mountain Trail. I had somehow pulled ahead and was feeling the solitude. This is the place for that. The trail meanders along the ridge of Jones Mountain, hitting a couple knobs before getting to the big payoff, Bear Church Rock. Ahead at the second knob I heard voices... lots of them; I had caught up with the scout group. They were on top of the second knob wondering where Bear Church Rock was hiding. I assured them it was still further along (it's always further out than one might expect), down from the knob. I led the way. I'd better be right! Just as I started to doubt myself, the short laurel-shrouded spur to Bear Church Rock appeared. There was plenty of room for all, and I was unexpectedly excited to see the look of wonder on their faces and hear their exclamations upon being at Bear Church Rock for the first time. It is an awesome place! John and Steve arrived shortly, and all were jovial. The scout group soon left, and Bear Church Rock was as I almost always find it, just it and the group I'm with.
From Bear Church Rock, it was nowhere but down, unfriendly to the knees, but on quality trail and old road. Down Jones Mountain Trail to the Staunton River, then back out Staunton River Trail and Graves Mill Trail. As the old road beside the Staunton River suddenly disappears, I recalled the massive flooding of exactly 16 years ago that reshaped this area. Time (and PATC) has healed old wounds.
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SNP central: Corbin Hollow, Hawksbill, Rose River

I'm running out of hikes to do from the Old Rag parking lot in Nethers- other than Old Rag itself (it's been nearly six years?). The hike this past Saturday was the third recent hike to start from there. Fellow hiker Steve and I met my brother at the end point on Rose River fire road, then drove to the Old Rag lot. Only (only?) 8:30am, and the lot was filling fast. We hiked with the throngs up route 600 to the Park boundary, the throngs branching off onto the Old Rag's Ridge Trail, us sticking to Weakley Hollow fire road.
My eyesight seemed foggy. Had I forgotten to clean my glasses? No, they were clean. It was the humidity, the air was saturated, or supersaturated, causing the glasses to fog. Yukky grungy weather, another one of "those" hikes. It was warm but not hot, but the air was still. Hopefully we'd find a breeze higher up, and higher up we'd be, this time on Corbin Hollow Trail. Of all my miles in the Park, this would be only my third time on this trail. Once upon a time, a circuit hike of Robertson and Corbin Hollow would be just the right distance, but with 16+ milers there days, Corbin Hollow rarely appears on my radar. After an easy boulder crossing of Brokenback Run, the climb begins, though not as aggressive as Robertson. This is one fine trail! It has a remote feel, and likely sees little traffic. With a slight breeze, my glasses finally cleared. As expected, the laurel along here was well past peak. While nothing special, there was a stretch along the upper trail where the forest was more open, everything green, and I paused just to take in the serenity. It was one of those "neat place" moments.
The trail terminates on Old Rag fire road, Robertson Mountain Trail a short distance down, and Corbin Mountain Trail a ways up. We'd walk Old Rag fire road up to Limberlost. Being higher up, there was the occasional aging laurel bloom and assorted wildflowers. While stopped to get water beyond Comer's Deadening, a ranger drove up and asked where we started. We said "the Old Rag lot", and he said he'd seen us there. Before he had the chance to tell us we were going the wrong way, I told him our route. "That's one nice route you've got there!", he replied. I suspect they patrol Old Rag fire road on these busy weekends, as I know from my hikes here that a few hikers make the wrong turn way down at the fire road junction and wind up misplaced.
There were folk enjoying a stroll on the packed-gravel Limberlost Trail. For us, it was a connector to Crescent Rock Trail, which we'd take to the overlook then down to the AT. Laurel was past peak even here, with the many blossoms on the ground telling that it had been a fine display. Crescent Rock Overlook was our first rest break of the day. The overlook had the standard car folk, some setting up lawn chairs in the shade, even someone taking their ferret out for a walk. I headed over to Crescent Rock when I saw it was free, and scrambled around there more than on previous visits.
We picked up the AT below Crescent Rock and headed south a short distance to Hawksbill Gap. The steep fire road walk to Hawksbill summit is a favorite climb, one that can really get the heart thumping. Being warm and humid, it was not my intention to power up to the summit, but there was a hiker a couple hundred yards ahead of me, and I was determined to pass him. It was looking like I'd met my match, until he stopped about three quarters of the way up. "That's some pace you've got there!" I said as I passed without stopping. Surely he did not know he was in a race. Bottom to top in just under 16 minutes. There were folk at the summit, but not crowded. The guy I had passed was soon there, and we talked about the the AT (he was from NJ near the Delaware Water Gap). John and Steve arrived, and we wound up talking to a couple from Massachusetts that were spending the week in the Park. We gave them an assortment of "must do" hike ideas.
The day had seen a lot of clouds, keeping the temperature under control but the humidity high. Towering cumulus were lofting into the thin overcast, and a rain shaft was evident to the east. We had every expectation of getting wet on this hike (rain wet, in addition to sweat wet), but heard thunder only once. We descended to the AT on the Salamander Trail, then headed south to Fishers Gap, taking in a view at Franklin Cliffs and admiring the last of the mountain laurel. We broke from the AT at Fishers Gap and descended Rose River Loop Trail. Rose River Falls was looking a bit lazy, quite different than when we'd seen it frozen in December. With darkening skies the crowds had left, and it was quite peaceful done there. Just past the falls we encountered a good-sized rattlesnake across the trail. We got our pictures, then Steve (the snake charmer) coaxed it off the trail. We met a couple hikers a bit further on, warning them about the snake. They'd just seen two small copperhead on the bridge over Hogcamp Branch. One was still on the bridge bottom rail when we got there, but slithered into an open beam under the bridge.
Seeing several venomous snakes just prior to a bushwhack up to Rose River fire road was a little disconcerting. The bushwhack was a critical part of the route, saving nearly two miles and over 300 feet by not staying on Rose River Loop Trail all the way to Dark Hollow Falls. This was to be a retrace of the shortcut taken back in December, but where the GPS told me to veer left uphill, dense vegetation forced up right. A light rain began to fall. This was not working out so well. I knew we had to get well away from Hogcamp Branch, but the vegetation was in the way. John had seen a couple orange markers on trees, and luckily, we hit the fire road at a switchback. Veering right any more than we did and we could have kept climbing parallel to the road. As it was, we joined the road a quarter mile further upstream than intended.
Rose River fire road is rather rocky in places, the reason I don't come this way too often, but each time feels less rocky than the last, and the downhill in the light rain was easy going. I counted three orange newts on the descent, until my glasses once again fogged in the saturated air. I'm ready for a dry hike.

