Location: northwest Virginia
Dates: July 18 and August 7-8, 2009
North from Stony Man
Shenandoah National Park is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of northern Virginia. The park is long, narrow, and follows the ridge. Skyline Drive and the Appalachian Trail run at or near the top of the ridge for the length of the park. I visited the park twice in 2009 once on a short day trip on July 18, and the second time I stayed at the Loft Mountain Campground for a night.
Stony Man from an overlook to the north
Stony Man
Stony Man (elevation 4,011 ft) is the second highest mountain in the park and rises just to the south of Little Stony Man. It is one of the nicest mountains in the park, and I think the views from it are the best. The trail to the summit is about 0.9 mi (300 ft of gain) one way, and from the north it is about 1.1 mi (800 ft of gain) one way. The summit is just as you would expect: rock outcroppings with views to the south, west, and north.
The view from Little Stony Man
Little Stony Man
Little Stony Man is an outcropping just to the north of of Stony Man. It is not a separate summit, rather it is just on the sides of Stony Man at an elevation of about 3,550 feet. The shortest hike is from the trailhead just to the north along Skyline Drive, and it is only 0.5 mi one way with about 300 feet of elevation gain. The views from here to the west and north are good, but not as good as on Stony Man.
Hawksbill in the background
Hawksbill
Hawksbill (elevation 4,050 feet) is the highest point in Shenandoah National Park. The views from Hawksbill are generally to the northwest, and I do not think they are as good as from Stony Man, but they are good nevertheless. There are three potential routes to the summit: hikes from the southwest, south, and east. I hiked from the south on a trail that is about one mile long and gains 400 feet of elevation.
View from an overlook
Bearfence Mountain
The hike to Bearfence Mountain is a one mile loop with sections that are class 2 scrambles, which makes it a more fun and interesting hike than most in the park. Bearfence is located south of Big Meadows in the center of the park, and from the rocks there are 360-degree views.
Dark Hollow Falls
Dark Hollow Falls
In the Big Meadows area, Dark Hollow Falls is a 0.7 mi hike one way with about 600 feet of elevation change (down first). Dark Hollow Falls has a 70 foot drop and it is often combined with Rose River Falls (67 ft) as a loop hike.
View from an overlook
Lewis Falls
Also in the Big Meadows area, Lewis Falls is a two mile round trip hike with over 600 feet of elevation change (down first). The falls is 81 feet high, but you can only view the falls from their side near the top of the falls.
Big Meadows
Big Meadows
Big Meadows is a popular recreation area in the park centered around large grasslands on the top of the Blue Ridge. There is a campground, visitor center, lodge, and other facilities. There are several trails in the area, including to the two waterfalls above and throughout the meadows.
View from an overlook
Skyline Drive
There are many overlooks along the 105-mile length of Skyline Drive. The views from most of the overlooks are great, and it is difficult to choose one as the best. All of the parks facilities, including lodges, visitor centers, and campgrounds are along the drive. This is where most people also see black bears. I think I saw five bears one day, and all were along the road. The southern end of Skyline Drives continues south as the Blue Ridge Parkway for 469 miles.
Distance: ~1.6 mi (2.6 km) round trip
Highest elevation: 1,058 ft (322 m)
Elevation gain: 958 ft (292 m)
Date: November 24, 2010
The Precipice is perhaps the best and most challenging trail in Acadia National Park. The trail ascends nearly 1000 feet up the vertical eastern face of Champlain Mountain. I did this hike on a chilly and windy November day when there only a couple other people in the park and none on this trail.
The trail begins at the Precipice trailhead on the Park Loop Road south of Bar Harbor. The trail begins gaining some elevation for a short distance until you reach the bottom of the cliff. Next comes the best part of the hike when you reach ladder rungs inserted into the granite of the cliff. You also have to walk along several narrow exposed cliff edges, only a few of which have railings, in order to reach each following set of ladders.
The views from this trail are fantastic and are well worth it. During my visit the prevailing winds were coming from the w…
The Spyglass Hill Trail is a 20-mile network of hiking and equestrian trails along the south side of Enid Lake in Mississippi. This trail is on Army Corps of Engineers land and can be accessed from multiple trailheads (see the map below). I hiked the trail the warm winter afternoon of January 27, 2017.
I began my hike from Ford's Well, which is a developed day use area and campground on the eastern half of the trail network. Overall, I found this trail to be much like other hiking trails in the region: wide (often plowed by machines), predominately used by horses, on the same paths as old roads, and very poorly marked, often with many side trails. Cumulatively, I hiked a little over five miles on this trip.
I began my hike by going clockwise on the small loop south of Ford's Well, which passes through forest, cleared areas, and then returned on an old road to the trailhead. From the trailhead it took a fair bit of searching around to find where the trail continues from the far…
Location: northwest of Brownville, Maine
Distance: 7.4 miles round trip
Elevation gain: 500 feet
Date: July 30, 2010
The Gulf Hagas is a gorge with 130 foot-high walls in Maine. Over a course of three miles through the gorge the West Branch Pleasant River drops 370 feet. To get to the gorge you have to first stop at Katahdin Iron Works State Park to the south near Silver Lake to obtain a permit before continuing on the well maintained dirt road to the trailhead.
The trialhead is at an elevation just under 700 feet, and after only about 0.2 mi from the trailhead you must wade across the West Branch Pleasant River. In this section the river is wide and calm, and in late July it wasn't much more than one foot deep at the most. After crossing the river the trail passes Pugwash Pond and then through the Hermitage, which is an stand of old-growth trees. The Hermitage includes eastern white pines that are up to 150 feet tall.
It is 0.9 mi from the river crossing until you cross Gulf Hag…
Summit elevation: 12,662 ft (3,859 m)
Distance: 7 miles (11.3 km) round trip
Elevation gain: 5,550 ft (1,692 m)
Class: 3
Date: August 8, 2011
Borah Peak in the Lost River Mountains is the highest point in Idaho and the 11th highest state high point in the United States. The route to the summit is only 3.5 miles one way but gains 5,550 feet making for a very steep ascent. Along the route, Chicken Out Ridge, at over 11,000 feet, is a very difficult class 3 section that will test the nerves of anyone who attempts it. The peak, as well as the rest of the Lost River Mountains are on Salmon-Challis National Forest.
The trailhead is accessed via a dirt road heading east from US route 93 north of Mackay and south of Challis. It is strongly recommended that you begin hiking between 5:00 and 6:00 am depending on your pace in order to avoid afternoon thunderstorms and lightning, which may occur regardless of precipitation. There is a campground at the trailhead, but no water is available at…
The Rocky Ridge Horse Trail is an 8-mile round trip network of trails along the northern shore of Enid Lake in north Mississippi. The trail starts from the Plum Point area, with the trailhead on the left as you're driving towards the campground.
The only map I have been able to find of this trail is the one that is on the board at the trailhead. I went on this hike with the knowledge that there is supposed to be a trail here, but that's it. This trail turns out to be a lot like others in Mississippi - poorly maintained, poorly signed, used by ATVs, and has numerous other side trails that at times go in every direction. To hike this trail you need to know of the general direction to hike in, how to get back, and just go.
Once I got about a mile and a half from the trailhead the trail looked like it received very little use. I eventually reached the midway point on the trail where a dirt road provides access to the lake. From this point, a left the trail and walked along the dr…
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