This
hike has some of the most spectacular waterfalls in the Shenandoah National
Park. Combining two out-and-back hikes, White Oak Canyon & Cedar Run, this loop starts at the bottom of the valley and cuts over near the top of the ridge. With five major falls, numerous smaller cascades and pools, this circuit hike is one of the best.
Follow the blue blazed trail on the right side of WOC Run reaching the WOC/Cedar Run Connector Trail in 0.6 miles. Stay straight on the right side of WOC Run for another 0.7 miles, cross a small stream, then arrive the base of the first set of major falls.
The trail will now make several switchbacks as the grade gets steeper, then reaches the second set of falls in 0.6 miles. Again, the trail will switchback several times, then become less steep, and arrive at a concrete marker for the base of the main WOC falls. To see the falls from the base, follow the side trail straight for 100 yards. Continue uphill on the WOC Trail as it steeply climbs the last 0.1 miles to the main WOC falls overlook.
Continuing uphill from the main overlook, and shortly arrive at the yellow blazed Bridge Path Trail that comes in from the right. Stay straight, then cross WOC Run in another 40 yards at the horse rail. If WOC Run is high, continue up the right side of WOC Run and cross a footbridge in 120 yards.
After crossing the run follow the wide yellow blazed WOC Fire Road/Horse Trail. In 1.6 miles the WOC Fire Road/Horse Trail will veer right. Stay left on the narrower yellow blazed trail, marked on a concrete post as "Horse Tr To Big Meadows". In 0.6 miles the horse trail intersects the blue blazed Cedar Run Trail.
Turn left downhill on the blue blazed Cedar Run Trail, then in 1.3 miles cross Cedar Run. In 0.2 miles after crossing Cedar Run reach the top set of main falls at Halfmile Cliff known as "The Slide". 60 yards below the main falls is a pool where Cedar Run passes through a narrow gorge.
Continue downward on the Cedar Run Trail for 0.5 miles where the blue blazed trail makes a sharp left to cross Cedar Run for the last time. After crossing Cedar Run follow the trail for 0.3 miles to the intersection of the WOC/Cedar Run Connector Trail. Turn right downhill on the Cedar Run Trail towards RT600, and in 0.4 miles arrive back at the WOC Trail intersection. Turn right, re-cross the steal footbridge, and arrive back at the parking area.
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Hiker
Reviews For The White Oak/Cedar Run Hike (5 Most Recent)
White Oak Canyon section of the trail was very scenic with waterfalls and a nice cliff view near the top. This portion of the hike wasn't difficult but was very populated with many large groups. Amazingly enough, for the length of this hike, I didn't even see the first sign of wildlife which i would attribute to the crowds of people. This section would be a 4.
The Cedar Run portion is really where the challenges lie. The varied terrain, rocks, log and rock crossings and the steep decents would rank a 5 but it was well worth it. This hike has something for everyone.
I still can't believe how many people I encounter with nothing more than a 16oz water bottle on hikes such as this. Be prepared and you will enjoy this hike.
By:
Adam Freeman
Rating:
Date of Hike: Monday, October 10, 2011
Almost 25 years since the last time hiking the Cedar Run - White Oak Canyon loop - and what a great hike it still is! No need for any duplication of spelling out all of the fantastic views, water features, hazards and surprises - everything about this classic old hike makes it one of the best to visit in the SNP.
From the perspective of my last trek, around 1987:
In the peak summer heat of the '80s, our small group encountered very little water - I would describe it as a trickle on Cedar Run, not much more on the White Oak side either. What a difference from the drought of that year to what we experienced recently! Water volume was strong, the "chute" sections of Cedar Run were thundering!
IIRC, Gypsy Moths had been making an impact as far as defoliation of the canopy at the time - I seem to recall the dry "rain" of Gypsy Moth scat along the hike. Thankful for their disappearance - the fall leaf show was tremendous!
