Category Virginia

Raven Rocks & Bear Chase Brewery

hikesandhopsblog Leave a comment

Bluemont, Virginia

We’ve got another birthday hike for you! My birthday is at the very beginning of October and to celebrate I wanted to try out a new hike and brew combo (big surprise). We went all the way out to Bluemont, Virginia to do Raven Rocks along the Appalachian Trail and to stop at Bear Chase Brewery right across the road. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to celebrate! We had excellent weather, good beer, and a fantastic hike. Cheers to another year around the globe.

THE HIKE: Raven Rocks via Appalachian Trail

Length: 5.7 miles
Elevation Gain: 1,535 ft
Difficulty: Difficult
Time: 2.5-3 hours
Trail use: Hiking, leashed pets
Parking: small lot so plan accordingly
H&H: 5/5

Raven Rocks is a popular section of the Appalachian Trail in Bluemont, Virginia. It was a bit out of the way for us Maryland folks, but totally worth it! We started at the trailhead right off Harry Byrd Parkway/ VA 7. Although we were lucky to snag a spot, this parking lot is pretty small and there is NO STREET PARKING. You will get towed! As an alternative, you can park at the Snickers Gap Lot which adds 0.4 miles at either end of the hike. I was uneasy about parking here since it requires walking across the divided highway. If you park there please use EXTREME caution when crossing the road! 

Most of this trail is fairly moderate, but there are a couple really rocky spots combined with elevation increases, so I’ve bumped it up to a Difficult rating. This was definitely a hike where I wished I had a walking stick or hiking poles at times. I really loved the challenge though! Sometimes a nice nature walk hits the spot, but other times I love scrambling over rocks and getting my heart rate up! Also I loved seeing all of the mushrooms and acorns along the trail. Despite the warm October we’ve been having, it felt a little like fall! 

After a lot of winding up and down the trail (they don’t call this the Roller-Coaster for nothing) we made it to the overlook. It was so impressive and such a peaceful place to stop. We’ve seen a lot of rocky overlooks during our hikes, but I never get tired of them! This was quite a roomy overlook so there’s plenty of room even on a busy day. We relaxed for a while and eventually decided to head back down. Make sure you have really good shoes for this hike because some of the downhill is more difficult than going up! Close to three hours after we started, we made it back to our car. We had worked up quite a thirst and were so lucky that Bear Chase Brewery was so close! 

THE BEER: Bear Chase Brewery

Address: 33665 Bear Chase Ln, Bluemont, VA 20135
Distance from Trail Head: 0.9 miles, 3 mins
Website: https://bearchasebrew.com/
Food?: Full Menu, No outside food
H&H Rating: 4/5

Bear Chase Brewery is located off VA 7 and is the perfect stop for hikers. In fact, the AT runs right behind their facility so you could add to your Raven Rocks hike to go to the Bear’s Den overlook. Or even further to Buzzard Rocks. The possibilities are endless! We stuck with Raven Rocks and then drove to the brewery since I really wasn’t into crossing that huge highway. 

Bear Chase Brewery is a farm brewery located on a massive 35 acre property that offers plenty of places to relax with a handcrafted brew. For a pretty penny, you can even rent out the Bear Chase Manor for you and 13 of your closest friends! There’s also plenty of on-site restaurants and food trucks so you’ll never go hungry! Just note that no outside food is allowed. We weren’t expecting this and had to eat our packed lunch later on! We really enjoyed the views and atmosphere at this brewery. As an apartment dweller, I relished being able to kick back in an adirondack chair and take in the rolling hills as I sipped a decent beer. We only had one round here since we had a long drive ahead of us and we both thought the Mornin’ Sunshine was the best of the two. It had a really refreshing hop taste that was balanced by something fruity, guava maybe? Definitely hit the spot after our hike. Overall, I liked this brewery but I thought it toed the line of being, dare I say, too commercial? It felt a bit like one of those places that puts more into the location and the atmosphere than their actual product. But hey, I only tried two beers so I can’t be certain on that! 

Our Beer:

  • Mornin’ Sunshine – American IPA – 6.7%
  • Oktoberfest Marzen – Marzen – 6%

SUM UP: Raven Rocks is a popular section of the Appalachian Trail in Bluemont Virginia. It has a small lot which fills up quickly. There is another parking location but it involves crossing a divided highway so be cautious. The trail itself is very rocky with lots of ups and downs. Wear good shoes and bring plenty of water. The 5.7 mile out-and-back trail has a turn around point at a beautiful overlook that’s a perfect place to have a snack and relax. After your hike, check out Bear Chase Brewery, a newer farm brewery only 0.9 miles up the road. It’s a huge facility with lots of food options and plenty of indoor and outdoor seating. May I suggest the Adirondack chairs overlooking the valley? If you have time, there are so many other breweries to check out in the area! We’ll definitely be back.

