Shenandoah Natioal Park is located in western Virginia, an hour plus from Washington DC, but considerably further for me. I hadn't been here in years, but when everyone raved about the hiking during and Outdoorsclub.org event at Catoctin Mountain Park in Maryland, I decided to head down there in conjunction with the annual Vintage Virginia wine tasting. Lucky for me, one of the hikers offered to post and lead the most spectacular of Shenandoah hikes, Old Rag!

Old Rag, at 3,268 feet in elevation, is not the tallest peak in the Shenandoah. However, for a great 180 degree view and a fun yet challenging hike/scramble to the top, it's hard to beat! For those counting, the trail is 7.2 miles round-trip and a 2,260 foot ascent.

I don't know if it was the weather, the difficulty of the hike, or the website e-mail issues, but Pam and I were the only ones to sign up for the hike. I was a little nervous about the weather - Saturday was showers and rain during the wine festival (held outdoors of course...), but fortunately things dried up in the evening. Sunday was much better. Temps in the low 70s, overcast, and humid...but no rain! We met up at the Old Rag parking lot where I met a friend of Pam's, Jessie. We started off by following a road .8 miles to the trailhead (the trailhead parking can hold only a dozen or so cars), then we got into the woods. We climbed up via a series of switchbacks until we finally started encountering the granite and lots of mountain laurel.

In several spots, the woods opened up for what would have been spectacular views were it not for the overcast skies. This would be a spectacular hike on a clear fall day!

The hike was more technical than I thought, with several slick spots from the rain and scrambling up and down boulders. At one point, the granite splits and we encounter a natural staircase. Unfortunately for us tall people, a boulder got wedged in there, making it a little tougher to climb than my staircase at home! Still, it was much easier than one spot where we had to pull ourselves up and around a boulder...that was where it was helpful to be tall and to have some (emphasis on the some) rock climbing experience! Along the way, we picked up Donna, a stray hiker training for Mount Whitney who needed an assist with her pack up one particularly narrow section. We continued on up, finally reaching the summit and the views. By this time, the clouds had lifted from the summit, but the sky was still overcast, so we contented ourselves with enjoying our lunch. At the top are several boulders perched on the granite. I vaguely remember something about "speroidal weathering" in my geology class, but whatever the cause, it's pretty cool.

For the way back, we split. Jessie and Donna took the fire road, while Pam and I opted for the way we came in. Going down was a lot faster and even better, the clouds finally started to lift and give us some better views.

Difficulty:  The route we took, the Ridge Trail, is considered difficult due to the elevation gain and the rough trail conditions (i.e., only a portion of the trail is graded). However, there's a fire road that you can take instead (or as a combination) that is easier. We hiked the Ridge Trail both directions, so I can't comment about the fire road.

Directions:  Old Rag is located on the eastern side of the Shenandoahs. From Sperryville (intersection of routes 211 and 522, follow 522 south for about a mile, then make a right on route 231. Follow 231 for 8 miles before you see the sign for Old Rag and turn left on 601. At the stop sign, make a right and follow the signs for Old Rag to the parking lot (3 miles). Here you have to pay the ranger ($5 per adult, or show your Golden Eagle pass). You can either park here and hike down or you can try driving to the lower trailhead parking lot (the one with room for less than a dozen cars).