Shenandoah

The words

1. Bearfence

   Bearfence Mountain has a rocky scramble leading to an all-around view, with the Virginia Piedmont on one side and the Shenandoah Valley on the other.

   Park Service: Bearfence (opens a new tab)

2. Big Meadows

   This high mountain meadow interrupts the surrounding forest and provides habitat for plants and animals. The Park Service says the exact reasons for its existence remain unclear.

   Park Service: Big Meadows (opens a new tab)

3. Blue Ridge

   Shenandoah straddles this eastern line of the Appalachian Mountains. Its rocks record more than one mountain-building episode, including an ancient range that eroded before the Appalachians formed.

   Park Service: Shenandoah rocks (opens a new tab)

4. Brook Trout

   Native brook trout inhabit Shenandoah’s cool, clear streams, fed by forested slopes. Protecting these fish is a central purpose of the park’s fisheries management.

   Park Service: Native brook trout (opens a new tab)

5. Corbin Cabin

   George T. Corbin built this log home in Nicholson Hollow around 1910. The Park Service records that his family was “evicted in 1938,” while a side addition was still under construction.

   Park Service: Central District history (opens a new tab)

6. Dark Hollow

   Dark Hollow Falls lies below Skyline Drive, reached by a streamside descent. The short trail’s steep, rocky terrain makes the return climb more demanding than its length suggests.

   Park Service: Dark Hollow Falls (opens a new tab)

7. George Pollock

   George Freeman Pollock developed and managed Skyland as a mountain resort. He promoted it through a newspaper and organized elaborate entertainments, from costume parties to pageants.

   Did you know?

   His bugle organized the resort’s daily life, calling guests to meals and entertainments and even announcing the departure of the mail.

   Park Service: Skyland history (opens a new tab)

8. Herbert Hoover

   Away from Washington at Rapidan Camp, President Herbert Hoover discussed plans for a 1930 disarmament conference with Britain’s prime minister. The retreat combined recreation with presidential business.

   Did you know?

   Charles Lindbergh played horseshoes with Hoover at Rapidan Camp; the mountain retreat hosted informal games as well as official conversations.

   Park Service: Hoover and the parks (opens a new tab)

9. Marys Rock

   The rocky summit overlooks the Shenandoah Valley and Massanutten Mountain to the west. Its rounded, boulder-strewn terrain exposes some of the park’s oldest rocks, formed before the Appalachians.

   Park Service: Marys Rock (opens a new tab) · Park Service: Shenandoah geology (opens a new tab)

10. Old Rag

    Old Rag’s rounded summit and scattered boulders expose ancient basement rock, the foundation beneath younger formations. These rocks remain from a mountain range older than the Appalachians.

    Park Service: Shenandoah geology (opens a new tab)

11. Rapidan Camp

    The Hoovers’ mountain retreat served as a setting for official meetings during the Great Depression. Its Brown House has been refurnished to reflect their years there.

    Did you know?

    The Hoovers donated their retreat to become part of Shenandoah National Park, giving their mountain getaway a future beyond a single presidency.

    Park Service: Rapidan Camp (opens a new tab) · Park Service: Hoover and the parks (opens a new tab)

12. Skyland

    Before Shenandoah became a national park, this mountain resort drew vacationers seeking relief from city life. Its cabins, dining halls and entertainments made it a seasonal community.

    Did you know?

    The resort grew out of land once held for copper mining. That venture failed commercially before George Freeman Pollock persuaded the owners to develop a mountain getaway.

    Park Service: Skyland history (opens a new tab)

13. Skyline Drive

    This ridge-top road was planned to open mountain scenery to motorists. Construction began with emergency work-relief funds, and Civilian Conservation Corps crews later built walls and landscaped overlooks.

    Park Service: Skyline Drive history (opens a new tab)

14. Stony Man

    Ancient lava flows, later changed into greenstone, form Stony Man’s jagged cliffs. Stacked layers of this rock help create Shenandoah’s distinctive pattern of steep faces and flatter ledges.

    Park Service: Shenandoah geology (opens a new tab) · Park Service: Central District history (opens a new tab)

15. Whiteoak

    Whiteoak Canyon’s cascades and waterfalls drew walkers even in the early days of Skyland Resort. A rocky ledge along its trail looks down toward the upper falls.

    Park Service: Whiteoak Canyon (opens a new tab)