From the northern entrance of Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park, it takes more than 10 miles to clear Dickey Ridge and reach the “real” mountains of the Blue Ridge by car. 2,909-foot Compton Peak, situated 10.4 miles up Skyline Drive, is neither the park’s tallest promontory nor the prettiest, but it is the first of the …
Continue reading Appalachian Trail to Compton Peak (Shenandoah National Park, VA)
The Portland Trail, just outside Ouray in southwest Colorado, offers close-up views of one of the area’s most striking features: a highly sculpted, bowl-shaped cliff face known as the Amphitheater. While composed mainly of grayish, volcanic rock, this west-facing wall is illuminated in the evening light, bringing out the whites, yellows, and purples and allowing …
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The Ouray Perimeter Trail, as the name suggests, forms a circuit around the picturesque town of Ouray in southwest Colorado. Far from being an easy city walk, however, this rugged track traverses high ledges, crosses deep canyons, and passes waterfalls and rocky outcrops in a half-day hike that offers vistas of Ouray from all sides. …
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Most DC residents who know the Billy Goat Trail brag of completing the iconic Section A—a rugged and challenging hike in Maryland’s Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park. While Section A’s Potomac vistas and rocky traverses make it one of the area’s most popular hikes, there are in fact two other sections of the …
Continue reading Billy Goat Trail – Section B (Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park, MD)
Perched at the southern tip of South Mountain, more than 500 feet above the Potomac River, Weverton Cliffs in central Maryland is easily one of the state’s most scintillating viewpoints. It is also relatively easily accessible—less than a mile’s hike up the famed Appalachian Trail from the small community of Weverton, which in turn is …
Continue reading Appalachian Trail to Weverton Cliffs (South Mountain State Park, MD)
Prince William Forest Park spans 17,000 acres of peaceful woods, hills, and rolling streams on the edge of the Tidewater region of eastern Virginia, roughly 30 miles southwest of Washington, DC. The Birch Bluff Trail Loop offers a short but pleasant stroll that takes off just behind the Visitor Center near the park entrance. The …
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Excepting the noisy ATV riders who frequently transit the area, Greenbrier State Forest in southeastern West Virginia is a largely quiet and peaceful destination for hikers and mountain bikers. Spanning the flanks of tree-covered Kates Mountain, Greenbrier is not known for its spectacular vistas; however, it does offer 13 miles of hiking trails that crisscross …
Continue reading Old Field Loop Trail (Greenbrier State Forest, WV)
Although named for the tall, wily trees populating the area, the real highlight of the Yellow Poplar Trail in Maryland’s Gambrill State Park is the ubiquitous, yellow-green ferns seemingly present at every turn. Straddling Catoctin Mountain—the easternmost ridge of the Appalachian Mountains in Maryland—the Yellow Poplar Trail offers some limited vistas but, sparsely traveled even …
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While firmly within the District of Columbia, Rock Creek Park’s “wild northern section” sees relatively sparse use due to its distance from the city center. All the better: not only is bigger and better than the park’s crowded southern reaches, but the area provides a sense of solitude almost unheard of in a major American …
Continue reading Pinehurst Branch Trail Loop (Rock Creek Park, DC)
The eastern sector of Virginia’s Sky Meadows State Park—situated across Highway 17—is certainly less popular than the much larger western tract. It is frequented, however, by horseback riders, as all the trails on this side are equestrian-friendly. Of course, it’s possible to hike as well, and the Lost Mountain Loop—which summits a 1,041-foot, tree-covered peak—offers …
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Live and Let Hike 