Great place with great views!…read more Pop "Woodstock Tower" into Google Maps, and it will take you to the right spot (Apple Maps only took me to the trailhead a distance away). This will put you near a little overlook off the dirt road or if you keep going, a small gravel parking lot. Be prepared to drive on dirt and gravel roads for over a mile to get here; you are going the right way! This end of the trail has a clearly marked sign saying it is the Woodstock Tower. From either of those parking lots it's only about ¼ mile walk to get to the tower. The path varies from rocky to flat dirt. Loads of hickory nuts line the path. You could also come from the other end of the trail, which is over a mile away in the other direction. The climb up is steep but manageable (I'd recommend being more careful descending!) with metal steps. Considering she's still standing 90 years after her construction, I'd say the tower is stable. Hats off to the Civilian Conservation Corps for building this lasting landmark! The views from the top are great and worth the short walk and short climb. I met a local man at the top who shoots a lot of videos from up there. He did warn that sometimes there are black bears in the area; I never saw one my whole time, but just keep alert. It was a little cold on the mid-October day we were there and the top of the mountain did mean lots of cross wind, so dress appropriately. Unless you're weird about heights (apologies to my wife; thanks for walking out to it with us, Baby), this is a worthwhile visit. Definitely recommend!

What a pleasant surprise! We drove up the mountain on Christmas Eve and simply enjoyed the views…read more Our goal of finding the tower wasn't easy being that my bf hadn't been up there since he was a kid. Nevertheless we found it :-) I was a bit apprehensive of climbing it at first but took baby steps lol. What a beautiful scenery once you reach the top. Great experience!

11 years later, Saturday June 25th I finally came back to finish what I started…read more . Let me say, I hike a lot! I don't mind 10 miles flat or up and down. This trail however, was brutal! Rocks, boulders and more rocks. That was my trail path. It takes more time and more energy. Know this* My foot hit the path at 1pm. I got in my car for home at 7:39pm. Not bad considering the situation, but tbh, I didn't think I was going to make it. It was exhausting but great part is, it's a round trip. Not one way, turn around and go back. Start out on Massanutten trail to reach the TV station (hence Signal knob) then return to parking on the Tuscarora trail. So silent, unlike the A.T and NPS in the area. The Tuscarora is more wild and silent. How I feel about it, anyway. . I need a badge for hiking this for real. You know how you get tired and you don't pick your feet up high enough you stub your feet on the rocks? Well with the trail being nothing but rocks, my toe is feeling it. Check my toe pic. I literally started cursing the trail everytime I stubbed my toe. Such an adventure!!! I love to hate it.

One of my new favorite local hikes - this 10.5 mile loop is a great workout and only 1.5 hours from…read moreDC. This trail also has more than its fair share of gorgeous vistas. In the first few miles, you'll climb over 2,000 feet and be rewarded by a view of the surrounding mountains. The valley below acts as a fog basin some mornings, making for a beautiful sight. The Fort Valley overlook comes a bit later. This one is great in the fall and winter, but offers less of a view when the leaves are out. When you reach Signal Knob, there is a panoramic view of Strasburg. This area is more developed, but still picturesque and a perfect lunch spot. Be careful when hiking this trail after a storm. The ascent is narrow, steep, and rocky at points - icy or wet rocks add to the difficulty factor. Solid shoes and sure feet are a plus! After all that hard work, you probably need some fresh apple cinnamon donuts. Happily, that's easy to accomplish. On your way back to DC, stop at exit 13 and pick some up from the Apple House.

Great family campground that is a first come, first serve location in the Shanandoah Valley. We…read morelucked out by getting a site on the river with a small waterfall behind our tent. We stayed for a week and although there were several small kids, noise level was minimal during the day and nonexistent after 9 pm. The camp host worked endlessly to keep the grounds free of trash/leaves on the main roadways and walking paths. There was a sheriff's vehicle that drove through periodically which was an added security. There are a variety of walking trails from easy to more advanced adventures. Sites are $10 off season and $20 for in season. They do have bath houses open for in season campers and several bathrooms that are well kept all year long.

This is a great place to take the family or just go alone and enjoy the out doors, there is…read moreprimitive camp site for the guys and gals that are up for roughing it and sites that have water and showers if you feel like relaxing a bit more. The trails in the area aren't difficult to hike at all even kids can do most of them. Passage creek is a great place to trout fish, but please make sure you have your trout stamp and national forest stamp for your fishing licenses. In the summer the creek is a fun place to swim and there is lots of history in the park go explore and have fun.

