 Review the Stephens Trail hike here! Average Review Rating:
| By:
|
Rating: |
Date of Hike: Saturday, February 21, 2009 |
I spent some time looking for a decent hike for a large-ish group of people with a mixed level of fitness and experience. We mainly wanted to enjoy some moderate exercise on a 50-degree, clear February afternoon. I thought the entire loop would be too hard, and too long, so I figured we'd try the hike counterclockwise and reach Kennedy Peak in a 6-mile out-and-back trip. However, I was somewhat concerned about the initial ascent from the parking lot. I was concerned that some would find it too strenuous and burn out or turn back early. I noticed on the trail map that the path crossed a road at the ridge line, but I wasn't sure if there would be adequate parking for several cars. Fortunately for the group, there was sufficient parking at the ridge line, so we saved about 500 feet of elevation gain. That was a mercy. Walking along the ridge line for the first mile and a half or so was easy enough. We could see glimpses of the view that awaited us between the bare trees. (The peeks at views might be few or nonexistent during the spring or summer.) The trail didn't get rocky until the ascent up Kennedy Peak, which was definitely strenuous. But by that point people were committed and could see their destination. The payoff at the top was entirely worth it, esp. after cutting off the first 500 feet from the parking lot. I didn't see notes about shorter versions of this hike, so I hope you all find this helpful! Definitely one of the beauties of Virginia.
Note about directions: I made the mistake of taking the 211 bypass (aka Lee Highway) over Luray. This highway doesn't have an off-ramp for Bixler's Ferry/675. So, if you're coming from the east side of the mountain, you have to take the 211 business route and go through the city to Mechanic Street, which becomes Bixler's. From there, follow the signs up for 675.
|
|
| By:
Robert Godlove
|
Rating: |
Date of Hike: Friday, January 02, 2009 |
Nice day to Hike...Myself and Wife , hiked with 4 kids, between the ages of 7-14, Didn't do the full Loop...Went to Kennedy Peak and back. Would like to do the whole thing in the near future...Weather was great and temp was Moderate 38-42F...Trail was in good shape, someone had drove their vehicle back the trail a ways and lost some parts! We carried out and threw in trash, Great view at Kennedy Peak 360 degrees, and nice vistas on the way there. Only ran into one other family. Would recommend this hike.
|
|
| By:
Jim Cleaveland
|
Rating:  |
Date of Hike: Sunday, November 11, 2007 |
|
We went up from the parking lot, a nice climb but the zig zags made it relatively easy. Coming back along the side of the mountain was a bit boring after while. Still enought leaves on trees to reduce panoramas to the West into the narrrow valley. Temperature about 40 at outset and about that at top when we stopped for lunch at the look out.
|
|
| By:
|
Rating: |
Date of Hike: Friday, October 05, 2007 |
I enjoyed the easy beginning of this hike. The incline to the peak was strenuous, but not too bad. The lookout tower at the peak is great. In fact, we rolled out our sleeping bags and slept there under the stars. We saw shooting stars and the sunrise in the morning was gorgeous. A beautiful blanket of mist covered the valley below for a couple of hours after we woke up. We enjoyed the hike down even more than going up because of the moss and beautiful foliage--just starting to turn colors. We saw one couple hiking while we were on the trail. My least favorite part was walking down the paved road at the end of the hike to our car. Overall though, very nice hike.
|
|
| By:
Emily
|
Rating: |
Date of Hike: Sunday, May 27, 2007 |
We agree with a previous review that the parking at the trail head is more like 4 miles after turning onto 675. If you reach Camp Roosevelt, you've gone just too far.
For it being the weekend of Memorial Day, we were expecting much more company. There were only 3 other groups and each said they had started at the point where the trail briefly joins 675 and hiked backwards up to Kennedy Lookout.
All in all, it was a fun hike. The views would definitely be better in early spring before all the leaves block the views out into the valley. We did get a couple of glimpses through the branch openings and if we had started later in the day more of the clouds would have burned off and the view would have been even more amazing.
|
|
View all 10 reviews for the Stephens Trail hike
|
|
icon 
