I am trying to visit a National Park Service property in every state. I take road trips, and plan my itinerary based on which NPS properties are on the way. I had been on a solo road trip of the eastern states, and Shenandoah National Park was one of the places that I wanted to visit.

What a great day for a hike, and what a beautiful place to do it!! I arrived at the Dickey Visitor Center before it opened, so I did a quick hike that had a trailhead right at the Visitor Center. I started on the path and was vaguely aware that a couple was a bit behind me. I guess I was a bit too quiet as I walked, because all of a sudden, I heard a VERY VERY BIG animal running away through the woods. It was likely a black bear, but apparently, he didn't want to stick around. After that, I kinda hung around and waited for that couple to catch up a bit, and I could hear the lady chatter away - I didn't hear any large animals after that.

My next hike was a quick one, along a piece of the Appalachian Trail that goes through the park. Then, I did another hike to a small waterfall. All of it was beautiful! The wildflowers were blooming all over the place too. It was nice to see green after such a rough winter in Wisconsin.

#Virginia