Your 1 Day Guide to Shenandoah National Park

Lauren Barrett

Located in Virginia, only about a 4 hour drive away, this relatively small National Park is a nice little weekend getaway. This park runs North to South and is long and narrow. We went here during peak Fall foliage, and it was absolutely breathtaking to see the forest of colors. Visit this park to see views of the Appalachians, cascading waterfalls, and to get lost in the quiet of the forest. 

The Logistics ​

• Drove from Raleigh
• Traveled with James and my cousins and their husbands, Amy, Justin, Sarah, Julian
• Stayed in an AirBNB in Winchester, VA
• Stayed in Winchester 2 nights and 2 days; Visited the park for 1 day

The Itinerary
Day 1

• Gathered into two separate cars and started the ascent into the park through the North Entrance Station (Front Royal)
• Drove up the winding road called Skyline Drive and stopped at a roadside vista to get pictures and admire the view. 
• Continued driving and stopped at Stony Man Loop to do a hike up the mountain for another killer view.
• Stopped at Skyland to eat, drink, and use the facilities. This is a great place to sit outside on the deck in the rocking chairs and sip on hot chocolate, coffee, or soup while nibbling on a sandwich. 
• Hit the road again and drove further out to Dark Hollow Falls where we did a hike down the mountain to a waterfall with a backdrop of red, golden, and orange leaves. 
• Retraced our drive back closer to the entrance and did one last hike up to Hawksbill Summit for one more spectacular view. 
• Drove back to Winchester and had dinner in Old Town Winchester, a quaint part of town with cobblestone streets and strung lights. 
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Recommendations/Suggestions

• Old Rag Hike is one of the most popular hikes in the park. But it is strenuous and long.
• Stargazing 

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​My name is Lauren, and I was born in New Jersey, grew up in West Virginia, went to college in Pennsylvania, and now live and work in North Carolina. I'm a high school teacher of the deaf and hard-of-hearing by day, a cross country coach by the afternoon, a writer by night, and a full time mom to an amazing toddler. I love my faith, running, watching baseball, chocolate, scrapbooking, pretending I would actually do well on the Amazing Race, re-watching The Office, listening to Bobby Bones, and helping out all moms.