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SNP central: Corbin Mtn crawdad, Hannah Run thunderstorm

Eventually, nice weather and hike day will meet up. We were off by a couple days this past Saturday, another warm muggy day in Shenandoah. An early departure this time of year isn't really all that early- out the door at 6am, the sun is already up. This route took some thinking... how to hike Hannah Run with as little overlap from recent hikes while keeping the distance and elevation gain within reason. I could come up with no boundary access route. Boundary access is preferred, as it gets the primary climb done early. But that was not to be, as fellow hiker Steve and I set out on a 16 miler from quiet Pinnacles picnic area on Skyline Drive, central district Shenandoah National Park.
We'd be spending little time on the Appalachian Trail, so no thru-hiker candy this hike. That weight was replaced by rain gear, a forecast of "thunderstorms likely, mainly after 1pm". We had encountered some wet roads on the drive over, but the trails were pleasantly dry. The hike began southbound on the AT for about a mile, passing that rock ledge above the Drive which offers a fine view of Old Rag and Thorofare Mountain. We'd branch off just ahead on the AT, descending Corbin Cabin Cutoff down to the Hughes River. The mountain laurel was in full display along the AT and the upper half of Corbin Cabin Cutoff. Reaching Corbin Cabin, the crossing of the Hughes River was very easy on the well placed boulders. A short distance along on Nicholson Hollow Trail, we crossed Indian Run on the new earth and rock bridge built by PATC. Nice job!
Up next was the climb up Indian Run Trail. It was warm and humid, but a gentle breeze provided a little cooling. Another fine stand of mountain laurel along the upper portion of Indian Run made for a pleasant stroll as I paused for Steve to arrive. Down and up, it was time for down again, dropping once more to the Hughes River on the winding Corbin Mountain Trail. The trail twists and turns and snakes its way along the south side and east arm of Thorofare Mountain. The trail was frequently fragrant, but I could never determine the source. A trail maintainer was working the upper stretch. He looked quite exhausted, wearing bug netting with a cloud of gnats about. Soon after, a group of backpacking scouts were recuperating from their climb up Corbin Mountain. After rounding the east arm of Thorofare, the trail gets down to business, dropping down to the Hughes River via several switchbacks. At one switchback, I found a most unusual critter on the trail- a crawfish! (..or crayfish or crawdad, take yer pick). The little guy blended in with the wet trail, and was defending his territory, his little pincers raised at me. I got a great picture of the crawfish before he burrowed into a shallow pool. Now that was cool!
Another easy boulder crossing of the Hughes River put us back on Nicholson Hollow Trail. We took a good long break here before the major climb of the day, Hannah Run. What was I thinking when I put this hike together? A 2200 foot climb in the heat beyond the halfway point of a long hike? That's crazy! I slogged my way on up that trail, lacking the usual energy I have for Hannah Run. There's one break in the trail, where it drops down to cross Hannah Run. I stayed here a good spell, with Steve eventually arriving, looking more exhausted than I felt. During my break, I saw another crawfish in Hannah Run! I also found a couple deer tick.
As we began the climb from Hannah Run, a cooling outflow boundary hit; a storm was approaching, on cue, not long after the promised 1pm. This was one welcome thundershower! I hurried on to ridgeline and geared up. No close lightning and not much rain, but the cooling factor made the remaining climb less of a burden. Quickly losing the rain gear, the light cooling rain persisted the rest of the climb to Pinnacles Overlook. Upper Hannah Run, usually a guaranteed great spot for mountain laurel, was lacking considerably this year.
We watched the storm pull away from Pinnacles Overlook as we took another long break. To continue a hike from here, one must walk along Skyline Drive. Why oh why is there no connector trail to the AT?!? It's a bit over a mile either direction to pick up the AT, this time downhill north on Skyline Drive. Our options were to walk the rain-slicked retaining walls or wade through unmowed shoulder grass. We started out on the walls but moved to the slightly less dangerous shoulder. There really needs to be another option here (and no, not bushwhacking).
After a climb up Byrds Nest access road, we rejoined the AT at Byrds Nest shelter. There was nobody here! Where were all the thru-hikers? Oh well. Up and over The Pinnacle then down below Jewell Hollow Overlook and back to the mostly empty Pinnacles picnic area to end the hike. Laurel at The Pinnacle was a mix of open and closed buds, but a good display was found on the descent. A unique route, something that's getting harder to come by.

