White Oak Canyon and Cedar Run Trail/Hiking in Shenandoah National Park.

cookingwithzumi (54)in #photography • 7 years ago

Dear Steemit Friends,

This trail was a discovery for us, thanks to my friend who posted a video of her hike on Instagram, I’m very thankful for it. The mixture of waterfalls, rocky paths, hidden water pools, caves and dense forest makes this hike unique!

So, I decided to include the link from the google map so you would know exactly where the start point is located. Please open the link. As you can see from the map we will hike along the Robinson River all the way up and go back following the Cedar Run. The hike will take us about 6 hours, but honestly you can get it done for 5. It took us so long because we were taking a lot of pictures and videos…

We did our hike on Sunday, and it was pretty crowded, so I recommend coming here on the weekday. Also, the parking is not free, $10 per person, so we paid $20 for 2 people.

Here is our first trial photo, we didn’t reach the main waterfalls yet. You might ask why I look so grumpy? It’s just that I don’t always like to be photographed, and my husband really liked that rock and he kept pushing “let me take a picture of you on that rock”, but he never wants to be on a picture. So, family debates ...

After 1,5 miles we noticed the base of the first set of major falls. It was very crowded, so we waited for about 10-15 minutes to take couple pictures.

Obligatory yoga picture...

After 0.5 miles we reached the second set of waterfalls, you just keep following the blue blazed trail/ White Oak Canyon.

Yep, you have to close the eyes, otherwise you will forget the whole experience. Inhale and exhale ...

After another 0.2 miles we reached main White Oak Canyon (WOC) falls overlook. The view from the top is just magnificent!! I hike for the views like that.

The path after was a little boring, but the good thing your legs can rest a little since there are no hills or rocks. So, cross the WOC Run and you will notice yellow blazed trail, it’s called Horse Trail. You can actually bring a horse and ride your friend here. Overall horse trails marked yellow in the whole Shenandoah National Park. The other thing if you are into Horse Back riding, Shenandoah offers some guided rides. Here you can find some more information on horseback riding, rates, maps, reservations. But we didn’t see any riders here this time… Actually, I’ve never tried horseback riding, but thinking about it; it’s still available there through November 13th.

After 1,5 miles we reached this famous spot, known as “The Slide” at Halfmile Cliff. You actually can slide from the top of the rock all the way down to the water pool. I knew about this waterfall, and was wearing a swimsuit the whole time, because I really wanted to try it, but when I reached the top of the rock I got very scared , and unfortunately I couldn’t fight the fear, so I left it for the next summer…

But here is the video of my brave husband, he wasn’t that scared, and slid from that rock couple times…

Overall, it was an amazing hike full of emotions, pictures, I was impressed! We also met couple people on the hike and shared some tips, thoughts and opinions about the trail…

I meet a lot of old people when I hike, I value our conversations because they are the most experienced hikers, a lot of them hiked more than half of the US. I see that they are a little slower with their steps but they never give up and keep going, I don’t think they ever turn back. I admire them because I know it might be hard to go all the way uphill, but they do it with a big smile.

Name of the park: Shenandoah National Park
Name of the trail: White Oak Canyon and Cedar Run Trail
Length: 7.9 miles
Hiking Time: 5.0 hours plus a half hour for lunch
Elev. Gain: 2,450 ft
Parking: 38.53927, -78.34935

More information on the trail and the map you can find here.