Shenandoah National Park: Compton Peak

I rose early on my final morning in Shenandoah National Park, planning to get in a hike to Compton Peak before making the four-hour drive to Cuyahoga Valley National Park.

The morning was quite foggy, which made for a lovely atmospheric scene in the trees.

Early morning is when the wildlife was active, including a pair of Wild Turkeys ...

... and a White-Tailed Deer doe.

... the view from the summit of Compton Peak was slightly underwhelming.  Nature is like that sometimes!

I actually found the view from the summit back down the trail more striking.

There's another trail heading away from the summit that leads to "columnar jointing of basalt and greenstone, the result of molten lava squeezing through cracks in the earth and drying in astonishing geometric patterns" as described by OutdoorProject.com.

The formations are very similar to the hexagons at Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland, which I'd been fortunate enough to see in person six years ago.

I believe that the universe tends to move towards chaos.  So when I see something in nature as orderly as these rocks or a Nautilus shell, I'm always amazed.

The hike covered just under three miles and took me almost exactly 90 minutes.  And with my early start, I was on the road to Ohio by 8 a.m. after a wonderful inaugural visit to Shenandoah National Park!

Shenandoah National Park: Stony Man Overlook

After an absolutely gorgeous sunset at Big Meadows, I went for one more the next evening by taking a short hike to the Stony Man Overlook. The point has a fantastic view to the west, with the Shenandoah Valley, the town of Luray, and the Massanutten and Allegheny Mountains all visible.

According to Wikipedia, the mountain is made up of metamorphic rock known as Greenschist.

I arrived well before sunset on a gorgeous afternoon, with what I believed were just enough clouds to yield some nice color but not so many as to potentially obscure the actual sunset.  Surely not.  But, just to be safe, I shot an HDR panoramic while the sub was still quite high in the sky.

Anyway, about those clouds.  Yeah, they ended up obscuring the sunset.  Oh, well.  That's nature!

Making some lemonade, the haze did produce a nice effect on the ridges to the south.

My walk ended up covering 1.54 miles, the last stretch in the dark.  Coupled with my earlier trek to the summit of Old Rag Mountain, that meant I covered nearly 11 miles that day.

I slept quite well that night. 

Shenandoah National Park: Old Rag Mountain

The longest hike I planned on my summer trip was a climb to the summit of Old Rag Mountain.

An early rise was in order, which also gave me the opportunity to see the peak at sunrise.

I learned from my Ramsey Cascades hike that I absolutely needed to travel lighter and less encumbered.  So I didn't bring my camera with the zoom lens at all, and while I carried my other camera with the wide angle lens on its tripod for most of the hike the foliage was so dense that I didn't take any memorable shots.  When I hit the boulder field I needed my hands available, so I packed the camera and tripod away and didn't get them back out until I reached the summit.

Despite some gathering clouds, the view from the summit was wonderful.  Just the thing I expect from a summit hike.

The trail is a loop rather than an out-and-back, so I got to see different scenery on my return.  The Weakley Hollow Fire Road was especially beautiful, flanked by lush, tall trees.

The hike was just over nine miles with 2,287 feet of elevation gain and it took me just under five hours, burning 984 calories in the process.  Reminded me of my many wonderful summit hikes in Colorado! 

Shenandoah National Park: Big Meadows Sunset

My dash to Dark Hollow Falls was an attempt to kill some time before setting up to shoot the sunset, and it turned out to be an excellent decision.  Sunset itself I planned to take in from Big Meadows on the advice of a park ranger.

I turned my car around on the way, stopped, and got out so shoot some Orange Day-Lilies on the side of the road.  They're a wildflower I wasn't familiar with, and reminded me of Columbines.

Big Meadows is aptly named.  I was the only one there when I arrived, and really got to take in the space.

The cloud formations were just fantastic.  I hoped they would remain that way, unlike Morton Overlook a couple of evenings earlier.

I savored the sun's descent, loving how it lit up the grassy meadow.

A number of White-Tailed Deer grazed idly, seemingly unperturbed by our presence but also not getting especially close.

The clouds were, indeed, holding up as the sun went down.  Some faint colors were starting to appear in them, as well.

I wasn't alone any longer by this point.  Many other photographers had come out, most stationed respectfully around a sort of unspoken perimeter.  Some others just walked right out in the middle of the meadow and thought that would help them get better shots of the deer (doubtful).  At first I found this guy annoying, then decided to make lemonade with him.

