Granite boulders mark the Ridge Trail on Old Rag, Va. (Compass Points Media / flickr)
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Old Rag stands as the most recongizable mountain in Shenandoah National Park, Va., and for good reason. Even though Old Rag is not the park’s highest or most easily accessed, this 3,268-foot mountain about two hours west of Washington, D.C., offers up an unusual hiking experience for Mid-Atlantic walkers. The trail goes over, under and around car- and house-sized granite boulders for more than a mile before reaching the summit.
The exposure challenges a hiker’s endurance and balance (do not attempt this if rain or snow is falling), but the payoff is an around-the-world look at Shenandoah’s muscular mountains to the north and south as well as the bucolic Virginia piedmont rolling on toward the Atlantic Ocean.
DIRECTIONS: U.S. Route 522 intersects at a T with U.S. 211 at Sperryville, east of Shenandoah National Park. Turn onto U.S. 522, and follow that through Sperryville to Fort Valley Road (VA Route 231), where you turn right. Follow Fort Valley Road southward for 7.3 miles until you turn right onto Sharp Rock Road (County Route 707). About 1.7 miles later, continue onto State Route 600 and find the Old Rag parking lot to the left after 1.5 miles. Cost to park there is $15 per car from March to November, $10 for the rest of the year, which includes a 7-day permit for the entire park.
HIKE ON: Start from the Old Rag parking lot and follow the road uphill for 0.8 mile to the former (now closed) parking lot. Here you find the start of the blue-blazed Ridge Trail, which starts you off in a towering, shadowy forest of oaks. The path meanders up the north side of Old Rag for about 2.2 miles, and look for a change in the forest make up at 1,800 feet as long- and short-needle pines as well as azalea shrubs become more abundant. Rise a total of 1,480 feet until you emerge from treeline and onto Old Rag’s rocky spine.
Old Rag, Va., stands on the east side of Shenandoah NP. (Compass Points Media / flickr)
The path now turns westward as you carefully navigate the granite boulder field, which can look daunting as you look up at the mountain. Look for unusual rock features like the Guillotine (a stone stair case where a rock is wedged between the walls which you must crawl under) and the Galactic Egg (a massive, egg-shaped granite stone). Views northward show Robertson, Corbin and Hot mountains as well as the higher peaks of the park. To the south stand the mountains of the Rapidan River region, and eastward rolls the Virginia piedmont.
The summit is found at 3,268 feet, a full 2,500 feet above where you parked. At this point, you’ve hiked four miles, and you’re only halfway done. Enjoy the 360 degree view, including to the west Shenandoah’s highest peak, Hawksbill at 4,051 feet.
From the summit, find the blue-blazed Saddle Trail, which walks off the mountain for 1.9 miles, passing two day-use shelters (the last one has a privy) as well as views of Hawksbill and other nearby peaks. Meet a junction with three fire roads and turn right onto the Weakley Hollow Fire Road, which takes you 2.46 miles back to the closed parking lot where you started the Ridge Trail. Follow the road back to your car.
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