Top Trails: Shenandoah National Park. Johnny Molloy
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Appalachian Trail (AT) acts a spinal pathway for the North District, connecting all major watersheds, the mountains that divide them, and the trails that course through points high and low. The AT is useful for planning loop hikes in the North District. Most hikes here are accessed from Skyline Drive.
Visitors have one overnight option in the North District—Mathews Arm Campground. You can camp here on a first-come, first-served basis, but reservations are available on one loop. The higher elevation keeps it a good 10 degrees cooler than the Shenandoah Valley below. Make sure to store your food carefully, as Mathews Arm is bear country. More civilized accommodations can be had in nearby Front Royal or Luray.
The hikes described are either loops or out-and-back treks. Along the way you can see local highlights—Little Devils Stairs, Piney River Falls, and the old farms on Dickey Ridge. Other treks travel lesser-trod trails, such as Sugarloaf and Beecher Ridge, where park beauty is more subtle.
Permits
Permits are not required for day hiking. Backpackers must get a permit to stay in the backcountry. Simple self-registration stations are located at the Front Royal Entrance Station, the Dickey Ridge Visitor Center, the north boundary where the AT leaves the park, the Panorama, and the Thornton Gap Entrance Station.
Turk’s cap lily graces the late-summer forest on the Big Devils Stairs Trail (Trail 3).
Maps
For the North District, here are the relevant U.S. Geological Survey 7.5-minute (1:24,000-scale) topographic quadrangles, listed in geographic order as you hike along your route:
Trail 1: Chester Gap and Front Royal
Trail 2: Chester Gap
Trail 3: Chester Gap
Trail 4: Bentonville and Thornton Gap
Trail 5: Bentonville
Trail 6: Thornton Gap and Bentonville
Trail 7: Bentonville
Trail 8: Bentonville
Trail 9: Bentonville and Thornton Gap
Trail 10: Thornton Gap
Trail 11: Thornton Gap and Bentonville
Trail 12: Thornton Gap
Trail 13: Thornton Gap
TRAIL SUMMARIES
North District
Day Hiking, Pets Prohibited
4.3 miles, Loop
Difficulty: 1 2 3 4 5
Easy access, old farmsteads, and a good view sum up much of what Shenandoah National Park offers in one hike. Leave Dickey Ridge Visitor Center, and slip down to the old Fox Farm. Discover pioneer vestiges there, including a cemetery. Walk south on Dickey Ridge to Snead Farm site, and check out more human history. Catch a great view of the Shenandoah Valley on your way back, then enjoy more attractive ridgeline woodland.
Day Hiking
3.2 miles, Out-and-back
Difficulty: 1 2 3 4 5
This hike takes a lesser-used approach to a mountaintop with two rewarding vistas from rock protrusions along its flanks. The Appalachian Trail climbs moderately to these panoramas. Along the way explore nature’s recovery and fire ecology, where the Smith Run Fire enveloped 1,710 acres of the park.
Day Hiking, Backpacking
5.0 miles, Out-and-back
Difficulty: 1 2 3 4 5
This moderate hike leads to a great reward, with plenty of solitude along the way. The nearly level Bluff Trail leads to the Big Devils Stairs canyon rim for a deep view of the valley below and the mountains beyond. At the hike’s outset, pass a shelter used by long-distance hikers on the Appalachian Trail.
Day Hiking, Backpacking
4.7 miles, Loop
Difficulty: 1 2 3 4 5
Drop off the eastern side of Hogback Mountain into the upper Piney River Valley. Relish far-reaching views on the Appalachian Trail, then follow a moderate grade into the Piney River on the Sugarloaf Trail. A grassy flat beside the Piney River makes for a great resting spot. Return to the high country, soaking in more great views from Hogback Mountain before closing the loop.
Day Hiking
6.8 miles, Out-and-back
Difficulty: 1 2 3 4 5
Hike to the park’s highest falls and a grand vista beyond. Start with a mountaintop stroll on the Appalachian Trail, wending down the slopes of Hogback Mountain, crossing many flats. Find Twin Falls, then come to Overall Run Falls. From a rocky precipice, you can see the nearby cataract and the Appalachian splendor in the distance.
Day Hiking, Backpacking
5.4 miles, Loop
Difficulty: 1 2 3 4 5
This rewarding hike delivers with every step you take. You undertake the challenging part—ascending Little Devils Stairs Canyon—at the