Shenandoah National Park Family Hikes

Shenandoah National Park is located in Virginia and is tucked away among the Blue Ridge Mountains. It is a perfect park for the family to visit! I believe this is because even if you don’t want to go on a hike, you can take the Skyline drive that runs the entire length of the park and still enjoy all the views. We attempted this in our old Jeep but was only able to make the Northern half of the drive before the Jeep busted the water pump forcing us to limp it back to the campsite. So, everything we are going to cover in this post is all in the Northern half of the park. One day we will return to check out the southern half as well.

With all that being said I do think that to get the full experience of this beautiful landscape you must get out of the car and hit the trails. There are amazing waterfalls and even more amazing views that can be accessed with a short hike. If you are really feeling adventurous you can enjoy 101 miles, averaging 57 hours to complete, of the Application trail running right through the heart of Shenandoah National Park. We only touched a small portion of this trail, as the kids have a hard-enough time covering any more than 6 miles total.

 On this post we are going to cover our favorite family friendly hikes within the park. Also touching on some good places to grab a meal and a drink.

If you are looking for a good spot to set up basecamp while enjoying Shenandoah National Park please click here!

Dark Hollow Falls

I wanted to start this post with my favorite hike of the park, Dark Hollow Falls. Dark Hollow Falls trailhead is located just up the road from the Harry F. Byrd Sr Visitor Center. It is the first hike we took when we got into the park. After fueling up at the visitor center, buying way more coffee mugs than we need. We decided to check out this short 1.4-mile out and back hike to a beautiful waterfall that the Park Ranger at the visitor center recommended for our family.

I would rate this hike as moderate since it only has an elevation gain of 440ft but that entire change is over .75mile. While the trail is not paved, it is maintained well but does narrow down with steep cliffs once you get down to the waterfall. Once at the fall you can enjoy playing on the rocks but be warned! The rocks are slippery and we seen many people take some nasty falls while maneuvering through them. Even Kaitlin had a good spill on them!

On your way back is when you’re really going to feel that elevation change. Make sure you bring plenty of water and take as many breaks as you can. There is plenty of spaces once you get away from the waterfall that allows you to sit on the side of the path along the creek. This gave Kaitlin and I a much-needed breather while allowing the kids to play in the creek and climb all over the rocks. Funny how the kids are “SO TIRED” while on the trail but as soon as we stop to take a break, all they want to do is play and climb on the rocks.

Upper Hawksbill Trail

I know, I know I said Dark Hollow Falls was my favorite hike in the park. Well to be honest it is a tie with Upper Hawksbill Trail. I just could not figure out what trail I enjoyed more. I know for the kids it was the waterfall but for me it may be Upper Hawksbill. The views that this trail gives you are honestly breathtaking. The trailhead can be found right off Skyview Drive. There is plenty of parking for the crowds you are defiantly going to encounter while heading on this 2.1 mile out and back trail.

One of my favorite things about this trail is that the hard part of the trail is right at the beginning. You will start climbing up this 498ft elevation gain. It will be a challenge but the trail is nice and wide and very well maintained. Once you get to the top just sit back, enjoy the views have a picnic. By the time your batteries are recharged you only will have to deal with walking down the trail all the way back to the car.

The Hawksbill summit is the tallest peak in Shenandoah National Park and offers a full 360-degree view of the park. Something worth mentioning is once you get to the top there is a nice covered pavilion that has a picnic table under it. Once you are finished with catching your breath you can take a short walk to the overlook and enjoy the views of Blue Ridge Mountains and Shenandoah Valley. Feel free to let the kids run around as they have built a beautiful wall that blends in with the surrounding scenery. This allows the kids to get right on top of the cliffs without having to worry about them falling over.

South River Falls

This 2.4mile out and back hike is rated at a difficulty of moderate. South River Falls is a spectacular hike that will cross with the Appalachian trail. It is not a hike I would recommend unless you are somewhat up to a challenge. The trail has an elevation gain of 910 ft. The trail is well maintained but there is a stream crossing that you have to balance on larger rocks to maneuver. Plus, that elevation gain is all on the way back to the car, so be prepared for the kids to be super tired and cranky by the time you get back to the parking lot.

Don’t get me wrong about this trail. It is completely worth the hike. The entire trail is shaded by heavy cover. The sound of the water cascading over the stones while you descend down the trail toward the 80’ waterfall is calming to the soul. Unfortunately, my kids complaining about their legs hurting did somewhat take away from a little bit of the relaxation. That’s ok though, I would not have changed a thing.  The trail and the kids are perfect just they way they are.

