Overall Run Falls: A Moderate SNP Day Hike

This is the second hike in my 75@75 project, which I outlined in yesterday's post.  Tom and I had been discussing our opportunities for hiking together a few weeks and finally settled on Saturday as the day for it; I wanted to be sure to notch some miles on the project and he patiently agreed to a hike in Shenandoah National Park. 

I proposed Overall Run Falls, a hike I'd heard about and had never done, which is described on the map you can get from the entry station as follows:

"6.5 miles round trip from [Matthews Arm Campground] ampitheater parking lot to a viewpoint of the 93' waterfall; moderately difficult.  Take the Traces Trail from ampitheater parking lot to Tuscarora Trail to Overall Run Trail." 

The ranger at the entry station advised us that the campground was not yet open for the season and that we would need to pick up the trailhead at Hogback Overlook.  This version of the hike is mentioned in the Heatwole Guide that I like to refer to - the trail is close enough to 6.5 miles despite the change of starting point that I am counting it as that many miles.  I calculated the net elevation as 1,333 feet based on my trusty Casio Pathfinder, which I would note had the high point of this hike at 1,010 meters, or 3,133 feet, compared to the elevation of the overlook, which is listed at 3,384 feet - that's pretty close, more accurate than most of the time.

This route included about  four tenths of a mile (or eight tenths counting the round trip) on the Appalachian Trail; as a matter of fact, the highest point of the hike was on the AT at a spot that looked like it could have passed for a through-hiker campsite, even though it was very close to Skyline Drive.  Maybe it would be a quiet spot at night when the motor cycles are shut down.

After the intersection of the AT to Tuscarora/Overall Run Trail, it's mostly a gentle descent with a few steep sections to the overlook of the falls.  There is a single stream crossing which would likely be dry in the summer, and you have other typical SNP scenery, like the big rock shown here.  There were still dogwoods in bloom during our hike and we caught their gleaming flowers off in the forest to either side of the trail; some mountain azaleas were just getting started at the lower elevations; and these little geraniums were charming next to the trail.

Finally, you begin to hear the falls - there are some small cascades away off from the trail as you approach the stream and then begin to parallel it for a short distance.  Then the first encounter is the 29' upper falls (the photo of Tom was taken from above the upper falls), and after continuing down for another hundred or so feet, you reach the overlook of the main falls (first photo, above), which is 93'- the highest in the Park.  That's where we stopped for a snack - enjoying the view down the hollow.

There was a couple who were working their way down to the stream, which you can do if you are adventurous.  But I had read ahead in Heatwole:

"From one of the viewpoints a blue-blazed trail descends to the base of the falls.  This trail is extremely rough going, hazardous in wet or icy weather, and infested with rattlesnakes.  Not worth the risk and effort."

Needless to say, if Heatwole says don't do it, that is good enough for me!

After we enjoyed the stop watching the falls, we turned and headed back uphill.  We took it easy, but the steep sections aren't many and we were pacing ourselves for the long haul.  When we got back to the parking lot, we found it had really filled up, and cars were parked on both sides of the Drive.  That made getting Tom's unnecessarily large vehicle (he's driving a new Highlander) a little tough to manuver out of there, but we made it safely.

Including the lunch stop and the gentle climbing, we did the hike in 5 hours - a little more than one mile per hour, so faster than our usual pace.  Heatwole estimates that 6 hours are required for this one, so we bettered that.  Entirely satisfactory.