Shenandoah.com | Stories | Take a Hike: Mary's Rock/Shenandoah National Park


	Friday, July 30, 2010

Take a Hike: Mary's Rock/Shenandoah National Park

by Nancy Meyer

The focus this month is Shenandoah National Park. As we mentioned last month the park is divided into three sections: North starting at Front Royal, central starting at Rt. 211, and south starting at Rt. 33.

The point where Rt. 64 intersects the park, the scenic route becomes the Blue Ridge Parkway. The National Park charges $15 to enter. People 55 years old and over can buy an annual Golden Eagle pass to travel the Drive free. The pass (which for those of you who purchased on a while ago was a lifetime pass) allows the holder free access to all the national parks and some state parks.

Traveling the Drive is very slow and winding and it is important to stop at the overlooks. Because the central section has both Skyland and Big Meadows lodges, each with hotel accommodations and dining, this section is the most developed. It also has some of the best hikes. PATC has the best maps and the best description of the hikes in the their trail guides.

I am recommending exploring this section in the fall because of the colors and the views. Because of the contours of the Blue Ridge, the views are not as interesting as some of the other areas we hike. Also there are farmlands that come very close to the park area.

Mary's Rock is a great hike and is accessible form two trailheads. The first starts at the Panorama Restaurant on Rt. 211 east of New Market and the second at Spring Meadow Trail across from the Buck Hollow Trail parking area south of the Panorama.

This trail takes you around the mountain. Though it is rocky, it offers great views of Thornton Pass and the east side of the mountains. It is a part of the Appalachian Trail (AT). Look for the side trail that takes you up to Mary's Rock at about 1.9 miles. The second approach starts on the drive. This trail, a woodland path, takes you to the AT and then to a side trail up to the Rock. There are no views until you get to Mary' Rock.

Henry Heatwole in his book, Guide to The Shenandoah National Park, has the best information about the area. Following are a few quotes from his book (copyrighted 1988 ISBN 0931606-14-4). Hopefully this great book will be reprinted.

"History: The Panorama development is on the south side of Thornton Gap. The gap is named for Francis Thornton who about 1740 bought land and built a mansion in the Piedmont nearby. Thornton owned most of the hollow to the east, as well as the ‘F.T.Valley' between Sperryville and Old Rag. His mansion, Montpelier, is still standing.

"The road across the mountain here is very old. In 1746 the colony of Virginia was petitioned to build a road across the Massanutten (then called Buffalo Mountain), and through the gap to 'Mr. Thornton's Mill.'[It was later improved and operated as a turnpike and then toll road. There was an inn for overnighting stagecoaches and wagons crossing the mountains near today's Panorama.]

"Before the Park was established, food and lodging were available at the Panorama Tavern, which was beside the highway near the present entrance station. The tavern was replaced by the restaurant when the Skyline Drive-U.S. 211 interchange was built in the early 1960s.

“Geology: Thornton Gap lies between Pass Mountain to the north and Mary’s Rock to the south. A geologic fault passes through the gap, separating the lava flows of the Catoctin formation from granodiorite of the Pedlar formation. Mary’s Rock, 1,200 feet above the gap, is granodiorite, and towers over the much younger lava flows on Pass Mountain. The mountains south of the fault were thrust high above those to the north.”

"How did Marys Rock get its name? Nobody knows.

Legend: Francis Thornton brought his beautiful young bride, the former Mary Savage, to the summit of this mountain to show her the vastness of his lands.

Fact: Francis Thornton married his cousin, Franes Gregory.

Legend: Francis Thornton brought his daughter Mary to this summit to show her the land she would inherit.

Fact: None of the land she inherited can be seen from this point.

Legend: Mary Thornton, as a small child, climbed to this point alone and returned with a bear cub under each arm.

Legend: A semi-beautiful mountain girl named Mary lived in Thornton Gap. She fell in love with a handsome stranger, who lived with her for awhile and then moved on, promising to return. Every day Mary climbed this rock, hoping to see her lover returning, until she finally gave up and jumped off.

The Take-A-Hike group schedules hikes twice a month, on the second Friday and the fourth Tuesday. Some hikers make every trip; many come only once in a while. We are open to all ages and are co-ed. Hikers are responsible for their own safety and for bringing the right equipment. We are an informal group that loves the outdoors.

For more information, call Nancy Meyer at (540) 856-2462 or e-mail her at nrm1934@aol.com. To be included in our e-mail list, contact Mary Modolo at modolm@shentel.net.

For those who would like to do Saturday hikes, get in touch and we will try to hook you up with others. I am always available for consultation with family and church groups. I will help you plan your hike and provide some maps. The hiking in these mountains is a gift for the walking, and your taxpayer dollars have made this adventure possible.

Fall hiking schedule

· September 26: Great North Mountain, County Road 720 to the trail to Shrine Mont. Meet at Basye Post Office, 9 a.m.

· October TBD: Tentatively a women’s retreat to Canaan Valley.

· October 24: Massanutten East, Shawl Gap Trail from Elizabeth Furnace to the Ridge and back.

Republished by permission from the Bryce Mountain Courier. Contact the editors at PO Box 247, Basye, VA 22810; email, courier@shentel.net; or phone, (540) 856-3255.