Once we got to the overlook that was enough of the hike for us. There is a large stone wall that marks the overlook and there is plenty of space for a snack and a break before taking the challenge of going back toward the car. The view from the overlook leaves something to be desired. The foliage is heavy and even though you can hear the falls, you cannot see it. If you are up to the challenge you can continue to the base of the fall but that was not in the cards for my family and me. We enjoyed the sounds and headed back to the car. 

Shenandoah National Park Grill and Chill

One most of our trip during the summer of 2022 we did not come across too many places that was worth stopping and eating at. That all ended when we came to visit Shenandoah National Park. There just simply were too many places around us that where unique to the area. Also, since we were located around 45 minutes from our basecamp it did not make a lot of sense for us to make multiple trips back and forth from the camper in order to eat a meal.

This led us to many unique places to eat and drink. Some of these we only found because the water pump on the Jeep busted and we had to make a few unexpected stops on the way back to our campsite to let it cool back down. I am wanting to cover our favorite places to grab a bite to eat in and around Shenandoah. Some of these I would highly recommend and will go back to them again. Some of them I would not suggest to go to with a family. Keep on reading to see what I mean.

Elkton Brewing Co

This brewery can be found just a few miles from the Shenandoah National Park entrance. I cannot speak for the food at Elkton Brewing Company they have as this was one of those stops we made just for a quick beer. I will say that if you have children, I would not recommend heading into this brewery. They are not very kid friendly. They did not make me feel welcomed and it seemed more like the kid’s presence was annoying them. Keep in mind my kids are very well behaved. They are not running around, jumping and screaming. They were just sitting at the table and wanted a root beer or lemonade and the server made it seem like he would rather we just leave….so we did.

Maybe it is just me but I have taken my kids into plenty of breweries. Hell, breweries are some of my favorite places to eat at. You can find unique dishes and amazing pizza and burgers. Not to mention a tall dark glass of beer to wash it all down. I have never felt like we were not welcomed into a brewery/winery before attempting to enjoy Elkton Brewing.  As far as the beer, I only had one and my wife had 1 mixed drink. Both of us agreed that it was just ok. Nothing special about it. Just a generic beer from a generic brewery.

Shenandoah National Park New Market Taproom

Are you are looking for a great place to grab a bite to eat within Shenandoah National Park? You should look no further than the New Market Taproom located inside Big Meadows Lodge. We stopped in here for a fast lunch and I am so happy that we did. This became my favorite place to eat on our entire trip. The staff was extremely friendly making us feel welcome with our kids. The beer was excellent and the food is fresh and unique. I suggest getting the Apple Chicken Pizza. It has grilled chicken, sliced apples, crumbled bacon and maple syrup. It was the perfect blend of sweet and savory.

When you are finished with that and still have some room, you must try the Signature blackberry ice cream pie. It has a graham cracker crust, blackberry ice cream, meringue top, and blackberry compote. It is large enough to share but you won’t want to.

Between the atmosphere, excellent service, and food you just cannot go wrong with the taproom. It’s a must stop while visiting the park and even though it is located within the lodge don’t feel that you have to dress up. We went there after a long hot hike to dark hollow falls and did not feel out of place one bit.

Kline’s Dairy Bar

If you are anything like me you have a huge sweet tooth that 99% of the time cannot be cured. Ice cream is my weakness when it comes to attempting to satisfy my cravings. So naturally when we drove past Kline’s Dairy Bar I knew that at some point in my trip, we were going to have to stop here.

Kline’s seems to have a lot of classic specialty flavors. You can get a delicious root beer float or a classic banana split. We went to Kline’s Dairy Bar on a HOT summer day right after coming out of the park. It was such a refreshing oasis for us, since the jeep does not have AC. I highly suggest stopping by and taking the kids for an ice cream. The service was fast and the staff is extremely friendly.  

Cave Hill Farms Brewery

Probably one of my favorite breweries we have been to in a long time, Cave Hill Farms Brewery is a unique experience that you must try. The brewery is literally housed in a barn on a farm in Virginia. It was a little shady going to the brewery as it felt like trespassing. There is not great signage and the parking lot is basically just a field.

Once you establish in your head that you actually can be on the property head on into the barn and grab yourself some beer from the bar. The two-story seating leaves something to be desired but it reminded me of my younger years in Illinois. Where we all would get together on the weekends and go to a friend’s farm. Drinking and laughing all night long while music playing in the background.  A much simpler time in my life and it was nice to revisit those feelings and memories while at the brewery.

If your hungry there is a food truck on site that actually had some really good food. While you are waiting for your food to come out take a stroll through a self-guided tour on farm equipment. They have antique equipment located within the barn. Some of which was actually used on the farm, others that was acquired. It was interesting to see old farm equipment that was used to make root beer. I had never seen that before and found it to be really cool to know that root beer originally had a high alcohol content…..who knew?