VA Getaway Day 2: Compton Peak

My original plan for Saturday, and the real reason for making this trip, was to hike to the summit of Old Rag (doing the hike as detailed here). This is a long and strenuous hike (8.0 miles) with significant elevation gain (2,510 vertical feet) and a few short stretches of boulder scrambling. It's one of the premiere and most popular hikes of Shenandoah, and my plan was to be at the trailhead at dawn to beat some of the crowds.

But Friday night at the Super 8, as I continued to have worsening lower back pain, I realized that it would be just plain stupid to attempt such a strenuous hike in my condition. So I came up with a Plan B - instead of the one long strenuous hike, I'd do a much shorter and less-strenuous trail in SNP. Then I'd start driving home, and do a second short hike on the way home (if I felt up to it.)

For the first hike in SNP, I chose Compton Peak. I was familiar with this hike, as I did it a few years ago (before I was blogging.) The trailhead is around mile marker 10, so there wasn't a long drive from Front Royal to the trailhead, which was important, as long drives seemed to make my back worse. The route follows the Appalachian Trail for just over a mile to the summit of Compton Peak.

Since I would no longer be fighting the crowds at the Old Rag trailhead, rising in the pre-dawn was no longer necessary. I got up when I woke up, sorry to find that my back wasn't any better than the night before, packed and checked out of the Super 8, had a McDonald's breakfast, and got to the Compton Gap trailhead around 7:30am. It was a beautiful sunny morning, and there was only one other car in the parking lot.

I crossed Skyline Drive and followed the A.T. south. The trail started uphill at a gradual grade, then got a little steeper. I went at a very easy pace, and just like yesterday, hiking didn't seem to be a problem on the back. The grade eased again near the summit, and I came to a four-way intersection: The A.T. continued straight, and there were side trails to overlooks to the left and right. The trail to the right leads to a much more scenic overlook, so that's the direction I went.

I hadn't seen anyone on the trail, and there was no one at the overlook. If my back had felt better, I would have sat down and drank in the vista for a while, but sitting down (and even more so, getting up) wouldn't have felt good, so I stayed standing and took in the view for a few minutes.

I then retraced my steps back to the car. As yesterday, my back was loosening up some on the return trip, and I went at a little faster pace. There was plenty of bird song in my ears the whole hike, but I saw no people, and sadly, no bears.

This isn't a long or a difficult hike, but it's a lovely bite-sized morsel of Shenandoah hiking, leading to a beautiful overlook. Highly recommended.

Distance: 2.14 miles
Elapsed Time: 1:09