Shenandoah National Park is a United States national park located in Virginia, covering part of the Blue Ridge Mountains. The park is long and narrow, with the Shenandoah River and its wide valley to the west and gentle hills of the Virginia Piedmont to the east. Skyline Drive is the main road in the park, usually running along the top of the mountain range. About 40% of the park, which is 79,579 acres (124 square miles; 322 square kilometers), is protected as wilderness areas under the National Wilderness Preservation System. The highest point in the park is Hawksbill Mountain, which rises to 4,051 feet (1,235 meters).

Geography

The park includes parts of eight counties. On the west side of Skyline Drive, the counties are Warren, Page, Rockingham, and Augusta, starting in the northeast and going to the southwest. On the east side of Skyline Drive, the counties are Rappahannock, Madison, Greene, and Albemarle, also from northeast to southwest. The park is 105 miles (169 km) long along Skyline Drive, beginning near Front Royal in the northeast and ending near Waynesboro in the southwest. The park headquarters are located in Luray.

Geology

Shenandoah National Park is located along the Blue Ridge Mountains in north-central Virginia. These mountains form a highland area with elevations above 4,000 feet (1,200 m). The height difference between the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah Valley can be more than 3,000 feet (900 m) in some places. The highest point of the mountain range separates the Shenandoah River drainage basin, which is part of the Potomac River system, on the west, from the James and Rappahannock River drainage basins on the east.

Some of the rocks found in the park are over one billion years old, making them some of the oldest in Virginia. The bedrock includes granitic rocks from the Grenville period (1.2–1.0 billion years old) and layers of metamorphosed sedimentary and volcanic rocks from the Neoproterozoic era (570–550 million years old) in the Swift Run and Catoctin formations. Metamorphosed basalt from the Catoctin Formation can be seen at Compton Peak. Clastic rocks in the Chilhowee Group are from the early Cambrian period (542–520 million years old). Quaternary deposits, which are loose materials from recent geological periods, cover much of the bedrock in the park.

The park is located on the western edge of the Blue Ridge anticlinorium, a large Paleozoic geological structure at the eastern edge of the Appalachian fold and thrust belt. Rocks in the park were folded, cracked, reshaped, and altered by heat and pressure during the late Paleozoic Alleghanian orogeny (325 to 260 million years ago). The rough terrain of the Blue Ridge Mountains was formed by uneven erosion during the Cenozoic era, though some tectonic activity occurred after the Paleozoic.

History

In 1901, a new member of Congress from Virginia named Henry D. Flood proposed a law to create a national park in the Appalachian Mountains. Although President Theodore Roosevelt supported the idea, the law did not pass. The first national park, Yellowstone, was created in 1872 in Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. Yosemite National Park was established in 1890. In 1916, the National Park Service (NPS) was created by Congress. Before this, several other parks were made in the western United States, including Crater Lake (1902), Wind Cave (1903), Mesa Verde (1906), and Denali (1917). In 1919, under President Woodrow Wilson, Grand Canyon, Zion, and Acadia National Parks were created. Acadia became the first national park in the eastern United States. It was funded by donations from wealthy private landowners. Stephen Mather, the first director of the NPS, believed a park should be created in the southern United States. In 1923, he asked for ideas in his report. In 1926, Congress and President Calvin Coolidge approved the NPS to buy land to form Shenandoah National Park and Great Smoky Mountains National Park. However, the law said the federal government could not use its own money to buy the land. Instead, Virginia had to raise private funds, use state money, or take land through eminent domain (the right to take private land for public use).

Harry F. Byrd, a candidate for governor of Virginia and the nephew of Congressman Flood, supported Shenandoah National Park. His friend, William E. Carson, who was Virginia’s first chairman of the Commission on Conservation and Development, helped plan the park. The creation of western national parks had boosted tourism and jobs, which Byrd and local leaders supported. The land that became Shenandoah National Park was scenic and mountainous but had lost many trees to a disease called chestnut blight. It had been private land for over 100 years, with many farms and orchards. After Byrd became governor and got the legislature to approve $1 million for land purchases, Carson and his team worked to identify landowners. They found over 5,000 land parcels, some owned by tenant farmers or squatters (people living on land without owning it). Some landowners, like George Freeman Pollock and L. Ferdinand Zerkel, supported the park and formed the Northern Virginia Park Association. However, many families who had lived in the area for generations did not want to sell their land. Carson promised that if they sold, they could stay on their land for the rest of their lives.

