The hike itself was not off the charts until we got to the rock scramble.  Not difficult, but very fun.  The views from the top were amazing.   The sky was very clear and there was not much humidity, so visability was great.  The breeze at the top was constant and cool.  At night, the temp was perfect for sleeping without a tent. 

Did not encounter that many bugs at all and only saw a few birds which was odd.  A few flies here and there, but they did not bother us much.  Take a camera and if you are doing this as an overnight trip, plan to camp at the top.  The view of the stars was perfect.   Contacted GW forest ahead to ask about where you can/cannot set up camp and you can camp anywhere.  Saw one other group and a few ATV lights at night, but other than that, it was quiet. 

Right turn off 211 has Crisman Hollow sign on the left of road and brown 274 post on right.  On other side of 211 is a yellow building.  Wear long sleeves & pants.  Respray for bugs before starting the orange trail.

When I read all the comments I wasn't expecting much today.  We (9 hikers from meetup.com) did Overall Run last Sunday & got  a great workout.  This billed itself as more elevation gain taking less time so I figured it would be a nice hike but nothing to write home about. Wow was I wrong.  There were several stretches going up which were a nice workout.  The scramble was a lot of fun and the view breath taking -- clear -- we could see forever.  We took a different route down the rock scramble and enjoyed every minute of the hike.  Ran into one person on the way to the scramble and 3 mountain bikers with a chain saw cutting up a huge log so they could ride by.

Our route took in both Strickler Knob and Duncan Knob over a two-night, 8.63 mile, trek.  We started from the Gap Creek trailhead on the Crisman Hollow road climbing to the Scothorn Gap trail in the opposite, counter clockwise, direction from those on this web page.  It's a rocky jeep trail and has a lot of wet spots from springs and runoff.  The weather was unseasonably warm all weekend, near 90 degrees, and there weren't any leaves on the trees in this area.  A recent forest fire had scorched the ridge above the campsites along the Crisman Hollow road upward and southeastward toward Waterfall Mt and Strickler Knob.  The fire seemed to have burned the top of the duff and some brush but didn't burn the bigger trees.  The ridge trail south to Strickler Knob was rocky as you'd expect so we dropped packs for the side hike and rockscramble to the knob.  The air was clear and the views from Strickler Knob were outstanding.  We continued toward the campsite below Burner's Gap through more area that had been scorched by the fire.  The trail had been bulldozed probably in an effort to stop the fire.  Cold water from the stream was a welcome relief when we got to camp.  The second morning we climbed the ridge to Peach Tree Gap and dropped packs for the rockscramble to Duncan Knob.  The views were just as good as you see them in the pictures on this site - no snakes though.  We returned to the trailhead by the Gap Creek trail.  If you're hiking or backpacking in this area take plenty of water and a means of purifying more from streams and seeps.   Camps you find on the ridges are dry.  Sunscreen and bug spray are also recommended.  The bugs on Duncan knob really got a piece of us but overall it was a good hike.

My wife and did this trail on a 60 degree sunny day in early November. The leaf color was past its peak but still interesting, the skies were hazy but clear and the temperature was perfect. The first half of the hike was the best part with the payoff being, of course, Duncan Knob itself. The views were very nice and no one was there but us. One negative aspect was the large number of bugs that were swarming the knob... we hadn't brought insect repellent because it was November after all, so instead of lazing around resting we ate lunch and then headed out fairly quickly. The return leg on the Massanutten Trail was a little disappointing... the 1/2 mile down the Gap Creek Trail was rocky and the fallen leaves hid the rocks which made the footing treacherous, and in general the surroundings were not really noteworthy. This trail was the odd exception where I would probably have been happier not doing a loop but just returning the same way we came in. All in all a good workout and a good hike.

I should have read the reviews before taking the hike. I have hiked Duncan Knob before but it has been a few years and I was unsure of how to get back so I used the “get directions” section from the HikingUpward website and I found the Google Maps directions misleading near the end of the trip. The directions were fine up thru the Fort Valley Road (19.9 mi) and Camp Roosevelt Road (3.3 mi), but then it says slight right at NF-274. At this point you will come to a very obvious turn off at a bend in the road. There are several signs with road numbers and none of the numbers match the numbers given in the directions. We continued on 675 until we passed the Massanutten trail and realized that we should have done something at the intersection. There are two roads to the right... you want to take the middle road and you will know it's the right road because there is a road sign that says “Crisman Hollow Road” which is FR 274. You will first pass a sign for Gap Creek which goes over to Duncan Knob and the next one will be Scothorn Gap Trail which is on the left with parking and several nice camp sites available.

This hike was great. We took the entire family to include our 5 year old. It was a little overgrown with blackberries before you got to the four-way junction with the Massanutten and Massanutten Connector trail, which made it a little difficult for the little guy. However, the blackberries were ripe and made a great addition to breakfast. There were great views from the top Duncan Knob!  The little guy and his mother did not go to the top. I cannot comment on the whole loop because when we arrived at the top of Duncan Knob it began to rain heavily with some lightening and we left via the Gap Creek trail and made our way back to Crisman Hollow Road and back to our vehicle.  We had hiked the other side of this circuit, the Massanutten Trail as part of the Duncan Knob Hollow hike, (also a great hike) so we opted to use the Gap Creek Trail to see some country we had not hiked on before.

I did a variation of this hike, only starting at the Gap Creek trailhead, then following in the reverse direction described here, and making a side trip out to Strickler Knob (as far as I know, this is an unofficial trail to the knob). 

  You should be aware the portions of the Massanutten Trail that were  the most severely affected by forest fire are in very poor condition.  The trail is obstucted in many places by fallen trees, and getting around them in this area is differcult.  Most of the trails on this hike, with the exception of this area, are okay, with only occasional obstructions that are easily traversed.

  By beginning the hike from the Gap Creek Trailhead, you have a less steep initial climb, but on a more rocky trail.  Also, the parking here is very limited.  From this point, it is only about a mile and a half to the Duncan Knob cutoff trail, so you either arrive very early, or very late in your hike.   

I was looking for a loop hike between 7 and 9 miles that my dog could go on and this was perfect.  The trail was well marked and easy to follow.  I would recommend good hiking boots.  There are loose rocks throughout the trail and it's easy to turn an ankle or slip on the steep descents.

I agree with the previous review that the rock scramble is too dangerous for dogs.  My dog is only 24 lbs so I could pick her up and set her on big rocks, but I only did it for a very short section of the rock scramble and it was really a challenge.  As soon as we could see a litte bit of the view, we turned around and went back down.

Other than that, bring a good map of the roads leading to the trailhead.  The 211 is not marked so you have to know where to turn in order to find it. 

And watch out for snakes. 

A couple of buddies and i set out to the Scothorn Gap trail and didn't even know about Duncan's Knob.  Another fantastic place along this trip was Stickler's Knob.  It was about a 1 mile out and back and had some very rewarding views as well.  It was hard to notice, not on the map, and you can barely see the sign for it, I highly recommend doing both knobs.