Sunday, June 5, 2016

Lewis Falls

Location: Shenandoah National Park, Virginia
Season Visited: Spring
Trail Length: 2 miles there-and-back
Time to Hike: 1.5 hours
Difficulty Level: 3

Last week I went with my husband and my friend to Shenandoah to check out a waterfall I hadn't seen before: Lewis Falls.  At 81', Lewis Falls is one of the taller waterfalls in the park, and is the fourth of the big, named waterfalls that I've seen there.  The hike was enjoyable on a warm, late afternoon and was also a bit of a workout!

On this map of the Big Meadows area, you can see Lewis Falls to the left.  We parked at the lot on the left going southbound on Skyline Drive, past mile marker 51.  From there we crossed Skyline Drive to the trailhead, which begins as a gravel fire road before becoming a dirt trail.

Gravel road.

On the way is a mysterious door (probably enclosing some sort of facility for all of the human activity around Big Meadows, but which caused much more imaginative speculation amongst our party), some non-potable water (well-marked), and a steady downhill trek to the falls and views.











Past this lookout point is the observation deck for the falls.  It offers a very nice view, though I decided to press on a bit and head down the ridge for a different perspective.  The falls are impressive and are a lovely photo op.





The way back is simply retracing your steps, though it is a bit harder going up than coming down!  I paid special attention to the little critters on the way back up.

Voyeuristic bug-mating photo.

Little lady on the gravel road.

A waterfall is always a fun reward for a hike.  With an hour-and-a-half of work, we saw some beautiful sights.  Keep on wandering!