Closer and closer to sunset, and the colors were growing ever richer.

I loved the soft pinks and pale oranges in the clouds at this point, especially paired with the deep blue of the sky to the south.

The moment came, and the brilliant ball of fire that gives us life gave me a blast of beauty before disappearing for the night.

Blue hour yielded one last, lingering look at the clouds.  Then it was time to pack up.

Easily one of my most enjoyable sunset shoots.  The changes in the light throughout the evening made it both a challenge and a delight to go through all my pictures choosing selects.  Conditions were pleasant, and even with plenty of company the setting was peaceful.

All in all, a picture perfect night.

Shenandoah National Park: Dark Hollow Falls

After covering seven miles to see Jones Run Falls and the two Doyles River waterfalls, I squeezed in a much shorter hike later that afternoon.

Dark Hollow Falls is only 1.6 miles out and back, with just 326 feet of elevation gain.

The falls themselves are indeed, tucked into a dark hollow.  They're 70 feet tall, and really beautiful.

That elevation gain?  It's all on the return trip, because you hike down to get to the falls.

The whole experience took barely an hour.  So a short post for a short hike!

Shenandoah National Park: Jones Run/Doyles River

The second stop on my Summer 2020 Road Trip was Shenandoah National Park.  After hiking the Ramsey Cascades Trail, I drove the six hours from Great Smoky Mountains to Charlottesville.  I took a night off from camping and got a room at a Courtyard by Marriott, and after a good night's sleep headed into the park for my next big hike -- the Jones Run Falls/Doyles River Falls Loop.

I really struggled trying to figure out the best way to get to the three falls on the loop.  Eventually I decided to do the hike as an out-and-back from the Jones Run parking lot.  I almost immediately regretted that decision as the trail descended sharply and for a considerable distance, which I knew would all be uphill on my return trip.

Then I got to this cascade, which I assumed was Jones Run Falls even though it didn't have a sign.  I mean, it's fine.  But after the falls I saw in Great Smoky Mountains it was a bit of a letdown.  Still, I set up, waited for the the sun to dip behind a cloud to cut down on the contrast, and shot my shot.

Surprise!  That cascade wasn't Jones Run Falls.  This one is.  And it's admittedly more impressive.  The last stretch down to the falls is steep, and again something I wasn't looking forward to hiking up on the way back.

Another perspective on Jones Run Falls.

I continued on my way to the pair of Doyles River Falls, and caught this Orchard Orbweaver on the trail.

Turning off the Jones Run Trail and onto the Doyles River Trail also involved a change from heading downhill to heading uphill.  It felt good to work different muscles, and soon enough I arrived at Lower Doyles River Falls.  This was more like it!  A nice, shaded spot with some solid accessories.

Upper Doyles River Falls isn't far from its lower counterpart.  And even though it's less than half as tall, it's still picturesque.  The falls also have some lovely surroundings that add some beautiful context.

After Upper Doyles River Falls I had a decision to make -- go back as I'd originally planned, or complete the loop?  I decided I didn't one to descend and ascend all over again, and the distance looked about the same on the map.  So I hoped for a fairly level hike and decided to complete the loop.

That decision was shortly rewarded by this trail marker, which reminded me of a cutoff via Browns Gap Road which would take some distance off.  Why I hadn't already planned on taking this route, I have no idea.  It was absolutely the best option.

The old fire road was much wider and more level, and adorned with many wildflowers like Black Cohosh ... 

... Annual Fleabane ...

... and Red Clover.

Browns Gap Road eventually meets up with the Appalachian Trail, which was the best maintained stretch of the entire hike.  Narrow like a typical wilderness hiking trail, but not especially rocky or steep.  My final mile was also my fastest mile.

I learned a number of valuable lessons from my struggles on the Ramsey Cascades Trail the day before.  I took a lot of unnecessary items out of my backpack, and since I was in woods the entire time I ditched my hat which allowed me to release heat out the top of my head.  Those two choices alone made the hike much easier.

I covered the 7.11 miles in 3:22:25, taking nearly 20,000 steps and burning 713 calories.  The hike has a somewhat surprising 1,357 feet of elevation change, most of which I covered in the first four miles.

New national park, same great national park experience!