Looking for other hikes & hops in Virginia? Check out Shenandoah NP & Hawksbill Brewing near Luray

Shenandoah National Park & Hawksbill Brewing

hikesandhopsblog 3 Comments

Luray, VA

I have been wanting to go back to Shenandoah for ages! The only time I’ve been was a quick drive down Skyline Drive with some friends and it was so cloudy we couldn’t see anything. So when some of J’s college friends wanted to do a weekend in Luray, I was game. The only problem is it was cloudy AGAIN! What luck?! So instead of a beautiful overlook, we decided to tackle the White Oak Canyon trail which feature 6 different waterfalls. The full hike is 9.5 miles but we did about a 5.5 mile loop. Afterwards, we headed back into Luray to grab a beer at the local brewery Hawksbill. It was a great spot and we were taught by the locals how to exactly say Luray ending a long debate among us friends. Apparently it’s LOO-ray if you’re a local and Luh-RAY if you’re an out-of-towner. Insider tips!

THE HIKE: Whiteoak Canyon Trail (Shenandoah National Park)

Length: 9.5 miles
Elevation Gain: 2,400ft
Difficulty: Hard
Time: 4-5 hours
Trail use: Hiking and leashed pets
Parking: Large lot ($35 per car fee to enter park)
H&H: 4/5

Photo faceoff

White Oak Canyon is a fairly popular trail located in Shenandoah National Park near the Skyland Resort. While it doesn’t lead to an amazing vista like the more popular choices such as Old Rag or Stony Man, this out and back trail features 6 different waterfalls! It also climbs over 2,000ft so it’s not for the faint of heart. There are two way to tackle this trail. Either you can start in Shenandoah using the parking lot off of mile marker 43 on the Skyline drive. If you’d rather hike up first and end with downhill, you can start at the other end by parking at the Lower Whiteoak Canyon Fee Station. Since our group knew we weren’t quite up for doing the full trail, we opted to start at the Skyline trailhead. Just a heads up, cell service is very spotty in Shenandoah so make sure you have your trail downloaded ahead of time! Or just go to visitor’s center at Skyland where a very nice guide gave us a map and some trail suggestions.

I really liked this trail because of the huge rock formations along the water. I’m such a sucker for a good water trail and this was no exception. It really felt like you were in an ancient forest. And despite this being a more popular trail, we really didn’t run into too many people until later on at the main falls overlook. I also really liked how we followed the river from where it started as a small trickling stream until it turned into a beautiful waterfall! While it wasn’t the biggest or most impressive waterfall I’d ever seen, it was still majestic in its own way. We spent a lot of time at the overlook relaxing and taking pictures (and taking pics of each other taking pics). Then it was time to hike back up.

Do you ever start walking and not realize that you’re going downhill until it’s time to turn around? Yeah that’s what happened to us. I was so focused on the beauty and not tripping on rocks that I didn’t quite realize how steep the trail had gotten until it was time to turn around. We really got a good workout! If you decide to tackle this trail, make sure you have plenty of water and are ready for a bit of a challenge! Needless to say, we were quite ready for beer after this one.

THE BEER: Hawksbill Brewing

Address: 22 Zerkel St, Luray, VA 22835
Distance from Trail Head: 21 miles, 35 mins
Website: https://www.hawksbillbrewing.com/
Food?: Bring your own!
H&H Rating: 4/5

Okay okay, I know I said I usually try to keep the brews less than 30 mins from the trailhead. But I hope you’ll let this one slide since more than half of the drive is along the beautiful Skyline Drive in the national park!

Hawksbill Brewing is a small brewery in Luray, Virginia which prides themselves on being grown here and brewed here. They partner with local farms in the county to source the freshest ingredients and even make their Hooray for Luray using their own homegrown Cascade hops! Their beer was pretty good and was all the more refreshing after our exhausting hike. Even better though, Hawksbill was one of the friendliest breweries we’ve ever been to. It had such a great small town vibe and we instantly felt welcome. They had a sizable taproom with bar and table seating, as well as picnic tables outside with a lovely view of the mountains. It was too bad that we had to drive home or I could have stayed here all evening!

OUR BEER

  • Hooray for Luray – IPA – 6.3%
  • Seven Days a Wheat (Watermelon) – Wheat Beer – 5.25%
  • Brown Cow – Milk Stout – 6.1%
  • Cock Your Doodle Doo – Stout – 6.3%

SUM UP: 

Whiteoak Canyon is a difficult hike in Shenandoah National Park that features six waterfalls. It has steep elevation but you’re rewarded with incredible views all along the way. Make sure to bring plenty of water and have sturdy shoes! After you finish up this challenging hike, reward yourself with a cold one at Hawksbill Brewing Company. They have a variety of beer styles with a focus on locally grown ingredients. It’s a proudly local place and you may find yourself chatting with the table next to you. If you’re looking to get out of the city, this is the perfect hike & hop for you!