 Review the Kennedy Peak hike here! Average Rating:
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Date of Hike: Saturday, November 17, 2012 |
Great Hike! The watch tower is a great place to set up camp. You may not even need a tent if planning on overnighting it. There is a platform on the bottom level that could be used as a sleeping platform for 4. We hiked it according to HU and found the first three to four miles awesome as it rolled along the base of the mountain. The next three miles to the tower were much steeper but still good for a workout(especially with packs on) Great time overall, the portion after the tower is much easier.
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Kevin Gunn
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Date of Hike: Wednesday, October 10, 2012 |
Took the Massanutten trail for an overnight backpacking trip. were told that there was plenty of spots to set up a tent for the night, however, the first spot we came across was right near the road and another was not flat enough for a comfortable camp site. ended up going all the way up to kennedy peak and setting up our tent on top of the watch tower structure. great hike for the beginning of fall! only saw 3 people the entire time we were up there. have to watch where your stepping! lots of horses obviously use the trail. As far as difficulty, I would say it was average. Some spots where the trail narrows and if you have backpacking gear you need to watch your step.
overall a great overnight hike if you can find a good spot to set up camp. be careful on your way down as it gets steep and there are a lot of loose rocks.
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Jayne Hiking Addict
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Date of Hike: Saturday, February 11, 2012 |
http://www.meetup.com/hiking-162/events/50872692/ Tony & Bryce, Hiking Upward gurus, joined our Meet up hikers for a delightful hike today. We had a beautiful blanket of snow on the way to Kennedy Peak. It was gorgeous to hike through. On our way back the snow began melting and by the time we returned to the parking lot it was gone. Great hike, great day, great company!!
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C&J
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Date of Hike: Thursday, October 20, 2011 |
Great views in late fall, much more solitude than advertised (encountered nobody on Stephens trail). Great hike, more likely to encounter a bear than another human!
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| By:
Renee'
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Date of Hike: Saturday, July 02, 2011 |
I started this hike on 4th of July weekend and expected it to be crawling with other hikers from beginning to end. I started at 9am Saturday morning July 2, 2011 on the yellow blaze Stephens Trail. I'll admit - If it wasn't for my GPS on my phone and a gut feeling, I would have zoomed pass the parking lot opening. This hike was a last minute thing so I was looking for something specifically in Luray with high "View" ratings so it would be worth the 4hr+ drive. The trail was very well marked and it was pretty hard to get lost, although near the end when I had to walk a few yards in the road to the next trail opening for the Massanutten kind of tripped me up slightly.
I must admit, the Stephens trail was a bit disappointing to me because it was nothing more than a plain hike in the woods with nothing special to it at all. I left better hikes near my home to come to this one, which is kind of sad. The best part about it was the solitude - Not another living soul, human or animal (other than the occasional butterfly) greeted me on the yellow blazed Stephens Trail. HOWEVER, once I got on the Massanutten Trail (orange blaze), I must have passed at least 35-40 people minimum, mostly families in groups of 3-7. Most of them were ill-prepared, hiking in jeans, flip flops, with one water bottle or nothing at all. One even asked me (about 1.7 miles into their hike the way they came) if they were close to the end…I kindly told them I was on mile 7-8, so they definitely weren’t close to the end at all. With that note, I’m thinking none of them were really going to hike the entire thing – leaving more solitude for the “real” hikers in the beginning and middle of the 2 trails.
I followed the directions on the board right at the beginning of the trail head, which was dead on. One reason for my boredom on the trail - which is completely my fault – like a few others here I DID NOT follow the recommendation to hike this when the leaves are off the trees. You get a peak here and there through the leaves but the views are kind of touch and go because of all the foliage. I never made it to the overlook – just kind of wanted to get it over with honestly, haha.
The views that I did catch through the trees were very pretty. After careful consideration, I guess I could give the hike another try, but ONLY when the leaves are dead and gone off of all the trees. Note – Be careful hiking down the Massanutten portion of this hike, as there are plenty of rocks that would love to have a hand in helping you twist your ankle. All in all, IF you’re in the area it’s a nice hike to clear your head and relax, not difficult at all, only minor elevation spots here and there. But don’t make the trip if it’s out of your way, unless you know you’re going to be able to catch some great (leafless) views, and even then, you might as well just skip the Stephens portion and just hike the Massanutten.
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