In Take Me Home Country Roads, John Denver sang “Almost heaven West Virginia; Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah River”. For years we have read, and believed, that both the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah River are in Virginia, not West Virginia. While doing a little research for this blog, we discovered they are actually in both states. Sorry, John.
Stretching more than a hundred miles along the Blue Ridge Parkway in western Virginia, Shenandoah National Park is a mix of wilderness and farmland. Located between the Shenandoah Valley in the west and the Piedmont region in the east, the park includes wooded hollows, summits, mountain streams, and waterfalls.
Inspired by Yellowstone and other parks in the West, a national reserve in the Blue Ridge Mountains was first proposed in 1901. When the campaign stalled, Virginians took it upon themselves to make the park a reality. Using eminent domain, the commonwealth acquired property from some 5,000 landholders and donated the parcels to the federal government. The park was established 1935.
There are two ways to traverse the length of the park. The easy way is Skyline Drive, which was constructed in the 1930’s by the Civilian Conservation Corps. It is 105 miles of scenic overlooks, trailheads, picnic areas, visitor centers and campgrounds between Front Royal in the north and Rockfish Gap in the south. The hard way is by hiking the hundred or so miles of the Appalachian Trail that run through the park.
We spent three days in Luray, VA and explored the middle section of the park. The leaf season was in full swing while we drove about 40 miles of Skyline Drive. We stopped at numerous overlooks and enjoyed views of both the Blue Ridge Mountains to the west and the Piedmont to the east.
Big Meadows is well named since it’s the largest open area in the entire park. The meadow’s location directly across from a visitor center makes it easily accessible. The large grassy plain is a surprise along Skyline Drive after miles and miles of forest landscape.
Shenandoah National Park is beautiful, accessible, and during the leaf season, crowded. We saw lots of other people, even on a weekday. If you want to enjoy the fall leaves without the crowds, we would recommend other areas. We found just as much beauty and many fewer people in the area around Blackwater Falls in West Virginia. Wherever you go, some day make sure you visit the mountains of West Virginia, Virginia, or North Carolina during the fall color season.