March 25th Hike

[Josh Silverman]

I'm sending this announcement out a bit early, because I will be out of town starting on Thursday in a somewhat remote area with sporadic wifi service.  The hike for next week will be in Shenandoah River State Park.  This hike is between 17 and 18 miles, with about 1500' elevation gain.  This hike has a lot of turns, so I'm asking the group that goes with me to stay together, or at the very least to regroup at junctions.  We should be able to see at least the beginning of the bluebells on the trails that go along the Shenandoah River.

This is a state park, which charges for admission:  the fee is $10 per car.  So it makes sense to carpool.  We will begin and end at the Visitor Center, which is to the left of the main park entrance road a little past the entrance booth.  It well under 1½ hours to get there from Centreville, so we will try to begin at 8:30.

Josh

[Josh Silverman]

I've been late in getting this hike on the schedule, but the hike for the coming week will be a double loop starting from Elizabeth Furnace, which is slightly west of Front Royal.  Both loops will be done in counter-clockwise direction.  The first will consist of the Botts Trail leading to the Sherman Gap Trail, then going up to the Massanutten Trail, turning left and returning to Elizabeth Furnace.  The second loop crosses Rte. 678 and encompasses Signal Knob.  The hike is about 17½ miles, with about 3800' elevation gain.  People can bail out after completing the first loop if it gets too hot in the afternoon; the forecast, however, at this point is for fairly moderate temperatures for this time of year.

To get to Elizabeth Furnace, use Rte. 55 (going west if coming from Front Royal or east if coming from Strasburg) and turn onto Rte. 678, Fort Valley Road.  The turnoff to the Elizabeth Furnace day use area is a left turn about 4 miles from the junction with Rte. 55.  Go past the smaller parking lot over the bridge to the larger parking lot, which is open during the summer months.  The larger parking lot not only has more room but also has easy access to restroom facilities.

The map with hiking directions is enclosed.  For anyone who wishes to do this hike, please let me know in advance if possible.  Also, if people are interested in carpooling, please notify the group so that we can set it up at Centreville.  The drive from Centreville is relatively short, slightly over an hour.  So we will try to assemble for the hike at 8:15 rather than 8:30.

Josh

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From: Josh Silverman <betu...@msn.com>
Sent: Tuesday, March 18, 2025 7:24 PM
To: Vigorous Hikers <vigorou...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: March 25th Hike