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Lexi M
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Date of Hike: Sunday, July 8, 2018 |
| Was very disappointed in the view. Most areas are grown up with about 8-10 year old pines. Views are limited. The beginning of the trail was so overgrown with vegetation it was shocking.
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Date of Hike: Saturday, December 31, 2016 |
| Not bad. Decent workout but not too hard. Would have liked some better views. Very well maintained.
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Date of Hike: Saturday, July 25, 2015 |
| Don't hike this if you want breathtaking views- yes, it is a beautiful hike but it's not the type where you get to the top, panting, to see an out of this world panoramic. There aren't many overlooks (it looked like there were 2 when we were hiking. The first was overgrown and had a 'trail closed' sign, and the second one was a smallish opening in the trees that overlooked the lake) but the actual scenery in the woods is very nice, and some of the switchbacks were really, really cool. The hike is strenuous and will wear you out without completely exhausting you. I'd do it again, but the views are really, really not a 5. Not in the area of the world it is, with the amount of mountaintop views that are in the George Washington and Thomas Jefferson forests.
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Date of Hike: Saturday, May 2, 2015 |
It was a very beautiful day to hike and the views were awesome. It probably never went above 65 and we really enjoyed the trails. The best part was the view of the lake and the mountains behind and the greenery throughout the hike.
We started from Richmond around 8:30 and reached Douthat State Park visitor center around 11:15. Started our hike around 11:30 and by we were back around 4.15pm. We spend a good amount of time taking pictures hence our total time was much more than what was suggested.
We did do the additional hike to the overlook and that brought our total hike to 8.17 miles and we spent close to 3hrs hiking time( excluding the time we stopped ).
http://www.mapmyhike.com/workout/968109541
Overall very satisfying hike and views and I wouldnt mind returning.
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Mike and Raylan
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Date of Hike: Saturday, March 7, 2015 |
Oh man what a fun hike. It is fairly challenging for a casual day hiker, but not enough to where you're collapsing at the end of it. You get some really cool scenery as you ascend the mountain, with a few peeks at Douthat Lake as well as the other side of the valley and the Cowpasture river.
When we did this hike there was about 8-12 inches of snow on the ground, which made it even more challenging. With that said, the views under the snow covered mountain were amazing. Took about 3-3.5 hours to complete, with about 30 minutes worth of breaks during the trek. This is a great hike to bring your pup along for the ride. My dog did excellent and we only saw one other group during our hike.
Highly recommend checking this hike, and all other hikes out at Douthat State Park!
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Date of Hike: Wednesday, January 14, 2015 |
| This hike was fantastic. It was all around stunning. At the beginning of the hike, the trail crosses a stream several times making it absolutely picturesque. It was slightly more challenging than I anticipated, but the views made up for it. There was lovely ice formations when the water typically runs down the mountain.
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Date of Hike: Saturday, June 28, 2014 |
| What a great hike. It was moderately challenging but not so much that you were hating yourself. The trail is marked well and clean, there are a couple of spots that are very narrow and overgrown but that is really kept to a minimum. We saw a total of 5 other hikers. There are 3 places for a great view of the lake and 2 other places that have wonderful vistas along the trail, otherwise a lot of walking and not a lot of looking. We took my 4 year old daughter and she walked all except a mile of this trail. We did see a black bear and had to go into bear avoidance for a short part but it ran away once we started clapping and yelling. I highly recommend this hike.
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Val & Andy
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Date of Hike: Saturday, October 3, 2009 |
| Had a great time! Very beautiful at this time of year. Like others have said, the most strenuous portion is the first 2-3 miles. We took our 16-lb border terrier, and he made it fine. Met some mountain bikers on the trail, too. Didn't do the Overlook Trail portion because it was getting dark, and it appears to have some upward incline which was more than we had ambition for towards the end of the journey. Also wanted to mention that it took us 3 hrs 20 min to hike, and that's WITHOUT a 1/2 hr for lunch OR the Overlook Trail portion... we're not super-fast expert hikers or anything, but we're in pretty good physical condition and hike every month. So depending on your fitness level or how leisurely you want to enjoy the hike, you may want to budget more than the 3.5 hr time estimate. Aside from hiking, we also tent-camped there at Douthat State Park and really enjoyed ourselves. We recommend it, and will probably do it again!
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Pat Barlow
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Date of Hike: Friday, October 17, 2008 |
| My casting friend Dr P & myself had a great time. We brought 4 cameras along & did some good 'studio' work.
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Richmonders
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Date of Hike: Sunday, July 20, 2008 |
As beginners, we drove up from Richmond to hike Beard's Mountain with our dog on a Sunday. We loved the hike, but were definitely challenged by the first leg of the trail. Once we got to the ridge about two miles in, it was smooth sailing. We saw exactly one other person, (although we saw her twice, she put us to shame by looping around us,) one snake, and a few piles of bear poop. The streams were completely dry, which was a bit disappointing, but overall the views were gorgeous and the trails themselves were lovely. There were a ton of people in the park, which seems to be a hotspot for RVs and campers, but we were pleased to have the trails all to ourselves. We'd definitely do it again!
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Date of Hike: Saturday, May 17, 2008 |
| I hooked up with Mr. Hikingupward, his wife, some friends, and my 10 year old daughter to do this hike. We picked a perfect day, mid to upper 60's with a slight breeze. This a very leisurely hike with the only the first 30 minutes climb to the the ridgeline a little strenuous. Once on the ridgeline and for pretty much the rest of the hike it is a very pleasant hike. The vistas of Lake Douthat are really good. This would be a great hike in the dog days of summer as about 95% of the trail or more is shaded. At the end of the hike don't forget to top it off by walking across the road from the visitor center, take your shoes off, and cool off your feet in Wilson's Creek. Here is a link for more photos of this hike: http://community.webshots.com/album/563580428HCPTKI
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