VMO: Damnation Time! Rockytop Rerun w/Milkshakes!
Details
Ok, here me out. I love this loop in Shenandoah, and I have the urge to do it again. It has a lot of elevation gain (Almost 11,000 ft!), exposed ridge walks, a campsite near a lovely stream, and of course, blackberry milkshakes (Last time the wayside store was closed :/)!
What's the kicker on this loop? Oh yeah, it gets pretty hot in Shenandoah around this time. Now, we aren't in July or August (the hottest months for the park), but it will still get relatively warm. Additionally the splits are roughly 1/18/19 over three days. In reality this trip will be more of a two day trip with 20/20mile splits. So yeah... there's that.
Here are the details:
We will meet at the Vienna Metro (north side) at 7:00 p.m. to carpool and caravan to the trailhead. It will be a late night. Keep your headlamps charged. The trailhead is located near: https://goo.gl/maps/mtMt5xHFjHekwBTt8
We'll park in the lot south of Blackrock Gap and hike north on the Appalachian Trial a little less than a mile to Blackrock Hut to quietly set up for the night. It will be a bit less than 1 mile for the night.
Saturday morning, we’ll wake at 5:30 to begin hiking at 6:30 north on the AT to Jones Run Trail. We will reconnect to the AT, taking a detour loop down to the Loft Mountain Wayside for milkshakes. We’ll take the opposite detour trail back to the AT and continue north to Ivy Creek Overlook. We’ll walk north on Skyline Drive for a short distance to Brown Mountain Trail. We’ll turn left onto the Big Run Portal Trail and camp near the junction along the bank of Big Run. It should be ~18 miles for the day.
Sunday morning we’ll wake again at 5:30 to begin hiking at 6:30 north on the Big Run Portal Trail to Rockytop Trail (we will clog on Rockytop to the song Rockytop) to the Austin Mountain Trail down to Madison Run. We’ll then head back up on the Furnace Mountain Trail to Trayfoot Mountain Trail to Paine Run Trail. This will lead us back to the cars at Blackrock Gap. It should be ~19 miles for the day.
We will have a nice meal somewhere and ice cream will be involved. This is one of my favorite loops as it provides a lot of great things that make a good trail while also being relatively close to DC.
DCULers have maps!
The National Geo SNP or PATC Map #11 are for sale at: https://snpbooks.org/shop/maps/patc-11-south-district-map/ or rei.com
Be confident in your fitness level if you choose to come on this trip. Back-to-back 20 milers is tough. 11,000 feet of elevation gain is tough. In mid-June it could be hot or cold; wet or dry. It is umbrella season! I've ranked this trip at VMO due to the splits and potential high temps. There are bailout points on this loop fortunately. Please reach out to me if you're a member and are up for the challenge of this trip. We can talk about it!
Carpools! We need them. Expect to pay your driver $0.10 per mile!
Oh, and I’m just a co-participant on this trip, not a guide or an expert. I’ve been hiking with DCUL since 2021 but have no special training, such as organizational, medical, or navigational.
David O gets credit for the title of this trip! Here is the trip report from two years ago:
https://dculbackpacking.com/2021/09/21/redemption-dcul-style/
Canceled
VMO: Damnation Time! Rockytop Rerun w/Milkshakes!