In May 2023, we set out to visit two national parks for the first time: Shenandoah and New River Gorge. We started out our trip by heading east through Kentucky. We weren’t sure exactly how far we’d make it, so we didn’t make a reservation. Instead, we planned to stay at Cracker Barrel for the first time with our travel trailer. We arrived around 8:30 and asked permission to stay the night. They were very friendly and welcomed us to stay the night in the dedicated RV spaces. In the morning, we went in to have a quick breakfast before we hit the road. Overall, it was a good experience. We definitely plan to keep it in mind for future travel days.
Shenandoah National Park
Southern District
After breakfast, we continued on our way to Shenandoah. For most of the day, we drove through showers off and on. We were hoping to arrive and go on a short hike that afternoon/evening, but Shenandoah was covered in some of the densest fog we’d ever seen. We got to our site at Big Meadows Campground inside the park and settled in for the night.
We were hoping to wake up to a clear day, but the fog was still around in the morning. Because of the fog/mist, we decided to start the day with a waterfall hike instead of one with expansive views that would be hidden by the fog. We drove south on Skyline Drive to Brown’s Gap parking area where we set out on a 6.5-mile loop to see Upper and Lower Doyle’s River Falls and Jones Run Falls. This was a great hike! It was the perfect way to spend a foggy, misty morning. Check out the blog post to read more about our time in Shenandoah National Park: Shenandoah National Park – Miles of Yellow Lines.
Blue Ridge Parkway
After this hike, we continued south on Skyline Drive until we left the park. Skyline Drive eventually turns into the famous Blue Ridge Parkway. We continued along on the Blue Ridge Parkway until we reached Humpback Rocks parking area. Here, we did the short but steep hike up to Humpback Rocks. While we were out on the rocky overlook, the fog began to clear, giving us great views of the area. To read more about our hike at Humpback Rocks, check out the blog post: Blue Ridge Parkway: Humpback Rocks – Miles of Yellow Lines
Blue Ridge Tunnel Trail
I stumbled upon the Blue Ridge Tunnel on Google Maps. It looked intriguing, so we decided to stop by. I’m so glad we did! It was a unique experience hiking through an old railroad tunnel that is over 4,000 ft long. Fortunately, we keep headlamps in our day packs. We used them to light the way inside the dark tunnel. Check out this blog post to read more about our stop here: Blue Ridge Tunnel Trail – Miles of Yellow Lines. After our final hike of the day, we grabbed a quick bite to eat in Waynesboro, VA before heading back to camp.
Old Rag
We woke up early the next day to make sure we had plenty of time to drive to Old Rag Mountain and get a parking spot. Although we reserved the required Old Rag day-use tickets online, parking at the trailhead wasn’t guaranteed. As it turned out, we didn’t have a problem getting a spot.
Initially, the trail looked a lot like the trails we had hiked the day before, but once we climbed out of the forest and into the rock scramble, things got much more interesting. We squeezed through tight spaces and climbed up and over or down and around large rocks, all while following the blue arrows pointing us in the right direction.
There were great views from the summit. We packed a lunch and stopped to eat at the top. We hiked back down on a different trail and made a loop back to the parking lot. The way down didn’t require any scrambling. In fact, much of the way back was on an old fire road through the forest.
After our Old Rag hike, we headed back to camp. On our way back, we stopped for ice cream at the Big Meadows wayside. It was great way to cool off on a warm day!
Dark Hollow Falls & Hawksbill Summit
On our final morning at Shenandoah, we hiked to Dark Hollow Falls. We were at the trailhead by 7:15, and we didn’t run into anyone else on the trail until we were about to leave the falls to head back to the truck. It was great having the trail to ourselves! The waterfall was beautiful, and the hike was shorter at 1.4 miles round trip (although it was a fairly steep climb to get back up to the parking lot).
After Dark Hollow Falls, we headed to Hawksbill Summit, the tallest point in the park. There are several routes to reach the summit. We chose the shortest but steepest route. It was 1.7 miles roundtrip. It was definitely a steep climb, but the views at the top were fantastic. To read more details about these hikes, visit the Shenandoah National Park blog post here: Shenandoah National Park – Miles of Yellow Lines.
New River Gorge National Park
Bridge Walk
After our hike to Hawksbill Summit, we headed back to camp to get packed up. We had a 5:00 bridge walk appointment at New River Gorge, which was about a four-hour drive from Big Meadows Campground. What is the bridge walk, you ask? It is a guided tour across the New River Gorge Bridge. The tour is on the 24-inch-wide catwalk under the highway. The catwalk is 852 ft above the river and the bridge is over 3,000 ft long. This was an amazing experience! I’m so glad we did it!
White Water Rafting
The next morning, we got up early and got ready for our full-day white water rafting trip on the New River. This was the longest and most difficult white water rafting trip we’d ever booked. It was intense, but so cool! We hit several class V rapids and got faces full of water, but it was so worth it! Our raft had a great group of people and a great guide, which was key to making it a fantastic experience. If you’d like to read more details about our visit to New River Gorge National Park, hop on over to the blog page here: New River Gorge National Park – Miles of Yellow Lines.
Our final activity at the park was a scenic drive down to the gorge and across on an old wooden bridge. This gave us a great view of the New River Gorge Bridge. Then it was time to head back to camp at Babcock State Park (about 20 minutes from the bridge). We woke up the next morning and began our drive home.
