Perfect

Monday's hike was one to put in the top of the memory book. As I mentioned in my last post, I headed out to around Front Royal to hike around the Overall Run Falls section of trails. This hike is described on both of the hiking sites I use (Mid Atlantic Hikes and Hiking Upward). I believe the hike came out to be 8 miles after taking a few side trips and retracing some trail at the end to go swimming in a wonderful swimming hole.
The hike begins along a private gravel road and soon turns onto a side trail leading to the Tuscorora Trail. This trail was quite nicely maintained with some very nice trail work done on it. The intersection with the Tuscorora Trail is easily found. At this point the hike is described as going in a clock wise direction, heading up Matthews Arm toward Overall Run Falls. On my arrival, there were obviously some rowdy people up that way playing in Overall Run. I decided to head in counter clockwise direction in hopes of preserving some solitude as long as possible. I also wanted to save viewing the Falls for the end of the hike, kind of like "the best for last".
The trail meanders alongside Overall Run for quite a while. The woods are pretty dense, and it was a very nice temp. The day was perfect to begin
with. Sunny cloudless skies with temps in the low to mid eighties were had all day. The best part was it was dry! minimal humidity. A godsend! The Tuscorora trail eventually turned and met up with the Beecher Ridge Trail. The beginning of this trail had some slight overgrowth, but nothing serious. The forest here is truly a wonderful sight. Beecher Ridge Trail is a steady climb over two or so miles. The ascent is not to steep, and I found I was able to keep a pretty good pace with a few breaks. The climb is long, however, and it took me an hour and a half to reach the top and the intersection with Matthews Arm Trail and Tuscorora Trail. I met one hiker on her way down Beecher Trail. She passed on news of a large bear in the area along the top of Beecher Ridge. Soon after that, I came by some fresh bear scat on the trail. The bear obviously had no Leave No Trace ethics. Still, no sighting, which I was hoping for. I stopped at the intersection of the Beecher Ridge and Matthews Arm trails to have lunch. It was a nice shaded area, and I took my time. A group of young guys passed by. The were from the Shenandoah National Park YCC (Youth Conservation Corps?) and were out performing trail maintainence.
I continued on the Matthews Arm Trail now heading down Matthews Arm toward Overall Run Falls. The trail reconnected with the Tuscorora Trail as it continued down the mountainside. I ran into a young couple who informed me they had just run into a "cub" farther down the trail. The reports of a large bear and now a cub made me more excited for a bear sighting, but also a bit uneasy if "Momma" bear was out with her cub.
Shortly after getting back on the Tucorora Trail, I came on a nice overlook with a waterfall below. I had hiked to this point over a year ago and thought this was Overall Run Falls. I knew now, with more experience , that there had to be another waterfall. Still, this is a beautiful waterfall, though not too full with the dry weather of the time. The nice thing here is that one is able to get down to the bottom of the falls here and get wet or just see some more beauty. I gladly splashed in the falls a bit to cool off. I followed the stream down a bit and came upon a cliff with a nice vista. Getting out and back on the trail was harder than I thought. I did not realize how far I had gone.
Back on the trail, I was soon to find the waterfall , famous as the tallest in the Shenandoah National Park. The trail broke onto a sweeping overlook and cliff. Beyond the cliff, the Overall Run waterfall tumbled over a cliff to the valley 93 feet below. My vantage point was well above the falls, so the distance was much more incredible to see. Beyond this point I was on, to the west and south , was a gorgeous view of Massanutten Mountain. I could make out Kennedy Peak in the distance, a peak I look forward to climbing soon. Though I could not see the Shenandoah River, I could make out it's snake-like sway in the landscape below the mountain. Beautiful. It was wonderful to have such clear skies. No obstruction because of smog or haze. I stayed here for quite a while, not wanting to give up such a wonderful sight. This will be just gorgeous in the Fall.
The trail was descending fairly sharply after this, but some well place switchbacks helped tremendously. I noticed an unmarked trail that had been worn going straight down the mountainside, slicing through the switchbacks. Erosion was evident because of this trail, I hope trail crews are addressing this. I hope that it was an old trail, but is likely caused by people just disregarding the trail system.
At the bottom of Matthews Arm the trail heads back into dense forest. Again I marveled at how pretty this was. Overall Run ran alongside the trail again, but seemed to be all but dried up at this point. It must stay well below ground, as it was running pretty good when I first started. It was not long after entering the woods here that I finally had my fourth bear sighting of the year. This bear was about 300 lbs. and was lazily foraging in the brush. He had not noticed me. He was about 50yards away, so I had a hard time trying to get a good picture. I kept maneuvering to try and get a better picture. Not to be done. Finally he saw me, as I noticed I had strayed off trail to get closer. Not smart. I have to be more cautious. Still, it was an exilerating experience, and I enjoyed a good 10 minutes or more of just watching this gorgeous animal in it's own habitat. The trail crosses the Overall Run a couple of times, crossings that could be quite wet in wetter times.
Upon returning to my starting point, I continued back on the trail I started on to find the swimming holes that had been mentioned in the hike description. I am so glad I did! These are the most incredible swimming holes! Rocks are worn smooth around them and have wonderful water slides. The three swimming holes are all deep with one over 6 foot deep! After a nice refreshing swim, I was back on the trail, heading back to the car. The swim was invigorating, and I felt I could have tacked on another 5 or 6 miles.
This hike had it all. Perfect weather and temps, wonderful views, and gorgeous forest. The water was wonderful with a spectacular waterfall. Can't wait to re hike this one!!