Day 3: Rose River Falls to Dark Hollow Falls, White Oak Canyon Trail, and Sunset at The Point
Rose River Falls to Dark Hollow Falls
I started Saturday, April 23, 2022, by hiking the Rose River Falls to Dark Hollow Falls loop, a scenic trail connecting two of Shenandoah’s most popular waterfalls just off Skyline Drive. I arrived at Fisher’s Gap (mile marker 49.4) around 8:30am and was one of the first cars there. After crossing Skyline Drive, I followed the yellow-blazed equestrian trail east, then turned right onto the blue-blazed Rose River Trail to hike the loop clockwise, stopping often to photograph the waterfalls along the way.
At the halfway point, I reached the upper section of Dark Hollow Falls.
Unfortunately, at the time, I didn’t realize that what I was seeing was only the upper section of the waterfall, and that it was a short, but steep, descent to reach the base of the falls. Had I known, I would have continued down to take in the full view. Instead, I continued down the fire road back to my car to head toward White Oak Canyon Trail. Oh well. I was still happy with what I saw and all the waterfalls I’d encountered on the hike!
According to AllTrails, my total time on the 4.5-mile loop was 3 hours and 38 minutes, with 2 hours and 26 minutes of actual moving time.
Whiteoak Canyon Trail
Around 1:00pm, I drove to the Whiteoak Canyon parking area (mile marker 42.6) to hike a portion of the Whiteoak Canyon Trail, a popular waterfall hike that can range from about 4.6 to 10 miles, depending on how far you choose to go.
From the parking area, I followed the Whiteoak Canyon Trail, staying on it as I passed the junctions for the Old Rag Fire Road and Limberlost Trail. I had read that about 2.3 miles in, I would reach a rocky ledge offering an excellent view of the upper falls. Instead, I reached the viewpoint below.
I believe that had I continued a little farther, I would have eventually reached the upper falls. By that point, though, I was already exhausted from Old Rag and the other hikes I’d done the day before, along with the Rose River Falls and Dark Hollow Falls loop earlier that morning. Since Whiteoak Canyon hadn’t necessarily been part of my original plan for the day, I decided I’d seen enough and turned around to head back to the car.
I didn’t realize at the time exactly what I was missing, but that was okay. After hiking so much the day before and earlier in the day, I was quite happy with everything I had seen on the hike!
Overlooks on Skyline Drive
After hiking a portion of Whiteoak Canyon Trail, I got back in my car and spent the rest of the afternoon driving along Skyline Drive, stopping at scenic overlooks along the way. Among my stops were Crescent Rock Overlook, Tanners Ridge Overlook, Naked Creek Overlook, and Hazeltop Ridge Overlook. I reached Crescent Rock around 3:00pm and made it to Hazeltop Ridge around 5:45pm, taking my time to enjoy the views and snap plenty of photos along the way.
Hazeltop is the third-highest peak in Shenandoah National Park and is located in the park’s Central District along the Appalachian Trail. One of my favorite scenes here was a solitary pine tree standing in the open meadow, which made for a beautiful foreground against the surrounding Blue Ridge Mountains.
Sunset at The Point Overlook
My goal for the rest of the day was to watch the sunset from The Point Overlook. Sunset was at 7:41pm that day, so I arrived around 6:45pm, giving myself plenty of time to settle in, eat some dinner, and enjoy the changing light.
After two days packed with hiking, waterfalls, and scenic overlooks, sitting back and watching the sun disappear behind the mountains was a wonderful way to end the day.
