A Long Weekend in Shenandoah National Park: 4-Day Itinerary
View of the Blue Ridge Mountains from Skyline Drive
Located in northern Virginia along the Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah National Park boasts stunning vistas, miles upon miles of trails, and even a number of waterfalls for good measure. For us East Coasters, it is one of the few national parks on our side of the Mississippi, but it is no consolation prize. Its beauty rivals that of its western siblings.
My husband and I recently spent several days in Shenandoah, and what follows is our trip itinerary.
Day 1: Drive, Drive, and Then Drive Some More
Waking up early, we set off from Boston for Chester Gap, Virginia. What should have been an eight-hour drive ended up being a nearly twelve-hour ordeal due to never-ending traffic. We did not arrive at our Airbnb until late at night, which was made all the better by the fact that it was downpouring. If you want a good time, try unpacking your car in the pouring rain when it is pitch black outside 😆
Due to our late arrival, the only thing we did after bringing in all of our luggage was promptly fall asleep.
Crossing the Tappan Zee Bridge on our drive down to Virginia
Day 2: Skyline Drive
Rejuvenated from a good night’s sleep, we set off from our Airbnb in the late morning for Skyline Drive, a road that runs the entire length of Shenandoah National Park. It is a scenic road with frequent overlooks that offer breathtaking views of the Shenandoah Valley and Blue Ridge Mountains. We found ourselves stopping at nearly every pullover to take photos.
We packed lunch, which I recommend doing if you plan on driving Skyline Drive. Although there are a number of visitor centers along the road, there are not any places to eat, so be sure to bring plenty of food and water with you.
We drove about half the length of Skyline Drive before turning around and heading back to our Airbnb. Once back at our Airbnb, we cooked dinner and hunkered down for the night, taking advantage of our accommodation’s Netflix account.
View along Skyline Drive
Day 3: Hiking and Spelunking
After eating breakfast, we made our way to the trailhead for the hike up to Compton Peak from Jenkins Gap. The trail meandered through forests up to the summit, where we were rewarded with a gorgeous view of the surrounding mountains. We stopped for lunch at the top before making our way back down to our car. The entire hike was a little over three miles with around 700 feet of elevation gain, and it took us a little under two hours (though we did make a lot of pit stops for photos). One last thing about the trail: part of it actually runs along the Appalachian Trail. Pretty cool, right?
Trail up to Compton Peak
As the hike had not taken too long, we were able to visit the Skyline Caverns afterward. Illuminated in colored lights, this cave system was a visual treat to explore. Were it not for the child on our tour who kept kicking dirt at me, it would have been a truly enjoyable experience 😆
Colorful passage inside Skyline Caverns
After wrapping up our tour of the caverns, we headed back to our Airbnb to make dinner, and to commemorate our final night in Shenandoah Valley, we swung by Spelunker’s in Front Royal afterwards for some super tasty frozen custard.
Day 4: Farewell, Shenandoah
We set off early from our Airbnb for the next leg of our trip: D.C. (read all about that part of the trip here).
Well, that does it for our Shenandoah itinerary. As always, if you have any questions, feel free to post them in the comments section below!
