Late October/early November is a great time to explore in Shenandoah National Park. The weather is cooler and the leaves have changed colors. A few weekends ago we decided to hike the Hawksbill Mountain Summit, the highest peak in the park. Since we had recently done Stony Man and Little Stony Man it felt like we spent the whole hike making comparisons. Overall, we enjoyed the Hawksbill Mountain hike much more. Here’s why.
The best way to start your hike is by entering the park at the Thornton Gap Entrance. This entrance is closest to Hawksbill Mountain and therefore limits the drive time along Skyline Drive. Obviously the drive is beautiful, but if you’re short on time like we were we just wanted to get to the parking lot.
We decided to reach the summit by completing the Appalachian Trail-Hawksbill Loop, which is listed as suggested hike #1 on the trailhead sign shown above. It’s a 2.9 mile trail and listed as moderate. To begin, start at the short connector trail at the north end of the parking lot. This short trail meets up with the Appalachian Trail where you’ll continue to the left. We found this part of the hike to be our favorite. It’s a nice walk in the woods. It’s also just totally inspiring to walk the Appalachian Trail. The way the late afternoon light lit up the trees, it was just beautiful.
There is one portion of the trail where you’ll need to cross an area of rocks on the hillside (talus slope.) In my opinion, small kids should be able to cross here fairly easily as long as they have adult assistance and/or supervision. Just follow normal safety precautions.
Up ahead you’ll come to a fork in the trail (shown in the picture below.) Stay left to start the Salamander Trail. From here it’s another 0.7 miles to the summit.
The Salamander Trail is named after the Shenandoah Salamander, an endangered species found only in Shenandoah National Park. This rare salamander does not have lungs and “breathes” through its skin. Therefore, it needs to maintain moist skin in order to have successful respiration. The cool habitats they require are only at the higher elevations in the park, like Hawksbill. They are primarily nocturnal. Have you seen one before? If so, I’m jealous.
You’ll know you’ve reached the summit when you see the day-use shelter on your right. The summit is just up ahead. As always, use caution on the rocks. There is also a stone observation platform if the rocks make you nervous.
The summit is a popular place for viewing sunsets. The summit offers a panoramic view, which includes Old Rag. Maybe that’s what Madeline is pointing to in the picture below. Let’s go with that.
To complete the loop trail we started back down to the parking lot via the Lower Hawksbill Trail. It was the quickest way to get back to the car. Since we were at the summit for sunset we didn’t want to be hiking in the dark. We weren’t prepared with head lamps. The Lower Hawksbill Trail is steep and rough on the knees. There are loose stones so watch your footing. There’s no way I would have enjoyed taking that trail up to the summit. We did get back to the car fairly quickly, but my knees could feel it. If we ever do this hike again we’ll go back down the way we came up even though it’s longer.
As we were walking back to the car we noticed some pretty wildflowers and stopped for some pictures. Shenandoah is known for its beautiful wildflowers. I’m pretty sure the purple flower is a type of aster and the bottom picture is of goldenrod.
What to Remember:
- Read my tips for hiking with kids here.
- There is currently a $20 fee to enter Shenandoah National Park, and it’s good for seven consecutive days.
- Bring water.
- Check yourself for ticks.
- Bring a camera.
Directions to the Trailhead
