For this hike I wanted something a little further out and more challenging to test me. I found an interesting hike that wasn’t to far from my home in Manassas, about 40 minutes west right off of highway 17. The hike is actually part of the AT (Appalachian Trail), out and back to Hollow Brook and a waterfall.
The drive out was nice, but that quickly changed when the final leg of road turned into gravel and large ruts from the rains. And my car is built far more for urban areas, so I put it through its paces but it chugged up the mountain just fine.
I researched this trip on hikingupward.com, but when it came to finding the actual beginning of the trail was not exactly clear. Referencing the nearest location on the provided map Frogtown…yes, an actual town in Virginia, I was able to figure out the general location. Since there is no parking lot, I really just got lucky that someone was hiking the trail already and their parked car along the side of the road caught my attention.
The trail starts no the north side of Morgan Mill Rd, and since the AT is well maintained, its pretty easy to see once you know the general area. It starts out as a pretty good ascent over a ridge, initially in steps built into the trail then just dirt track. I ran into the other car owner rather quickly as they were heading down the trail as I was going up, walking their dogs.
While I have read about the AT I haven’t hiked any until today. For those that don’t know, this trail runs from Georgia up to Maine. Many people hike it every year, some in sections others as through hikes. A through hike takes about 6 months though, so this accomplishment is rare if for no other reason than the time you would have to be away from job and family. The trail is well marked and maintained by volunteers. Trees along the trail have a white blaze painted on them to keep you on track.
While it is high summer, this area was still quite lush with greenery. And I even saw a few sprigs of wildflowers and some wild raspberries along the way.
I got to the Hollow Brook waterfall area in quick time. Unfortunately I should have been taken the advice of the trail guide and come in the spring, as the brook was not outputting enough water to really create a waterfall. It was closer to a waterdrool instead.
The area was a bit of an oasis on the mountain though. A nice bubbling brook with lots of big bolders to scramble over. This was just over half way on the hike as listed on hikingupward.com, and I was getting pretty exhausted. It wasn’t the distance, but the climbs that were really getting to me. I am still getting into hiking shape, but that combined with the 94 degree heat and humidity just got to be to much.
I scrambled on some more, but finally came to the realization that I should head back. I don’t like to think about not finishing something, but I figure this is just a good reason to head back in the Spring when I can enjoy the falls better.