Escape the craziness and embrace the slow down!
Book a hiking tour with the White Crow!
www.whitecrowtours.com
Book a hiking tour with the White Crow!
www.whitecrowtours.com
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When you come on tour with the White Crow, make sure to pose for the camera!  Ventured out to Shenandoah National Park yesterday, and I was happy to find that the trails are in excellent condition. The sky was a perfect shade of blue and the air was crisp. Below is a picture of me at Hawksbill Summit, the highest summit in the park. I'm getting photo bombed by Old Rag Mountain :-)  Took a picture here (below) of Stony Man Mountain through my binoculars. The old man is looking forward to a lush green Shenandoah Valley, soon to be here!  The sweet, tangy smell of mulch laid outside our home is the sure sign that the outdoor season has arrived. Okay, so it's suppose to snow tomorrow. Whatever, Spring is here! I saw it in the faces of the student groups I trekked through the Washington D.C. streets this past week. I look at my calendar and anticipate the memories to be made as I venture folks along the sprouting trials of the Blue Ridge Mountains. I'm ready. Are you? April is afoot, the Cherry Blossom are soon to bloom, and the vistas of Shenandoah that are now barren and grey, will soon turn to rolling peaks and lush greenery of awesome! I am happy. This is what the season brings. Promises of connection and exposure , to what we all are born to appreciate... The great mother of nature.
Let's get outdoors. Let's hike. Get out there and bask in the glory of what it means to be alive! www.whitecrowtours.com Tino The season is about to start...
The chill of winter has begun to subside... The dark hours of daylight savings time have past... and, The White Crow is stretching out the wings, unfurling the feathers, and getting ready to soar.  This is me! Hey there, you! Yeah, you! The one who is about to take advantage of one of life's greatest gifts, HIKING! If you've made it here you're quite possibly looking for some trail information for Shenandoah National Park. Well, I got the goods for you! If you have any questions about any of the following hikes, or perhaps other hikes, feel free to drop me an email: whitecrowtours@gmail.com
Happy Trails... Note: Round trip hikes proceed to a destination and return by the same route. Circuit hikes begin and end at the same point without retracing steps. Stony Man Mountain Summit (4,010 ft) Type of hike: Round Trip Features: Spectacular views of Massanutten Mountain, the Shenandoah Valley, the Allegheny Mountains, New Market Gap, Skyline Drive, and Skyland Resort Trailhead: Stony Man Trail parking lot Estimated length of hike: 1.6 miles Estimated total elevation gain: 350 feet Recommendation: Great hike for children. Keep an eye out for Peregrine Falcons! Hawksbill Mountain Summit (4,051ft) Type of hike: Circuit Features: Spectacular view of Massanutten Mountain, the Shenandoah Valley, the Allegheny Mountains, Old Rag Mountain, the Virginia Piedmont and Skyline Drive Trailhead: Upper Hawksbill Trail parking lot Estimated length of hike: 2.1 miles Estimated total elevation gain: 525 feet Recommendation: A little more difficult than Stony Man, but still manageable for children. Highest summit in the park! 360 degree view! Rose River Falls (67ft)/Dark Hollow Falls (70ft) Type of hike: Circuit Features: Two waterfalls, dozens of pools, cascades and miniature falls, swimming holes, and the Cave family cemetery (still in use) Trailhead: Fishers Gap overlook parking lot Estimated length of hike: 4.3 miles Estimated total elevation gain: 1,045 feet Recommendation: A few steep climbs, best for those of moderate hiking experience. One of the most serene trails in the park! Mary’s Rock Summit (3,514 ft) Type of hike: Round Trip Features: Spectacular views of Massanutten Mountain, the Shenandoah Valley, the Allegheny Mountains, the Virginia Piedmont, Skyline Drive and the Thornton Gap entrance to the park Trailhead: Panorama upper parking lot Estimated length of hike: 3.7 miles Estimated total elevation gain: 1,200 feet Recommendation: No real steep sections, and an easy transition from hikes such as Stony Man and Hawksbill. Bouldering opportunities at the peak! 360 degree view! White Oak Canyon/Cedar Run Type of hike: Circuit Features: Two canyon hikes combined to make a circuit hike; 8 waterfalls (the tallest is 86ft high), dozens of pools, cascades, and miniature falls, swimming holes, and a natural granite waterslide Trailhead: White Oak Canyon parking lot (park boundary) Estimated length of hike: 8.0 miles Estimated total elevation gain: 2,500 feet Recommendation: Bring lots of water. Very Strenuous hike. The waterslide is so much fun! Old Rag Mountain Summit (3,291 ft) Type of hike: Circuit