CAUTION: Bring an extra pair of socks or two. There are a lot of streams you need to cross (by…read morehopping over rocks which aren't all stable to the ground) so you could easily just drench your shoes if you're not the most agile like me. If you're looking for a workout hike, then this is for you. Especially on a cloudy winter day, you're mainly looking at dead trees - lots of brown and more tan-ish looking brown scenery, so really not the best views. However, there are mini waterfalls and streams every now and then. The overlook is also small and pretty sad in terms of views. Overall, the hike is pretty hard for people who don't go hiking very often, but it was very satisfying after making it up to the top. There's a lot of rocks you need to hike up (mainly rocky paths and trails) and streams. Make sure you enter through the right side of the parking lot if you're looking for the Little Devils Stairs Trail (there should be a long pole looking sign with the name on it). You will be hiking up about 3 miles (~1500 feet of elevation). Be careful and make sure you are following the blue markers. They weren't very obvious to me, but fortunately, one of my friends have gone on this hike before so he knew where he was going. Afterwards, you can take the fire road down (super easy downhill walk on a trail). The entire hike is about 5.5-6 miles - it was tough going up, but an easy and relaxing walk to the bottom. Note, if you want to go to the overlook, it's on the way down on the fire road, not on the top. It's pretty small so it can be easy to miss.

My husband and I hiked this trail and found it to be pretty strenuous for us, personally. We are…read moreaverage middle age folks that love the outdoors. We went up the trail side and came down the fire road, as most people we saw. Our tech devices measured 7.4 miles total which is more than we anticipated. An unexpected burial site and a small overlook on the fire road. Some scrambling necessary. Pretty steep and I'm glad we chose to go up the trail and down the fire road rather than the opposite. We would have struggled coming down! Really beautiful hike with lots of water crossovers. Will go again!

Moderate due to rocky terrain but well maintained, nice shade up and down trail crosses creek…read more Beautiful view.

This hike is a great out and back trail and not too far out there especially if you're coming from…read moreDC. It's not in a National park either so no fees! Roughly 2 miles out and 2 miles back in, this hike doesn't get particularly steep until maybe the last .5 mile up the ridge. But of rock scrambling and cobbles on the trail so ankle support is recommended but not necessary. The white blazes are well marked and helpful with all the fall leaf litter. Dog friendly but probably nicer if your dog is a little bit taller (saw a corgi and a dachshund being carried by their owners for the rock scrambling). Our coonhound had a great time. No trash can so be prepared to pack out all garbage. Only con is limited and steep parking which can get dicey if the lot is full. Come early on a nice weekend day and you should be fine. Trail itself did not feel overly crowded.

if thethe dogs are happy, I'm happy. they loved it! it's our second trip here and we will be back…read moreagain!

The big Schloss trail from the wolf Gap Recreation Area is what I would consider a moderate hike…read more It's just a few miles to the summit and the first mile or so is a forestry Road leading up out of wolf Gap. When you reach the Ridgeline and head north along the mountain it's more of a typical Appalachian type Trail. There's no water along the ridge although there are some campsites. The last scramble to the Rock Summit is fairly steep and not for the faint of heart. If you go during warm weather watch your footing, because there are numerous rattlesnakes in the area. You can continue to the north and make it all the way to Half Moon Mountain, or turn right and go east towards the white rocks Lookout.

Beautiful area with tons of trails to explore- rocky paths and limited parking availableread more

