Shenandoah National Park & Skyline Drive Guide

Skyline Drive runs 105 miles down the spine of Shenandoah National Park, with 75 overlooks handing you the layered blue ridges on one side and the Shenandoah Valley on the other, and it is the single most beautiful stretch of pavement in Virginia. The park protects a long, narrow strip of the Blue Ridge — waterfalls tucked in the hollows, black bears in the oaks, and about 101 miles of the Appalachian Trail threading its length. The famous climb is Old Rag, a rocky scramble to a 3,284-foot summit; the easy win is Dark Hollow Falls or the view from Hawksbill, the park’s high point at 4,051 feet. In October the whole thing catches fire with color and the traffic proves it.