It rained off and on all night and into the morning. Nothing heavy or stormy, so that was good. But I wanted to do something different from another waterfall hike, particularly if there were lots of slippery wet rocks after the rain.

Riprap Trail to Chimney Rock

Riprap Parking is at milepost 90 and has a 3.4 mile out-and-back hike to Calvary Rocks and Chimney Rock. At last we found a hike that went up first so the last leg back would be downhill. And I found a really cool lichen all over the rocks on this trail; the aptly named Pennsylvania Toadskin Lichen. We also found chestnuts on the trail and both thought of the classic “The Trouble with Tribbles” Star Trek episode.

The first picture below shows the wartiness of the lichen. Unlike other lichen, this species attaches to the rocks just at a single point so they look loose and curl like dead leaves. Fascinating! And neither of us knew what a chestnut with its “cover” looks like – very cool!

Appalachian Trail Hiker

As we returned to the van, a hiker approached us to see what we were doing for the day. What he really wanted was to ask us for some water, which we gladly shared with him. He had nine more miles to go for a water source, and he was running low. His trail name is Timber, and he is finishing his hike of the entire Appalachian Trail now after being chased off the trail last year by Hurricane Helene. He hails from Alaska and mentioned that we must visit the Kenai Peninsula—it’s where Alaskans go to be tourists in their own state. We wished him safe travels!

CCC Artifacts

Just a couple of pictures to share of the mileposts and the rock guard walls built by the CCC in the 1930s as this park was being established. We see so many examples of CCC work when we travel. It was a really good program to put people to work out of the depression and make some lasting improvements to state and national parks for generations of enjoyment.

Moormans River Overlook and the end of Skyline Drive

I wanted one last overlook spot for lunch, and the Moormans River Overlook was very scenic.

We left Shenandoah park at the end of the Skyline Drive and traveled on to Lexington, VA for a Walmart stop to stock up on groceries and supplies. Our home for the evening was the Lexington/Natural Bridge KOA, which puts us in prime position for our busy day tomorrow.

We weren’t at this KOA for long, and doing some laundry was necessary, so we didn’t walk around it much. It is really nicely tucked into the trees with terraced sites and even some goats, geese and chickens. We would definitely recommend this one and would return if in the area again.