Shenandoah National Park In Virginia

Shenandoah Nature and Wildlife

Shenandoah National Park includes 300 square miles of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the southern Appalachians. The park rises above the Virginia Piedmont to its east and the Shenandoah Valley to its west.Two peaks, Stony Man and Hawksbill, exceed 4,000 feet.

Shenandoah National Park is a great place to observe wildlife. Countless visitors spend hours watching deer snip and tear plants. Other people look for tracks and scat of bobcats, listen for the rustling of raccoons in the brush, and occasionally smell striped skunks. The opossum, groundhog, gray fox, and eastern cottontail are more commonly seen mammals in the park.

Shenandoah National Park History
For at least 9,000 years people have lived in the Shenandoah Valley. Prehistoric humans have hunted and gathered game, fruit, nuts, and berries on the upland slopes, and some constructed permanent villages at the lowest elevations.

The earliest European settlers moved into the lower areas of the mountain range by the mid-18th century, ever moving upward in search of land for farming, grazing, and orchards. Later, some purchased mountain land for the extraction of resources: copper, lumber, bark for tanning of leather, and water power for the operation of mills.  

With the establishment of the park in December 1935, the CCC began to build visitor facilities throughout the mountain.  The core of the park's development was completed by the beginning of WWII and, to a great extent, the mountains were released back to nature for all to enjoy.

Shenandoah National Park Lodging

Skyland Resort
Skyland (mile 41.7) has 179 guest rooms, rustic cabins, multi-unit lodges, and modern suites.

Big Meadows Lodge
Big Meadows (milepost 51) has 25 rooms in the main lodge, 72 additional rooms in rustic cabins, multi-unit lodges, and modern suites.

Lewis Mountain Cabins
Lewis Mountain (mile 57.5) has several rustic, furnished cabins with private baths and outdoor grill areas.

PATC Cabins
The  Potomac Appalachian Trail Club (an authorized park concessioner), maintains six locked, primitive cabins in the park. The cabins are equipped with mattresses, blankets, and cookware. A pit toilet and spring water are nearby.

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