Carson also lobbied President Herbert Hoover, who bought land near the Rapidan River for a vacation camp and later donated it to the park. Virginia used eminent domain to acquire land, eventually giving it to the federal government to create Shenandoah National Park. Carson’s brother suggested that counties, not the state, handle land acquisitions through arbitration. Some families accepted payments because they needed money and wanted to leave farming. Nearly 90% of people in the area worked on the land, selling timber, charcoal, or crops. Before the chestnut blight and a 1930 drought, they earned money from chestnuts, apple and peach harvests, handmade crafts, and moonshine.

However, Carson and politicians did not ask residents for their opinions early or explain how a tourist economy could improve their lives. Instead, they started an advertising campaign to raise funds and conducted surveys. After Stephen Mather died in 1929, the new NPS director, Horace M. Albright, decided the federal government would only accept vacant land, forcing elderly residents to leave. This led to many families being forced to leave parts of the Blue Ridge Mountains in eight Virginia counties. The Skyline Drive path was bought without condemnation, but land costs tripled, and the park’s shape became narrow. In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt decided to build the Blue Ridge Parkway to connect with Skyline Drive, requiring more land acquisitions.

In 1932 and 1933, many families refused to sell their land. Supporters changed tactics, hiring social worker Miriam Sizer to study conditions in a nearby community. Her report, though later discredited, claimed residents were very poor and inbred, supporting forced evictions and burning of cabins. Other researchers described the remote communities as isolated, similar to a fictional comic strip called Li'l Abner. In 1933, a book called Hollow Folk highlighted the difficult lives of residents, who often lacked electricity, running water, schools, or health care. However, some teachers, like Christine Vest, believed the reports exaggerated the hardships.

Carson had hoped to become governor in 1929 and 1933 but was replaced by George C. Peery. Peery and Carson’s successor later created Virginia’s state park system, though plans to move reluctant residents failed. Carson had wanted to lead the new state agency but was not chosen due to disagreements with Byrd, including fees owed to Carson’s brother and the evictions that caused negative publicity. Most families who resisted moving came from central counties (Madison, Page, and Rappahannock), not areas near Byrd and Carson’s bases or southern regions where tourism benefits were visible, like near Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello.

Attractions

Shenandoah National Park is famous for Skyline Drive, a road that is 105 miles long (169 kilometers) and runs along the top of the mountains through the park. The Appalachian Trail also passes through the park for 101 miles (163 kilometers). In total, there are more than 500 miles (800 kilometers) of trails in the park. Visitors can enjoy horseback riding, camping, bicycling, and see many waterfalls. Skyline Drive is the first road in the National Park Service east of the Mississippi River to be listed as a National Historic Landmark and designated as a National Scenic Byway.

Shenandoah National Park covers 196,000 acres (306.2 square miles; 793.2 square kilometers) of backcountry and wilderness areas. Campers in the backcountry must follow a "Leave No Trace" policy, which includes burying waste and not starting campfires. Campers should also be cautious of wildlife, such as bears and venomous snakes. Food must be stored in trees using "bear bags" or approved bear canisters to avoid attracting bears, which can become dangerous if they become used to humans and food. All animals in the park are protected by federal law.

Most campgrounds are open from April to October or November. The five major campgrounds are:
• Mathews Arm Campground
• Big Meadows Campground
• Lewis Mountain Campground
• Loft Mountain Campground
• Dundo Group Campground

The park has several lodges and cabins, including:
• Skyland Resort
• Big Meadows
• Lewis Mountain Cabins
• Potomac Appalachian Trail Club public use cabins

Lodges are located at Skyland and Big Meadows. The Harry F. Byrd Visitor Center is also at Big Meadows. Another visitor center is at Dickey Ridge. Campgrounds are located at Mathews Arm, Big Meadows, Lewis Mountain, and Loft Mountain.

Rapidan Camp, a restored fishing retreat built by President Herbert Hoover in 1929, is accessed by a 4.1-mile (6.6 kilometers) round-trip hike on the Mill Prong Trail. The trail starts at Milam Gap (Mile 52.8) on Skyline Drive. The National Park Service also offers guided van trips that begin at the Byrd Center in Big Meadows.

