This hike is the the sister hike of Raven Rocks. Starting at Bears Den it heads south on The Appalachian Trail for 4.5 miles to the top of Buzzard Hill. Although the length is only 9.0 miles the vertical ascents over the ridge spurs add up to over 3000 feet of vertical gain by the time you get back.
From the parking area head up the dirt road towards the house where you turn left on the blue blazed nature trail just before the stone gates. In 50 yards pass a small nature trail on your left and in another 50 yards turn left at the intersection where a 20 foot trail connects to the Appalachian Trail (AT).
Turn left onto the white blazed AT and start your descent where in 0.6 miles you cross a stream over a old wooden foot bridge. Continue on the AT and in 1.0 miles cross the first fork of Spout Run. Begin another ascent as you cross another spur before descending and arriving at the Sawmill Spring/Moore Shelter blue blazed trail that heads left uphill.
Stay straight on the AT and shortly cross the second fork of Spout Run and and intersection of the other end of the Moore Shelter trail. The trail connects with the trail you just passed and is a small loop to the shelter. You can see the shelter through the trees in the winter.
Turn right remaining on the AT for another 1.6 miles as it crosses another spur before passing a short flat area and beginning your final ascent up Buzzard Hill.
At the top of Buzzard Hill the AT heads slightly left, turn right on a short side trail that goes to a lookout area and great spot for lunch. To return just retrace your route.
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Reviews For The Buzzard Hill Hike (5 Most Recent)
I had been thinking of doing this hike for a while, but had been scared off by the topo map and mixed reviews. In need of a good, tough hike after several months off, I finally decided to give it a try. Yikes!
The first couple of miles weren't bad, with several nice stream crossings (hikes always seem better to me with the sound of water in the background) and I was feeling confident. The trouble came at Buzzard Hill which I couldn't seem to find. (I ended up going about 3/4 mile further, but found the waterfall, which was flowing pretty strong. Definitely worth the extra distance, or so I thought at the time). With a little guess work, I finally was able to find Buzzard Hill, but wasn't totally sure I was there because the view wasn't much, even with no leaves on the trees yet. It definitely wasn't the view you get with Raven Rocks or Bull Run Mountain.
The trip back was a killer! I'm in decent shape, but had to stop frequently to rest on the ascents it was so bad. With the extra trip to the waterfall and 15 minutes for "lunch," it took me over 6 hours to finish it. By the end, I was kind of hoping the buzzards circling over my head would just finish me off and put me out of my misery. On the plus side, I saw fewer than 10 other people on the trail all day, even on a gorgeous day.
Bottom line: if you're looking for a challenge, this is the trip for you. It has its charms, but is more about the workout. I think I'd only go back to camp (there were several spots along the way) or when I really need to push myself.
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Date of Hike: Saturday, December 12, 2009
A great workout, yes the anti-christ of all trails - no. The views aren't so bad in winter without the leaves. Streams are compelling, partially ice covered. Just a topping of crunchy snow actually helped make the mounds of leaves underneath less treacherous. Yes, lots and lots of rocks on the trail, so watch out for your ankles and be sure to have very good hiking shoes. Waterproof boots a good idea.
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J. Davidson
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Date of Hike: Monday, August 24, 2009
Nice hike. Quite a workout. Harder than Rock Mount in my opinion. Extremely rocky! No view at all in late August -- can't see anything for the trees. Took me 4.5 hours round trip pluss 15 minutes rest in the middle.
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Date of Hike: Tuesday, July 08, 2008
First of all, I don't like giving any hike two stars. After all, it's not the trail's fault that I'm now in my 40's and have more than a few extra pounds around the middle. Also, I knew exactly what I was getting into - the description on this site is, as always, outstanding; and the other comments sum things up pretty well.
As another reviewer noted, this hike is a challenge. Unless you are in at least decent shape and your primary objective is to get a serious outdoor stairmaster workout, you should avoid this one. The views in the summer time are more like peeks than views. There are countless places in Virginia, starting with Raven Rocks, with better views. I did Raven Rocks last fall, and for anyone who has done that hike, this one is 2X that in both distance and vertical climb. The rocks on the trail are just as bad as Ravens Rock, if not worse, and almost never let up. I can't understate the rock situation on this hike, so please be forewarned.
So, all that said, I'm glad I did this hike, as I wanted to check it out and it's close by, but I probably won't be coming back anytime soon.
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Date of Hike: Saturday, April 12, 2008
Instead of hiking from Bears Den, I chose to hike this from the other side. Take Ebenezer Rd. and left on Morgans Hill Rd. (There is a small parking area). The trail head has a sign to the AT and to Rt 7. It is a much shorter hike than from Bears Den. The trail has a beautiful waterfall about half way through. To get a close up view of the waterfall, follow the creek on the left side to reach the falls. Continue on the trail for another mile or two until you reach Buzzard Hill. Great views from the top although in warmer weather views may be more limited. It appears that there is a small camp site area at the top as well. Return the way you came. The total hike is less than 2 hours.
Good thing we had a nice cool day for this hike. The total elevation gain is over 3000 ft and by the time we were on the last ascent back to Bears Den our legs had just about had enough.
This was the first time we have hiked to Buzzard Hill and as we expected on this out and back hike the few people we did see were Appalachian Trail thru-hikers.
The one great vista is right at Bears Den, instead of turning south on the AT go north for just 100 yards and the view to the west is great. The hike itself had the streams full with melt water and Buzzard Peak itself has a nice south west view.
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