Big Schloss is another treasure in the George Washington National
Forest. Relatively easy at only 4.4 miles and 1,000 vertical feet,
it's the sister hike to Tibbet Knob which heads to the south from the same parking location. Tibbet Knob has two short rock scrabbles, but a 10th of the hikers, and just as good views.
Big Schloss peak, named by German immigrants
provides a wonderful view of the surrounding valleys. Make
sure to bring a packed lunch because you will want to linger
at the Big Schloss rock outcropping and soak in the view.
If you want to make a weekend out of it, the Wolf Gap recreation
area has 9 well maintained
campsites with bathroom facilities. If you have some
extra hiking time consider hiking the Tibbet Knob route as well. The views are every bit as good.
Leave the Wolf Gap Campground (near campsite #9) and start
up the orange blazed Mill Mountain Trail to begin the steepest
portion of the hike. The first mile has several switch
backs before arriving at the ridge
line of Mill Mountain.
Once getting to the ridge line, turn left and continue following
the now narrower trail as it follows the ridge before arriving at the junction
of the Big Schloss Trail in 1.9 miles.
Turn right onto the white blazed Big Schloss Trail for another
0.3 miles before crossing a wooden
bridge that will take you to the overlook just 50 yards
further along. Enjoy the view it's one of the best! To return, just retrace your route back to the Wolf gap Campground.
Interactive Hike Map BelowPrintable
Topo Hike Map (PDF) Hike route in Drag the map with your mouse using the icon Zoom with the controls on the left Mouse-over the icons in the map below for location shots
Calculate roughly how many calories you could burn on the Big Schloss hike:
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Hiker
Reviews For The Big Schloss Hike (5 Most Recent)
Very Nice, Had a good day...nice weather, clear skies, The First leg of the Hike from Wolfs Gap is about 1/3 mile leg burner and then it caps out and has great east/west views, The trail was in good shape the views are killer, ran into about 8-10 people total in and out...some were out of gas on the side of the trail. Seen a nice big and fat Black Rat snake laying in a dead tree (6ft.)
By:
Brad Z
Rating:
Date of Hike: Sunday, October 28, 2007
We really enjoyed this hike...a great 4 mile leg stretcher with fantastic views both west and east. After the steep first 1/4 mile or so the trail levels out for a relaxing ridgeline hike.
By:
Rating:
Date of Hike: Sunday, October 21, 2007
Great day hike, w/ views and trail as advertised. One drawback: it was a bit crowded, detracting slightly from the overall effect.
One comment on directions: bridge referenced in driving directions is closed. If travelling from the East (from 1-81) turn R on Union Church Rd. and follow signs for Wolf Gap. You'll promptly see the closed bridge and be on rte. 675 which is well marked all the way to the campground.
By:
Rating:
Date of Hike: Thursday, July 26, 2007
Made a great decision to hike the Big Schloss hike on a weekday (Thursday) and it paid big dividends. Didn't run across another hiker on the whole trip, just a couple of campers at Wolf Gap. Very nice hike with the steep portion (more dangerous on the return downhill IMHO) out of the way in the beginning, then nice fairly level ridge hike along Mill Mtn Trail then a short steep leg up to the summit. Views are excellent as advertised. However, there isn't much room for error on top and I would hesitate to bring small children (for excellent safer views I might take kids up to Hawskbill or Stony Man summit). Had a nice lunch alone at the top then headed back. Finished entire route in 2.5 hours. A couple of pieces of trash and campsites along the trail, but the trash was minimal and the campsites clean and litter free. One downside was lack of wildlife sitings - not even a whitetail. But a highly recommended day hike.
By:
Whitey
Rating:
Date of Hike: Sunday, May 27, 2007
Getting There:
Leaving at 6am traveling from Oakton VA on RT66 to 81, we arrived at the trail head in just about 2 hours time and had no problems with the directions.
The Hike:
The start of the trail, up to the ridge, is very well worn and is wide enough to accommodate side by side hiking. Several switchbacks and a few deep breaths and you're at the ridgeline which opens up with a decent view into the surrounding valley. Follow a grassy shaded path along the ridge (1.9 miles) until you see the split (wooden sign) signaling you have a quarter mile to go. A quick jaunt further and you'll have great 360 degree views of the surroundings. Great views and worth a hike.
The Cons:
The trail is obviously well traveled. Several points along the way were remnants of open fires, plastic lunch bags, and empty plastic bottles which were very frustrating to see. Also due to the traffic, my recc would be to either start early or pick a day with less than ideal conditions so you get the trail to yourself. Overall though, a great hike.
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