I'm planning on hiking SNP at the end of April. I will be parking at the north end and need to get to the south end to start.
How likely am I to get a hitch or hitches all the way to the south end?
Any recommendations on shuttles?
I'm planning on hiking SNP at the end of April. I will be parking at the north end and need to get to the south end to start.
How likely am I to get a hitch or hitches all the way to the south end?
Any recommendations on shuttles?
perrito
684.4 down, 1507.6 to go.
"If a man speaks in the woods, and there is no woman there to hear, is he still wrong?"
hitch. i'm goin' to georgia in a coupla weeks. gonna park near neel gap then hitch to springer. ain't worried about gettin' a ride. it'll happen
I'd probably hire a shuttler, so that you will be in a car with one person, instead of six or eight different ones. It's also about an hour quicker by having someone drive you outside the park.
On hitching, because people stop and putter along the Skyline Drive, hitching the full distance on the drive itself would be slow. Might be more practical to hitch one section at a time, reuniting with the car when you get to US 211 and US 33.
Hitching is legal on the drive only if associated with hiking.
https://www.nps.gov/shen/learn/manag...P_JUMP_5597186
It depends on which you value more - time or money. I would hire a shuttler and be done with it. Hitching during COVID in that part of the country might be more difficult than say.. GA or TN.
Normally I would hitch and consider it an adventure, but during COVID I don't feel that is being responsible and being seen as responsible.
Hitching from trail to town, or the reverse, is pretty easy but trying to do that to get from one end of SNP to the other will be hard. Traffic on skyline drive is slow and people driving the road will be stopping. It's not likely to get one ride for the entire distance.
I am hiking SNP in April as well as I plan to take Amtrak to Charlottesville and Uber to Rockfish Gap. I am still working out the logistics of getting back to Washington DC from Front Royal. I might go another two days north to get to Harpers Ferry and take the train back. But there's also a bus that now serves Front Royal-DC although as a commuter bus the timing sucks.
https://www.dcmotorcoach.com
Another option would be the Virginia Breeze bus. It stops at the park and ride lot in Front Royal and you could take it to Staunton. From Staunton you can catch a bus to Waynesboro or get a shuttle. Try Stanimal’s for a shuttle. I know they do a lot in SNP but I am not sure he goes all the way to Front Royal.
Bus https://virginiabreeze.org/routes/
Stanilmal’s https://www.stanimals328.com/
Coffee - the bus also continues on from Front Royal to DC.
Try Alison from the Open Arms at the Edge of Town Hostel I. Luray (540-244-5652). Another option is Scott and Lisa from Mountain Home B&B (540-692-6198) right on the AT at road crossing 522. I'm not sure if they do shuttles but they may be able to help you.
I have both hitch hiked as well as shuttled in SNP. IF it were not for the pandemic I would say hitch. With the covid stuff going on I would say to get a shuttle unless you are not under any time restraints and can forgo the extended wait time to find a hitch under the current circumstances.
Trail Miles: 5,265.4
AT Map 1: ✔ | 13-21'
Sheltowee Trace: ✔ | 20-23'
Pinhoti Trail: ✔ | 23-24'
Foothills Trail: ✔ | 24'
BMT: 168.3
CDT: 210.9
GSMNP900: 134.7
AT Map 2: 279.4