Shenandoah National Park Trip-- Days 1 & 2
Our first day of vacation was spent driving from home to our rental in Virginia; we made the trip in about 10 or 11 hours. After we arrived, we got settled in and did a quick grocery shopping. The house was really cute and had such a pretty view.
Our first full day IN Shenandoah (vacation day 2) was Father's day. We started with a leisurely breakfast at the house we rented then hit the trails. We loved waking up to seeing deer grazing in the backyard!
(almost as pretty as sunset the night before!)
We hiked the Rose River Falls loop (just under 4 miles). It was a pretty trail with lots of water and mini waterfalls as well as the larger fall the trail is named after.
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| So many of the trees looked all twisted like this. |
We then headed to lunch at Big Meadows Lodge after stopping in at the visitor's center. Lunch was decent (but lunch at Jordan Pond in Acadia was much, much better). I was so hungry by the time the food arrived I forgot to snap any photos!
From lunch we went to squeeze in one last hike-- Bearfence Mountain. It was a short 1 mile hike that was rated as moderate but 3 of the 5 of us turned around without making it to the summit. The trail was intense with lots of rock scrambling and some scary looking drop offs.
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| Opened my door at the parking lot to this sight! |
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| Not scared of people at all! |
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| These two joyfully scrambled over everything |
Once we were all back at the car we decided to head "home" and my husband and I spent some time relaxing our sore muscles in the hot tub. Then we cooked a family dinner, played some video games, and watched movies.
Linking up with: Fine/Whatever,
What an awesome place to explore. So many deer!
ReplyDeleteWe saw so many deer the whole week; I could not believe it.
DeleteSo pretty! Love the waterfalls along the first trail. Was the house you stayed at close to the entrance of the park?
ReplyDeleteYep, the driveway of the house actually abutted the park so if we had wanted to we could have hiked right in from there. But even driving down and around the mountain, I think we were there in 20 or so minutes.
DeleteWhat a stunningly beautiful place. I love the waterfalls and the deer. The lodge looks lovely too and perfect for sunsets. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteIt was beautiful and there were so many waterfall hikes.
DeleteYour hikes always inspire me- looks like amazing surroundings for sure!
ReplyDeleteAw, thank you!
DeleteShenandoah Park is really beautiful. I enjoyed seeing your house and the views when hiking. #MMBC
ReplyDeleteThank you! It was such a pretty park.
DeleteIt looks pretty there!
ReplyDeleteIt was really pretty.
DeleteWow, what a relaxing trip--so beautiful! Visiting from Hello Monday.
ReplyDeleteWhat an amazing place, so pretty and I love those beautiful deer!
ReplyDeleteRuth@playworkeatrepeat
They were so cute and not bothered by us at all. That deer right near the car kept right on eating as I walked around the car opening and closing doors and changing shoes.
DeleteI love all these beautiful photos.
ReplyDeleteHow nice to go on vacation to Virginia with your family and go hiking. I enjoyed looking at the photos of your trip.
ReplyDeleteIt is wonderful; I know these trips with the boys are numbered and it won't be that long before no one wants to go with us anymore.
DeleteSounds like fun. Although I can't imagine any rental home has a view like you have at your home.
ReplyDeleteVery few that we've found can compete! LOL
DeleteWhat a cute little house. It sounds like a lovely break away. How wonderful to see the deer in the backyard and the hikes sound fab.
ReplyDeleteIt was fun; thank you!
DeleteBeautiful pictures, as always! I love how much wildlife you saw! So neat that there were deer right there in the back yard!
ReplyDeleteThanks! We thought that was so neat to; we saw them just about every morning too.
DeleteLots of great hiking...beautiful!
ReplyDeleteThank you! It was wonderful.
DeleteHave you guys always hiked a lot? It's such a wonderful way to explore and be inspired by Mother Nature,
ReplyDeleteXOOX
Jodie
www.jtouchofstyle.com
Nope, we didn't start hiking until we started homeschooling. Our first homeschooling activity was a little homeschool hikers groups my sister talked us into trying out and it slowly started snowballing from there. I remember my husband trying to get me to hike on one of our anniversary trips before kids and I hated it. I was covered with mosquito bite and sweaty and miserable.
DeleteWhat gorgeous photos, Joanne! I think I comment that a lot, but it's always true! I love the Shenandoah National Park, but we have never hiked there. Have you been there in the fall? The colors are amazing!
ReplyDeletehttps://marshainthemiddle.com/
Aw, thank you! This was our first trip to Shenandoah but I was thinking it would be really beautiful in the fall.
DeleteWhat a cute house! And beautiful hiking photos, you take the best pictures! Have a great time!
ReplyDeleteAw, thank you!
DeleteJoanne your pictures are absolutely stunning! Do you use a DSLR camera or your phone to take them?
ReplyDeleteLauren @ Don’t Mind Our Mess
Most of these photos were taken with my Nikon Coolpix point and shoot or my cell phone; I rarely take my DSLR on hikes since it's too bulky and heavy to carry along with everything else.
DeleteWe are a National Park family and Shenandoah is on our list! Love these pics and the cute place you are stayed at.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.kathrineeldridge.com
Having only visited 2 other national parks (Smoky Mountains & Acadia) I was surprised by just how rural the Shenandoah area is!
DeleteThis place looks so beautiful! I will have to check it out since we travel to VA a lot.
ReplyDeleteIt was lovely and I was surprised we had never been in that area before sine we pass through Virginia a lot (I guess we never really stopped there though!).
DeleteYou were just a few miles from where I grew up (and about 45 minutes from where I currently live.) Fun fact, my great grandfather and family lived in the mountains there and were part of the many people who were displaced so that the National Park could be built. My great grandather, Hezekiah Lam, was the oldest person living on the mountain and they'd told him he could have life time rights, but they'd already run everyone else off and he wouldn't stay. He did get to sit on the platform with President Franklin Roosevelt at the dedication ceremony of the park.
ReplyDeleteOh wow; that is neat (and also a little sad).
DeleteIt looks lovely...enjoy your break.
ReplyDeleteI remember the deer in Shenandoah. They were plentiful and we laughed at how "polite" they were because they didn't run across the road right in front of your car like they do in Wisconsin ha ha. We took the Rose River Falls hike and it was our least favorite of the trip, but we didn't do the Bear Mountain one. Glad we didn't after reading this post. I always wonder who rates the trails. Sometimes they seem so way off.
ReplyDeleteThey really were so "polite." LOL. We said that about a few of the ratings too!
DeleteSo beautiful! Love the mini waterfalls along the trail and what an amazing view you had from your rental home!
ReplyDeleteIt was really pretty and we woke up to deer in the far yard every morning too.
DeleteJoanne, your photos are beautiful. Our temperatures have been 105 and higher for about a week so the mountains and steams look so appealing!
ReplyDeleteYikes! That is HOT! It was in the 60's and 70's our whole week in Shenandoah so it was perfect for hiking.
DeleteWhat a beautiful place. Very nice. #seniorsalon
ReplyDeleteYour trip looks amazing. I love the waterfall pics. Travis knows if there's a waterfall nearby, I want to find it. haha
ReplyDeleteYes! That's how I am too!
DeleteI love the view on the balcony! It's so pretty!
ReplyDelete