Something I was unable to read mention of on this thread was whether any other hike enthusiasts made any "archaeological" discoveries along the way - evidence of any era of pre-park dwellers. Besides the usual sightings of rock walls, scattered stone structural foundations, and mountain turnpikes my wife and I fairly easily came across a site of interest along the Skyland-Big Meadows horse trail. We ran this hike clockwise from Cedar Run, and in an area along the White Oak Fire Road, discovered what appeared to be a trash dump. I took pictures of what was there - and based on the remains, it may have been either the scattered remnants of a mountain home or CCC work campsite - or both. Broken fragments of china, stove pipe sections, tin cans, cast-iron stove, chunks of coal, and '30s era glass "pop" and liquor bottles - and the familiar rusted-out washbasins - great material to document on film! After doing some internet work at home, the china date code indicated February, 1937. This would have to have been from CCC or SNP workers, as I would bet the "scattered kitchen" items were all from about 1938-40.
I hope that everyone who hikes and has an interest in the history of the area takes pictures of their finds - and always leaves such sites intact for others to interpret and enjoy!
By:
Rating:
Date of Hike: Sunday, October 09, 2011
It was our first time hiking in the Shenandoah and we picked this trail because of all the waterfalls that it promised us we would see. I was also very glad to find this website as the coordinates of the parking lot helped very much in guiding us to the right place, as well as the very detailed direction that this site offered. Without it, we would probably get lost for sure.
The hike was very strenuous to us beginners, especially the steep climb up to the top overlook of the WOC falls. The hike down was also a bit problematic as well, since it was continuously downhill and put a lot of pressure on our knees. Halfway down we realized why so many hikers whom we passed had canes. There were some tricky/slippery spots along Cedar Run, so be careful when you make your way down.
While on our way up, we asked hikers who were going the opposite direction of us how far the main overlook was. And also how far did we have before we made the turn into Cedar Run. One group said that they never went all around the loop before, but they gathered it was a longer hike than to just turn around and head back and suggested that we did that. They meant well, but we were glad we didn't follow their advice, as the hike down Cedar Run was a lot of fun as you get to skip around rocks across streams three times as well as witness "The Slide" :)
By:
Rating:
Date of Hike: Saturday, September 10, 2011
This was an excellent hike!! I was expecting to get turned around a bit due to others posting they got turned around, but the trails were very well marked and the narrative on this site is spot on. This is only my second hike in the area (the first being Old Rag) so I don't know how the falls usually look, but the water was running solidly and COLD. My 8 year old did this with me and jumped in the lower falls of White Oak Run, afterward complaining, "I can't feel my ears!" There were numerous people on both the white oak trail and cedar run, but didn't see anyone on the horse trail. The only problems I ran across were a couple of sections of the cedar run trail near "The Slide" that looked washed out from the recent rain...I took a couple of spills there so be careful. Overall...Awesome!!! :)
By:
WV Hiker
Rating:
Date of Hike: Thursday, August 25, 2011
This was a nice hike and had the trail all to myself, I made a variation and hiked white Oak Canyon-Limerlost-Cresent Rock-Cedar Run which I think made it about 11 miles. The rocks were a bit slippery but thats to be expected after the rain we got but I wanted to make sure I did this hike when the creek was flowing good. The Cedar rock trail was in pretty bad shape compared to the other trails so be prepared to take your time coming down it. I ran into a bear and her to cubs and saw some deer so the wildlife viewing was nice.
Waterfalls, waterfalls, waterfalls! This has to be the most spectacular waterfall hike in Shenandoah National Park. With three sets of falls on the way up White Oak Canyon and three smaller falls heading down Cedar Run, this circuit is among the mid-Atlantic's most popular. Lots of company on the trail.
Usually, the ideal time for this hike is in early spring, but with the rain we've had in the last month, all the falls were near their best. The wildlife was also out; we came across several black snakes, this guy (vid) was a local celebrity with hikers on Saturday, and we also saw a juvenile black bear on the trail.
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