Once a prominent landmark for wagon trains travelling along the Howardsville Turnpike in the early 19th century, Humpback Rocks is today an iconic, jagged promontory in Virginia’s George Washington National Forest frequented by hikers. Its proximity to Interstate 64 and Charlottesville, Virginia makes Humpback Rocks a dizzyingly popular destination, but no amount of crowds can …
Continue reading Humpback Rocks Trail (George Washington National Forest, VA)
Dropping more than 1,000 feet into the lush Tye River Valley, Virginia’s Crabtree Falls is often claimed to be the highest waterfall east of the Mississippi. This is a deceptive title, as the falls is actually a series of cascades, dropping in fits and starts over the course of more than a mile. But the …
Continue reading Crabtree Falls and The Priest (George Washington National Forest, VA)
The start of the new year offers a time to reflect on the year that was: although other commitments slowed my rate of production in 2018, I still managed to add 37 new posts during the year to Live and Let Hike. Like usual, the quest for hiking had me crisscrossing the country in 2018—from …
Mount Marshall—named for John Marshall, the famous 19th century Chief Justice of the Supreme Court—actually comprises two distinct peaks in the North District of Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park. North and South Marshall, as they are known, sport some of the best panoramic views in the park and, as an added bonus, are relatively easy to …
Continue reading Mount Marshall Loop (Shenandoah National Park, VA)
Mount Tammany, Red Dot Trail, Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, May 2018 At the Delaware Water Gap, part of a broader National Recreation Area bearing its name, the Delaware River slices through a weakness in the mountains, forming a picturesque valley on the border of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Two peaks, part of the …
Continue reading Mount Tammany Loop (Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, NJ)
Derived from an Abenaki word, “monadnock” is used by geologists to describe a mountain that stands alone, rising abruptly from a plain and separate from a broader mountain range. Mount Monadnock (3,165’) in southern New Hampshire aptly fits the description: a rocky and prominent peak that towers over the small city of Keene and features …
Continue reading Mount Monadnock via White Dot Trail (Monadnock State Park, NH)
Cedar Run Falls, Shenandoah National Park, April 2018 The nearly 8-mile trail up Whiteoak Canyon and down Cedar Run is easily one of the most scintillating loop hikes in Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park and features a string of excellent waterfalls that is perhaps unparalleled in the state. Except for a dull connector trail between the …
Continue reading Whiteoak Canyon – Cedar Run Trail Loop (Shenandoah National Park, VA)
This excellent hike combines two of the finest summits in northern Virginia in a strenuous circuit with considerable elevation gain and loss. The trek up Duncan and Strickler Knobs is not for the casual hiker; it involves significant climbs and drops, including a borderline Class II/III rock scramble to the summit of Duncan and a …
Continue reading Duncan Knob and Stricker Knob Loop (George Washington National Forest, VA)
Despite being in Shenandoah National Park’s busy North District, the Big Devils Stairs hike is relatively free of crowds, leaving visitors alone to explore one of the area’s most spectacular metabasalt gorges. Most hikers will turn around at the primary overlook at 2.3 miles, perched stop the east rim of the canyon with the cascading …
Continue reading Big Devils Stairs (Shenandoah National Park, VA)
2017 is nearly in the books, and it’s been a banner year for Live and Let Hike. Viewership reached new heights (roughly 85,000 visitors and 167,000 page views in 2017), and I added 76 new posts this year that covered hikes, scenic byways, and other destinations in 11 different states: California, Colorado, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, …
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