I agree with most posts I read that state this is a "mini" Old Rag. It's true to the fact that if…read moreyou start at the lowest starting point, it does take all day. There is also a pretty eventful rock climb you have to work through to get to the top. (No need for harnesses..hand and foot rock climbing). I agree with the handful of posts that state, "It's easy to get lost". I even printed the map with texts on it and took it with me. We turned around a couple of times before agreeing on which path to take at an intersection. I took 4, 15 year olds with me on this (5 mile round trip hike). It ended up being 13 miles round trip. My fitbit confirmed 13 miles and over 32,000 steps! We arrived to the trail at 11:30am Sunday 9/11. We got back to the car at 6:30pm. We only sat on the rocks at the top for 30 min...we had to go before the sun set. We did have fun. The kids were troppers, let me tell you! they could have slain me out there for this trip! It was never ending AND strenuous. We were well prepared though. We each took 3 bottles of water and a couple extras. Trail mix, cheetos, peanut butter crackers, apples..we were good to go. The paths with little rocks whether going up or down would start a dirt avalanche with every step! Take it slowly and distance yourself from the person in front of you! Lots of sliding. On the boulders/big rocks, that you have to manuever over the other half of the trail, takes a lot of time and energy. Be careful. Easy to twist an ankle or fall and get seriously hurt in the middle of absolutely nowhere! And it's very solitude, which i usually like.....usually.... Follow the Markers! If you do not see a marker every 40 yards, something is wrong! The paths are marked! I will say that....but a lot of intersections and it depends on which way you came in from as to take a right or left. It was hard. The rock scramble at the top. Take your time! Look for the pink markers on the rocks.....easy to miss at times. On the way towards our final march toward the rock scramble, we did see a sign showing us an easier way back to our car. We could take this short cut 1.5 miles and come out on Crisman Hollow Rd. We did this on the way back....Once we got to the road, we still had to hike another good 1.5 if not 2 miles on the road to the car! It was exhausting! wow..... Here's what we did.... and here's an easier way to do it: We drove down rte 211 from Warrenton through Luray to take a right on Crisman Hollow Rd. (dirt road). Road goes up. See Storybook Land Trail on the right...keep going....See Massenutten Trail on the right..(That's where we parked!--UGH.....13 miles--probably 9 but we had to back track a bit). Straight down hill from the get go! landslides under your feet.... get down to the bottom at the intersection. Take a LEFT on the orange trail (do not take a right on white). On Orange..go up, go down, go across a creek...go up, up....another intersection...Go Left here! (we went right and had to back track a mile or so!) After this left, you go up again...then down adn RE-CROSS the stream...Then you'll notice you are on a long Switch back up up up another mountain that is very rocky with large boulders...keep going up!!! Forever...until the next intersection. You will see a sign. Amen! Take a right onto the orange trail. Sign will say gap trail..You'll see fire burnt trees on the left as you walk...Once it opens up and your walking on large rocks...Stop! Look to the right. You have to look on the rocks to see a pink paint mark. That's your path! (Not the clear path on the left or down hill)...The rocky boulder path on the right. Go have fun there. Follow the Pink Markers! What we should have done: Keep driving on the gravel Crismson Hollow Road PAST the Massenutten sign to the sign that says Scothorn gap Trail. (The sign was broken though)...Sign is on the left...parking on the right! There is a yellow marker on the tree! There is also a metal gate blocking the path so you can't drive up there...Park there and walk across a creek immeditely...to go up, up up a 1.5 mile hike to an intersection where you see the sign...Go Straight....You'll continue to go uphill and see the fire burnt trees on the left..yadda yadda yadda.... But that cuts like 4 or 5 miles off the enormous hike we took. I hope this helps someone. Here are some pictures of our trip. -Oh! Let me say....I'm sorry everyone...but there are a million views that are better than this one. Even the Stoney Man trail has better views...Hawksbill Trail. Spy Rock, Humpback Rock. This one did not grab me and take my breath like the others. And I've been up Old Rag Mountain....This pales in comparison with the hike and the view...

Absolutely beautiful landscapes and views of the valley and ridge lines. The hike is a short…read moredistance (0.8 miles) to the view point, but the change in elevation makes it a great workout.

