The
first two miles of the Little Devils Stairs hike in the Shenandoah
National Park can be tough if the day
is warm. The best time to do this hike is the early spring when water levels are at a peak, making the numerous waterfalls along the run that much nicer. At one point the trail even passes through a small set of falls.
The trail will begin up the right side of the parking lot
on the blue blazed Little Devils Stairs Trail. After 0.9 miles
the grade will increase sharply as the trail climbs
the ravine, and starts crisscrossing Keyser Run.
The Little Devils Stairs Trail is
hard to spot in places and you have to look for the blue
blazes on the trees. However, if you believe you've lost the trail it's difficult to go too far off track, as the gorge is very narrow and trail
runs along one side or the other of the stream. As you climb up the gorge there are several spots that require hand over hand climbing.
At 1.8 miles the Little Devils Stairs Trail becomes less steep, then makes several switchbacks before leveling
off completely and arriving at the intersection of the Keyser Run Fire Road, and four way junction.
Turn left down the yellow blazed Keyser Run Fire Road and in 2.0 miles enter an old hemlock
forest before arriving at the Bolen Cemetery
and intersection
of the for the the Hull
School Trail.
Stay left down
the yellow blazed Keyser Run Fire road as it becomes steeper
for the final 1.1 miles back to the parking area.
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 Click the icons in the map below for location shots
Calculate roughly how many calories you could burn on the Little Devils Stairs hike:
=
Hiker
Reviews For The Little Devils Stairs Hike (5 Most Recent)
We hiked up #18 Little Devil Stairs and down #19 Piney Branch (reverse directions). It's about a 9 mile hike 4 hours for us. 1.5 hours up icy LDS was not overly difficult to navigate because it was thawing. The fun part was Piney Branch trail at the beginning. No one had hiked it since the snowstorm of a couple weeks ago. It was fun crunching along the trail and finally got a chance to try out my yak trax although I really didn't need them. As Tony's pictures show, it was definitely challenging to cross the streams along Piney Branch today. We couldn't at the trail but with some creativity were able to stay dry. It was not all that strenuous (last weekend's up #39 Cedar Run down White Oak Canyon was much more challenging) but this was definitely enjoyable. Rae's in Sperryville VA is closing anyone know of other good restaurants in the area or on the way back to DC?
By:
Rating:
Date of Hike: Sunday, June 21, 2009
Wow! This hike was awesome! The stream that you follow was extremely active because of all the rain we have been getting, and I eventually stopped trying to keep my shoes dry since it was pointless! I did slip on one of the rocks during one of the many stream crossings, but it wasnt a bad fall. The uphill section following the stream was steep at times, with a couple of spots that were hand over hand, but there wasn't a ton of that, and my dog got up it just fine. Once we got onto the fire road we actually saw a young black bear up in a tree. Unfortunately, he was so eager to get away from us that he fell about 15 feet out of the tree! That was all a little scary, but he ran out of sight and seemed okay.
If you are going anytime soon, take shoes that you don't mind getting wet, and just walk across the stream crossings, it's much safer that way, and parts of the trail are actually in the middle of the stream so you'll get wet anyways. It took us just under three hours to do this hike, with a 15 min lunch break.
By:
Robert
Rating:
Date of Hike: Sunday, May 24, 2009
I have heard a lot about Little Devils' Stairs and was eager to finally get the chance to hike it. As soon as we pulled up the sky opened and the rain fell like a blanket on top of us. Not being undone by the rain we ventured up the trail. The trail itself is amazing with plenty of little waterfalls (of which the rain made much more viewable) and amazing views of natural beauty. About a quarter mile in the rocks begin to gradually climb and about a mile or so you will do a little hand over hand climbing of the rocks. After about close to two miles in the trail evens out with no more big rocks to climb over, however the trail becomes more steep as you walk the flat trail between high grass.
Once you get to the four way junction of Keyser Fire Road, you turn left down the gravel road and this is where the excitement of Little Devil's Stairs gradually disappears. There is only stop where you can really rest and get a view of the valleys below. Other than that, it is a long boring 3.4 mile walk back to the parking lot. You do pass an old cemetery that is worth visiting but other than that I could of done without the walk back on a gravel road. I would suggest going back down Little Devil's Stairs or going across the trail and hooking up with Piney Branch Trail whihch will loop you back about .06 miles from the parking lot.
By:
Rating:
Date of Hike: Sunday, January 25, 2009
A great hike for a cold winter day- we really enjoyed the ice, it was beautiful on the rock faces! The ice did not make this hike any more dangerous than usual. We returned via the Keyser Fire Road- which was very peaceful. No wildlife sightings other than plenty of birds and squirrel. We parked at the top and started from there, but did notice there was some vandalism to the "honor" pay for parking in the parking lot at the bottom- which is sad to see. The good news is that it looked like the payment box was still intact (vandals were not able to get to the money).
By:
Rating:
Date of Hike: Saturday, January 24, 2009
Did this hike yesterday , it was a good time. Was a little short but the beginning climb was great fun. If you enjoy climbing/bouldering you might want to bring your gear with you. I was kicking myself for not having any with me. There are some great faces out there. The creek was frozen really solid in most places which made for some really pretty ice structures. I think when it warms up ill head out there agian and this time with some climbing gear.
icon 
