One of the more beautiful drives east of the Mississippi is Shenandoah National Park’s Skyline Drive.  The road is 105 miles long and runs along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains. You can enter the drive at four of the park’s entrances (Front Royal, Thornton Gap, Swift Run Gap and Rockfish Gap). The road is populated with 70 scenic overlooks where you can get panoramic views of the park and Shenandoah Valley. You may even see some of the park’s wildlife crossing the road. The road is particularly beautiful in the fall when you can see the seasonal foliage. Since the road runs through the park, you will need to pay the park entrance fee to drive on it.

No other trail in the park is famous, challenging and rewarding as Old Rag. The 10 mile loop trails climbs over 2,600 feet to the top. Along the way, there’s a long rock scramble that will require a good amount of full-body physical exertion. The trail is rated as difficult and should only be attempted by those in good enough shape. The trail over the rock scramble is 4 miles to the top. An access road down is about 6 miles. At the top, you’ll have an unobstructed view of the park. Be prepared for inclement weather and strong winds. The trail is best used in the summer and should be used vary carefully when conditions are wet. The trail is also very popular, so you’ll want to start as early in the day as possible and avoid weekends if you can.

At 70 feet, Dark Hollow Falls is considered by many to be the most beautiful falls in the park. The trail to the falls is only about 1.4 miles out and back. You’ll gain about 500 feet of elevation on the way. The trail is otherwise considered easy and is best used in the summer and can get crowded at times. It’s best experienced early in the day or during the week.