- Update - *Several…read morepeople have advised me that the bird that tried to attack me is a Ruffled Grouse!* Apparently, they are well known in the area and confirmed to be aggressive and make strange noises! *Don't say you haven't been warned! :-) Saturday for the Memorial Weekend, I went to Wardensville WV to hike the Eagle Rock. AKA Tuscarora Trail. It's a simple 1 hour from my house. It's part of the Great North Mountain that acts as part of a natural border of WV and VA for some miles. The total miles of the Tuscarora Trail is 252 miles. It runs through PA/MD/WV and VA. It catches some of the Appalacian Trail at the Matthew's Arm Campground area. This trail was built as an alternative route for the Appalacian Trail due to the fear of the AT being shut down from development along the areas. The Tuscarora Trailhead for this location starts on the tippy top of The Great North Mtn on US48/VA55. At this location also you are in George Washington National Forest. You honestly can't miss it. 66w to 81s. Strasburg Exit to US48/VA55 follow for about 17 miles and you crest the mountain. There is a sign at the crest on the left near the wooods saying Tuscarora Trail. You can see it from the road. It slightly catches your eye but on the right side, you will see a big brown sign that says Entering Wardensville Cooperative Wildliffe Management Area. Park at the sign. Do not block the fire gates. I started out a little upset by the amount of hiker garbage on the o/s guardrail. Tons of Ice tea and water bottles littering the entire area. Not just a couple. It's like a ground of plastic bottles here. Also a bit worrisome was the constant gunshots. Over and Over until about the 1.5 mile stretch ends. I even saw Shot gun casings on the path, but I guess the sign did say Wildlife management Area. Geeze. The first mile was strenuous. There, I passed my first and only group of people I ever saw. They seemed to be teens chaperoned by 3 adults. They were catching their breath on the first mile. It was steep. Afterward, it leveled out and you could see you were walking the ridgeline of the mountain by looking o/s the trees to the mountain next door. Same height. From here it went from breathlessly uphill to muscle scortching downhill and leveling out.. over and over.. so overall there was give and take. A lot of the path became weedy and made my legs itchy. Some times it was almost knee length weeds. and the bugs. oh... the bugs. Don't stop for too long. I was breathing in a lot of bug protien on Saturday, let me tell you I had bugs for prelunch, lunch and snack! You could hear them around your head like a beehive. It was very much more wild than SNP. You could feel the wildness out here... I swear I am surprised I didn't see a bear. It was definately Bear Country! Speaking of this, let me also tell you what scared the living heck out of me up there. (Turns out after the scare I was laughing out loud all to myself but at the the time... I thought I was going to die) I heard some leaves russling... I slowed down and made a little noise...This...This... Turkey Bird Thing races out of the woods at full turkey bird speed and is coming right at me. It puffs up it's whole body and the tail spreads out like a Turkey but it's not big like a Turkey, more of a chicken size but fatter.... anyway this thing runs to me with his body puffed out and all I could do was walk backward and shout No over and over and over.. It's amazing I didn't fall down! That bird was litterally attacking me. I guess there was a nest along the patch in the woods and I was a bit close but OMG, If it were a bear, I'd be dead. That simple. Freaking Bird. OMG.... so it went off to the right and made this sound like a beaten dog.. wimpering..it was terrible. and When I started on my way, it followed me ! It was walking in the woods making that sickening noise for a good couple yards...That whole situation made me wonder about this dumb whistle I brought with me for safety. wow. wth is this whistle going to do! I forgot it was even in my hand! and that was a bird! lol. So later at a rock outcrop I almost sit on the one snake I saw the entire time. He was identical to the rock. Identical. I looked right at him and sat next to him. (?!?) The views were nice. A good change from SNP views. I'm glad I chose to hike this mountain this summer. There's so much more of it to hike and it even meets up with the Stairway to Heaven I did a couple weeks prior. I'm interested in exploring it a bit more. I may need to invest in a bigger whistle and perhaps a nice size knife as well. In the end, I was trying to outhike the storm on the way back to the car. I almost made it. But I was dripping wet once I turned the key! It was a great day and a great hike.

A great day for a hike on the A.T. This one is just o/s Fauquier County on Mt Weather. I took the…read moreSOBO trail a couple years ago. This time I went North to the waterfall. Let me give some mad respect to whomever dug out the spot to put in a rather large parking area for us! For years we've been on side of this narrow dirt road. * Thank. (Virtual fist pump). This was 3 miles out and 3 miles back. The waterfall is around 1 mile mark. It's off to the right. *please understand, ricks are slippery whether they're wet ot not. How someone brings three toddlers here with no backpack, water or first aid is beyond me. I had to leave the area. But it was really nice. Very relaxing and you did have to hand/foot climb to get up there. Be careful please. I double backed and got on the A.T. Couple more miles to the secret cliff I saw in another Yelp post. :) . Lots of people walked by, no one knew I was there. I had it all to myself. Its better than the actual lookout. Anyway. I scanned the rocks for danger, shot some pics and sat down for water and dry crackers. I look over and there are 2 snakes curled up by a small tree about 6 feet from me. I spoke to them. "Thought you'd hide from me. I got you!" It was funny. I took a couple pics and kept my eyes on them. Only takes a second to lose track and they end up right at me saying, "HA got you back!" I sat a while then headed back down. I enjoyed it! I'd like to section hike and have a car waiting to take me back to my own car where I started. They should have an Uber Hikes App available for that. ;) This way I can hike for as far as I want without turning around to come straight back.

Short trail, pretty and cool, but the waterfall wasn't what I expected. The trail was well kept,…read moreand trimmed back, some areas were steep, and can be slick if it rains.

Great Views. Short hike. This is on the AT. Go North from parking area on the trail. 1 mile to…read morefirst rock top view. Theres a sign at a small trail intersection. Go straight for the rock top view. Then back track to the sign and follow another mile to a cliff hang out. Amazing. So then my red flags started going off. I was the only car in the lot. Im hiking all alone......I started to frak myself out a little due to the trail after the views becoming thin and obviously less traveled. Big rocks fit for wild cats and lots of berry trees for bears.... even worse, I thought about bad humans...Sadly but smartly I turned around and hiked back to the car. Listen to your red flag feelings people. Instincts matter.