Shenandoah National Park is one of the most dog-friendly parks in the national park system. Dogs are allowed at all campgrounds and on most trails, including the Appalachian Trail, if they are on a leash that is 6 feet or shorter. Dogs are not allowed on ten trails: Fox Hollow Trail, Stony Man Trail, Limberlost Trail, Post Office Junction to Old Rag Shelter, Old Rag Ridge Trail, Old Rag Saddle Trail, Dark Hollow Falls Trail, Story of the Forest Trail, Bearfence Mountain Trail, and Frazier Discovery Trail. These ten trails total less than 20 miles of the park’s 500 miles of trails.

Streams and rivers in the park are popular with fly fishers for native brook trout. Many waterfalls are located within the park. Some significant waterfalls include:
• Whiteoak Canyon
• Rose River Falls
• South River Falls
• Jones Run Falls

The Dark Hollow Falls Trail begins at mile 50.7 of Skyline Drive near the Byrd Visitor Center. The trail goes downhill along Hogcamp Branch to Dark Hollow Falls, a 70-foot (21-meter) waterfall. The trail from the start to the base of the falls is 0.7 miles (1.1 kilometers), and the trail continues past the falls, crossing a creek and connecting to the Rose River fire road. Visitors may see black bears and timber rattlesnakes along the trail. While the trail is short, some parts are steep and may be difficult for some visitors. There is no view from the top of the falls, and the rocks are slippery, so visitors should stay on the trail.

Climate

Shenandoah National Park has a humid continental climate, as classified by the Köppen system. This type of climate is marked by warm summers and no dry season, labeled as Dfb. The United States Department of Agriculture identifies the plant hardiness zone at Big Meadows Visitor Center as 6a. This location is at an elevation of 3,514 feet (1,071 meters), and the average annual extreme minimum temperature there is -7.1°F (-21.7°C).

Ecology

The climate and plants and animals in the park are similar to those found in mountainous areas of the eastern Mid-Atlantic woodland. Many common species in the park are also found in ecosystems at lower elevations. According to A. W. Kuchler, the natural vegetation type for the park is Appalachian oak (104), which is part of an eastern hardwood forest vegetation form (25), also called a temperate broadleaf and mixed forest.

Pines grow mostly on the southwestern sides of some of the southernmost hills, where prickly pear cacti may also grow naturally. In contrast, the northeastern sides often have small but thick groups of hemlocks that like moisture and lots of mosses. Other common plants include oak, hickory, chestnut, maple, tulip poplar, mountain laurel, milkweed, daisies, and many types of ferns.

The American chestnut tree was once very common in the park but was nearly wiped out by a fungus called the chestnut blight in the 1930s. Although the tree still grows in the park, it does not grow to maturity and dies before it can reproduce. Oaks took over from chestnuts and became the main tree species. Starting in the early 1990s, gypsy moth infestations began to harm oak forests because the moths mainly eat oak leaves. Although gypsy moth numbers have decreased, they still affect the forest and have damaged about 10% of the oak groves.

Wildlife

Mammals found in the park include black bear, coyote, striped skunk, spotted skunk, raccoon, beaver, river otter, opossum, woodchuck, bobcat, two species of foxes, white-tailed deer, and eastern cottontail rabbit. Some people have reported seeing cougars in remote areas of the park, though these sightings have not been confirmed. More than 200 bird species live in the park for at least part of the year. About thirty bird species stay in the park all year, including the barred owl, Carolina chickadee, red-tailed hawk, and wild turkey. The peregrine falcon was brought back to the park in the mid-1990s. By the end of the 20th century, many pairs of peregrine falcons were nesting in the park. Thirty-two fish species have been recorded in the park, including brook trout, longnose and eastern blacknose dace, and the bluehead chub.

Ranger programs

Park rangers plan many activities from spring until fall. These include guided hikes and talks about the park's history, plants, and animals. Shenandoah Live is an online program where people can chat with rangers and learn about the park's features. Rangers share information about many different subjects, answer questions, and speak with specialists who have knowledge about the park.

Artist-in-Residence Program

In 2014, under the leadership of Superintendent Jim Northup, Shenandoah National Park started an Artist-in-Residence Program. The program is managed by the Shenandoah National Park Trust, which is the park's partner that helps with donations. Photographer Sandy Long was chosen as the park's first artist-in-residence. The work created during Long's time at the park was shown in the photography exhibit "Wild Beauty: The Artful Nature of Shenandoah National Park." The exhibit was held at the Looking Glass Art Gallery, which is located in the historic Hawley Silk Mill in Hawley, Pennsylvania.