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SNP north: Mt Marshall/AT/Bluff

When late Friday afternoon rolls around and no hike route has been devised, one of several default routes is usually chosen. So was the case Saturday, doing a now standard trek, Mount Marshall, Appalachian Trail, and Bluff Trail in the north district of Shenandoah National Park. Once considered a long day hike, the 13.4-mile Marshall/AT/Bluff circuit has grown into a 21 mile trek by starting from the Park boundary (which adds 4.4 miles), adding an out and back to Compton Peak (another 3.0 miles), and a couple tenths exploring the rock outcrops on North Marshall. The Mount Marshall Trail has good laurel patches as does North Marshall on the AT, and we'd be hiking south on the AT meeting thru-hikers, so this was an easy decision. It would be just me and Steve on this outing, arriving at the Park boundary north of Washington, VA shortly after 8am. There was a sad sight as we approached the parking area- a lame doe with two fawn. The doe was struggling to get around on three legs, a front leg injured and unable to put weight on it.
The weather was pleasant, temperatures in the 70's and low dew point, though the humidity would be on the rise as the day progressed. The hike began with the nearly thousand foot ascent to Thorofare Gap between North Marshall and The Peak. There were several fine stands of mountain laurel in full display along here, the taller "tree" variety, as opposed to the shorter bush variety seen through much of Hazel Country last weekend. At Thorofare Gap, there's no hint of the old trail up The Peak; the cairn marker disappeared over a year ago, plus this isn't the time of year to go there (poison ivy anyone?).
Once past the gap, the Mount Marshall Trail remains fairly level as is traverses the east slope of North Marshall, rounding ravines and crossing several streams. It's along these ravines that the best laurel stands are found, and being the taller variety, produces a tunnel effect. In my many hikes here, this is the first time capturing laurel at peak. Very nice! With the quality trail, we completed the 5.7 miles segment in a little over two hours, meeting no other hikers.
From Jenkins Gap, the burn area on the south slope of Compton was visible as a patch of bare brown trees. We had hiked through there a couple weeks after the February fire, and now we'd get a chance to see the new vegetation. We picked up the AT at Jenkins Gap and started the Compton climb. More laurel, then the burn area, which had new low green growth and wildflowers amidst the blackened trees. I'd brought along a bag of candy for the thru-hikers. I expected to have some left to hand out at Gravel Springs Hut, but was depleted before finishing the out and back to Compton! We met a group of thru-hikers taking a break at Compton Spring, and a few more on the way back south. Just as well, as there was nobody else at Gravel Springs Hut when we were there later in the day.
We had Compton Peak west view to ourselves, other than a lone photographer that came by as we were about to leave. It was actually rather quiet on the trails for such a nice day. Fine by me. After a break, it was back down the AT to Jenkins Gap, with a stop at Compton Spring for water and to chat with another thru-hiker. The climb south out of Jenkins Gap is a favorite. It feels like bear territory, but I don't think I've ever seen a bear through here. Crossing Skyline Drive, the climb up North Marshall continued, meeting the occasional northbounder. A little disappointment at finding closed laurel blossoms on North Marshall, but the views were fine. I scrambled to a couple rock outcrops at the point where the trail makes a switchback, where the ridges to the south open up and disappear into the haze. This is certainly my favorite spot in the north district.
On over South Marshall into Gravel Springs Gap and on to the empty shelter for a snack, water resupply, and a check of the journal. The journal was new but already had a number of entries, with frequent mention of bear sightings and Elkwallow blackberry shakes. As we headed out the Bluff Trail, we met a backpacking family headed towards the shelter. Further along we met other day hikers, and a couple tenting near the Big Devils Stairs junction. Up and down along the Bluff Trail, eventually reaching the Mount Marshall Trail, which would lead 2.2 miles back to the car.
The first 20+ miler of the year. Also the first deer tick of the year. The upcoming weekend should have nice laurel blooms at the higher elevations. That's where you'll find me.

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