Features: Arguably the best mountain summit in the park, Large granite boulders, Spectacular views of the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Virginia Piedmont, and challenging rock scramble to get to the top Trailhead: Old Rag parking lot (park boundary) Estimated length of hike: 8.8 miles Estimated total elevation gain: 2,500 feet Recommendation: Bring lots of water. Very Strenuous hike with lots of people on the trail. The rock scramble is challenging but is a lot of fun. Best 360 degree view in the park!  1. The park was authorized by President Calvin Coolidge and Congress on May 22, 1926, established on December 26, 1935, and on July 3, 1936 President Franklin Delano Roosevelt dedicated its’ opening to the public
2. In 1929 President Herbert Hoover established his summer retreat in what is now Rapidan Camp. The camp consisted of 13 rustic cabins located where two streams merge to form the Rapidan River 3. The size of the park is 197,438 acres, with 79,579 acres of protected wilderness, and spans across 7 Virginian counties 4. There are 236 miles of roads, including the 105.5 mile historic Skyline Drive which runs along the crest of the Blue Ridge Mountains, from Front Royal, VA to Rockfish Gap near Afton, VA 5. There are 516 miles of hiking trails in the park, including 101 miles of the famed Appalachian Trail which runs from Katahdin, Maine to Springer Mountain, Georgia 6. The park is home to over 200 species of resident and transient birds including Wild Turkey and Peregrine Falcons, and 53 species of mammals including White-Tailed Deer, Black Bear and Bobcats 7. The park has over 60 peaks with elevations over 3,000 ft including the highest peak at Hawksbill Mountain (4,051 ft.) The lowest level of elevation is at the North Entrance (561 ft.) 8. The park is comprised primarily of the Blue Ridge Mountains, which are part of the Appalachian Mountain Range, one of the oldest mountain ranges in the world formed over 300 to 500 million years ago 9. The three primary bedrock types are Granitic, Siliciclastic, and Basaltic 10. The Blue Ridge Mountains got their name from the bluish color they display when seen from a distance
It's been an exciting season so far, and as expected, much has changed since I first conjured up the idea to start my own tour company. I have settled on three different tours for the remainder of my season: a Hiking Tour, a History Tour, and a Luray Caverns Tour. Tours still leave from the Vienna/Fairfax-GMU Metro Station, but now only on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays.
The folks who have venture out with the White Crow this summer have all been wonderful people. I don't know if it's the name, the destinations, or perhaps my smiling face, but I seem to get the best people on my tours. Everyone has been open to adventure, and willing to embrace the small group concept. Even in the smallest of groups, two to three people, memories have been created and friendships have been forged. I love taking pictures each time I'm out with a group, no matter how often I've been to the destination that we find ourselves at. I always consider that I might capture a more perfect image of why I love these places, and why I love guiding people to them. In reality, there is always a new picture to take of the same place, because each visit is new experience. If you have any questions, comments or whatever, I'd love to hear from you. Emails can be sent to whitecrowtours@gmail.com Travel Far... Tino Fierro Owner & Operator White Crow Adventure Tours, LLC It has been said, that after the Great Spirit had made the world, the morning stars came together on the shores of a quiet silver lake; bordered with blue mountains. It was the most beautiful place they could see. Hovering above the quiet waters, and lighting the mountain tops with their robes of fire, the stars sang their songs of joy, and pledged to gather there every thousand years. One time, when the stars were singing, they heard a mighty crash. A great rock in the mountain wall had fallen to pieces, and through the deep opening, the waters of the lake began to pour out and rush to the sea. As time passed, the morning stars looked over the earth for another place to meet. They finally agreed upon a lovely valley through which a winding river ran. Suddenly, the stars realized, this was the valley that had been the bed of their beautiful lake, and the blue mountains around it were the same ones upon which they had cast their robes of fire in ages past. The stars were so joyous, that they placed the brightest jewels from their crowns into the river; where they still lie today, and sparkle. Ever since that day, the river and its valley have been called: Shenandoah, Beautiful Daughter of the Stars.  |
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