dickey ridge trail

Love walking on the paths throughout Shenandoah National Park. This is a nice short hike, manageable, a bit hilly.

Fox Hollow is an easy 1.2-mile circuit hike accessed from the Dickey Ridge Visitor Center near the northernmost portion of the park. The trailhead is right across Skyline Drive from the visitor center. This is a self-guided interpretive hike with brochures available at the visitor center or at the trailhead if you'd like to learn a little more about the history and nature of the area. Right at the trailhead, there is an open wildflower meadow and then the trail heads into the woods. Along the way, you'll see some signs of the area's past, including large rock piles, the remains of a homestead, and the Fox cemetery. A few of the graves here are for soldiers from the Civil War. The trail then loops around back to the trailhead. It's a nice easy hike for people who want to get out and see some of the park without a more strenuous adventure.

This is a great trail to try when you're not looking for the most strenuous climb in the park. It's a steady climb from the bottom to the top which gives you the elevation without the huffing and puffing. There's a short (Fox Farm) loop near the top that goes by an old cemetery, and a visitor's center at the top where you can buy an ice cream or have your lunch while looking over the Shenandoah Valley. You can have the short version of 6 miles or extend it another four miles or so by continuing south in a loop. You park by the side of the road shortly before the entrance station.

Park at the Dickey RIdge Visitors Center and walk back into the Fox family history. This was an interesting and meaningful walk as it related to my family history. Sad that folks had to give up their homes but a win for the public now and in the future.

A great hike....one to be enjoyed time and again. Can start hike near entrance to park or at the Dickey Ridge visitor center.

Hiked on October 21, 2012 and the autumn colors were amazing! It is so worth it in mid-October! Backpack a lunch and plan to spend some time chilling out at the overlook rock. The view is amazing and nice breeze. Ask a park ranger where it is on the map before leaving the Dickey Ridge Visitor Center because it's not marked on the map. You can get a map at the visitor center or download one off the internet. I added a photo of it to this review, but it might be hard to view it. You have two options to get started.(1) Park your car and leave from the Visitor Center. Cross the road/driveway by the flag pole and turn right on the trail. The trail will fork and Dickey Trail continues to the right; however, we decided to take a left for the longer way around and reconnect to Dickey Trail via the Fire Road/Snead Farm Loop. Never hike past the same place twice because we took a short cut back through the picnic area to our parked car at the visitor center. Option (2) for a shorter hike, park your car at the picnic area south of the visitor center and pick up the trail .8 miles from the visitor center. Depending on your personal hiking condition, this is an easy to moderate hike. It does have some of the trail that are steep, but overall even if you're not in good hiking condition, it's not that strenuous. The park ranger estimated hiking both the Dickey Ridge and Snead Farm circuit to be a two hour hike. The group I traveled with took a lot of photography stops so it took us from 1:30 pm to 5:30 pm with a 45 minute lunch stop on the overlook rocks.