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summit of Old Rag

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So it’s the weekend after Christmas and the weather outside was perfect.  The sun was shinning, no rain in the forecast, and the temperatures was in the low 60’s.  What a perfect opportunity to get one last hike in before the end of the year and one last use out of my 2008 National Park Pass.  So I packed my hiking bag and headed out to my local stomping ground, Old Rag Mountain, for a day hike.

I was able to arrive at the overflow lot around 10am.  By this time all the early morning fog had burned off, but the trail was still very muddy.  For several days it had rained on and off.  I could deal with the muddy trail, that’s what hiking boots are for.  What I was concerned about was the wet rocks.  I didn’t think there would be any ice since the temperatures had not fallen below freezing for almost a week.  Nevertheless it would still be a dicey hike up the mountain.

On my way up I quickly shed my light jacket I was wearing, never having to put it back on.  The temperatures quickly rose and the wind never became a problem.  At one point on the trail up there was a noticeable temperature change.  The wind was blowing hard down the mountain and was about 15 degrees warmer.  If I stepped back just 10′ it got cooler again, very bizarre.

fellow hikers

After a short hike in the mud it was time for the rock scramble to the summit.  I was a little worried about slick rocks, this is not a place you want to slip and fall.  You could literally fall off the mountain to a not so soft landing.  But the chance of death certainly added to the thrill of climbing up the mountain this time.  With a more perraless hike I got a few more cuts and my camera took a few good knocks from slipping.  But never once did I completely loose my balance.  I even lost a lens cap at one point crawling around the rocks.  Fortunately when I was about to leave the summit a guys comes walking up with it in hand.  I couldn’t thank that guy enough for finding it and returning it.

When I reached the summit this time there were a lot of people, so finding some solitude would be pretty hard this time around.  I am starting to think I have to come up in a rain or snow storm for no one to be here.  Thankfully there were far fewer people this time around and I could find a spot to rest and eat lunch.  I took a spot on the rocks facing towards Robertson Mountain which I hiked just a few weeks earlier.  For what it was it was a peaceful lunch on a perfect day for hiking.  I spent a long time at the summit exploring and taking as many pictures as I could.  This was my first opportunity to use my 75-300mm lens on this mountain.  Even though the scenery was the same, I was getting a completely different perspective with my new lens.

rotten tree

I spent enough time on the summit so I headed down the fire road back to the parking lot.  I love this part of the hike.  It might be longer this way back to the car, but certainly easier.  There are no rocks to climb over or squeeze through and the grade is very manageable.  Certainly easier on my knees going this way.  I also like the walk through the forest once you have reached the valley.  You are surrounded by a ton of trees that just envelope you in nature, even more so in summer and fall.

Once I got back to my truck it was off to home.  A short drive back with a stop at the grocery store for dinner that night and my day was complete.  I love hiking that section of the Shenandoah, it’s just beautiful.

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I decided early November to hike Old Rag Mountain again.  The last time I did this it was summer and much hotter.  When I was finished the mountain totally kicked my ass.  I promised myself I would come back another time and do the full circuit hike of the mountain.  The cool weather of fall was reason enough to try the hike again.

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I was hoping to get another shot at the fall colors but the closer I got to the park the fewer leaves I saw.  I was hiking another trail earlier in fall and got a pretty good show.  If I had waited another week or two the trees would have been at peak.  If I couldn’t get the color at least I got cooler temperatures.  This time around it was about 50 degrees in the mountain.  Not all that bad in the grand scheme of things, but up there it was pretty windy and that made things pretty cold.

I got an early start that day but I still arrived about 10:30 in the morning.  I knew I needed about 4 hours to do the whole circuit so I wanted to get started early.  With the days getting shorter it was even more important to get hiking early.  So when I arrived I didn’t expect to see many people.  Very much like the first time I hiked the trail.  However this time when I arrived the parking lot was filled to capacity, a ranger had to direct cars to there spot.

This time around the hike up the mountain was not nearly as bad.  This time around I knew what I was getting into and was more prepared for the hike.  With the cooler temperatures it made things much more comfortable and I sweated out less fluids.  Getting up the mountain took no time at all.  When I did make it to the summit you could see clear across several valleys.  Most of the trees were bare except for small grooves of maple trees and their bright yellow leaves.

hiking trail in fall

After a few minutes at the summit, and with light fading fast it was time to hike down the mountain.  This time I would take the fire road.  It was a more steady slop and easier surface to walk down.  Even though it was longer it was still faster than hiking down the mountain via the previous path.  This way takes you down a perfect path in the forest, eventually meeting up with a creek flowing down to the parking lot.

Another thing that was strange this time around was the amount of people.  Even with the lot packed I never thought I would see so many people walking the trail.  There was rarely a moment when I was alone on the trial.  Mostly that happened on the way up the mountain.  At one point everyone was actually stopped on the trail.  There were probably 20 people in front of me waiting to get past one particular rock climb.

At the summit is were i saw the most people, just sprawled across several large rock groupings.  It was a great place to take a break and have some food.  The back drop while you ate lunch was spectacular.  It made me wonder what it would look like in the middle of winter with some snow on the ground.  Not only would the valley appear to have a wool blanket covering everything up, it would probably be a very deserted place that time of year.

It is a great place to hike and I look forward to the next time I can get out there.

summit of Old Rag