Big Meadows Campground, midway through the linear park, is
the hub of Shenandoah. A two lane road,
it can be a bit tight when two campers cross paths. Add to that the string of hearty bicyclists
doing long distance rides on the road and it gets REAL interesting! We arrived after enjoying several impressive
overlooks along the way with cotton candy clouds filling the valley below.
We checked in, scouted out two
sites and set up camp wasting no time before embarking on our chosen trail for
the day. Once again the AT is just off
the campground and we set out on it to reach the trailhead where we began the
serious, rocky descent to Lewis Falls.
The falls weren’t accessible but the trail was challenging and the views
along the way gorgeous. As Rob says
EVERY time we begin a descent – “What goes down must come up!”
The hike kicked our butts on the
way back up but we had fun meeting hikers along the AT and taking breaks at the
overlooks. Once again, a good meal was
in order and I put out a full-on BBQ dinner with fresh baked key lime pie. We deserved it, right?! After a game or two, Rob and I hiked yet
again to the amphitheater for the campfire ranger program this time on water
preservation. Well prepared and
presented, we’ve always enjoyed these presentations.
The following morning we packed
lunches for the day’s hike, not trusting any more what we’d actually encounter
vs what we anticipated! We headed out
early on the “Story of the Forest” trail leading to the Dark Hollow Falls. Story of the Forest didn’t have any story to
tell and was basically a path through the woods. Dark Hollow Falls was stated to be a
challenge but was a park favorite and was well manicured so was much easier
than the rock scramble to yesterday’s Lewis Falls.
I took a spill on the trail and
added some battle scars to my leg – some road rash, an impact bruise and
swelling – but was thankful not to have done any apparent deeper harm. Jack and Marcia had had enough and started
back on their return while Rob and I continued on for a 4 mile addition to Rose
River Falls and a loop back. Hiking down
almost the entire way, we knew we’d be in for quite the return! The Dark Hollow Falls were really quite
lovely and we really enjoyed the hike to Rose River but the falls disappointed
and we began the long trail UP!
With near 7 miles and several
thousand feet of elevation gain logged in for the day we made it back happy and
exhausted. We cleaned up and rested
before being treated to a night out at the camp lodge. The park and lodge are celebrating 80 years
of history and the staff were dressed in 1930’s barroom attire. Our waitress, Debby, has worked at the lodge
for 41 years (!) and was not short on personality!
Dinner was shockingly plentiful
although the service was shockingly NOT!
Jack’s order of ribs came with a FULL RACK covering his plate with sides
piled below and Marcia’s turkey dinner had enough turkey for three! Our waiter, Mike, was a scary sort with the
absolute worst service I’ve ever witnessed!
In the end, he made for another story to be told and we called it
another good story to be told!
For our final day at Big Meadows
we had climbing two summits on the playbill.
We jumped into the truck and headed north to start out with Hawksbill
trail, another well maintained and oft traveled trail with a relatively short
distance up to a wonderful view. Then
further up the road we entered the park’s other resort area, Skyland, where
plans for the creation of the park were first begun. From the resort we could access the Stoney
Man trailhead for the best views of the area we’ve yet had. 
Having a few miles and some
altitude under our belts, we enjoyed lunch at the Skyland Resort’s restaurant –
our treat this time! Being under the
same management team, we again had generous portions and again had a waiter
named Mike! This time, though, the service
was fun and attentive and made for a good contrast to the previous night’s
story. And the butterfly watching out the window made for some added entertainment.
Returning to Big Meadows we
stopped at the visitor center for the always enjoyable park movie before
settling in for the rest of the day. We
all each took time to catch up on maintenance and sundry details before reconvening
for leftovers and our first campfire of the trip. Surprisingly, we learned Jack had never
before enjoyed the joy of a s’more! We
remedied that problem with a gourmet version including dark chocolate with sea
salt as special treat! 
With our final stop together and our last day in Shenandoah planned for tomorrow, we bid another day and Big Meadows adieu…
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