A Winter's Hike in the Shenandoah National Park

January 22. Finally, our first snow is on the ground. I look forward to hiking in the snow, if it’s not too deep. With a blue sky, the scenery has strong contrasts within it; beautifully clean and open. Even the air seems to have a clean edge to it. The shrub layer stands out against the white background. But the big draw of snow is investigating the tracks of the winter residents. I’m always impressed at the number of tracks that can be seen. It’s a wonderful way to see how populated and active the woods are, even in the depths of the winter season.

Our group of ten started up the Pine Hill Gap trail, just north of Old Rag Mountain. We saw various tracks, including rabbit, squirrel, and numerous deer. And who will forget those subnivean shrews and voles (meaning they tunnel under the snow). But it wasn’t until we found the first bobcat tracks, that we encountered our first highlight of the hike. This bobcat had joined the trail from the right side and gone up the trail, occasionally meandering off to either side until finally departed to the left, near the cement post at the summit, marking the turn of the former Hazel Mountain road.

We continued south along the Hot Mountain - Short Mountain trail, having lunch on a sunny southern exposure where the snow had melted, allowing us a dry resting place. Shortly later, back on the trail, I stopped in my tracks as some very large tracks crossed the trail in front of me. Bear tracks! Now, we’re talking. Yes, bear can be out in our woods this time of year. No, bear are not true hibernators, but do tend to den up for most of the winter, from about January to April in the Shenandoah National Park. (Normally pregnant sows den first, followed by sows with last spring’s yearlings, and the males last. Interestingly, the order is reversed with the spring emergence.) However, a mid-80’s study of 47 radio-collared bear in the Park revealed four bear who never denned at all throughout the winter (two juvenile males and two sows with last spring’s young).

Two more minutes down the trail, a bird is flushed from my right, flies across the trail and lands in a mountain laurel bush five feet in front of me. I found myself looking into the large yellow eyes of a saw-whet owl, with the remains of a northern cardinal in its talons. It quickly flew another ten yards away and posed for us as we took many pictures and looked closely with our binoculars. This owl is an uncommon winter visitor to the Park and a very rare treat to see at any distance, no less this close! And with a cardinal in its talons---what a treat! To give you an idea how uncommon these owls are in the Park, a former Park naturalist, Terry Lindsay, has just authored a book, "Birds of the Shenandoah National Park", where he states, "I heard one once in fall near Camp Hoover, but I have yet to see one in the Park." Coincidentally, his recollection was from one of my monthly hikes, back in October of 1991!

Well, my hike has been made. I don’t need to find anything more. A once in a lifetime event. Not more than five minutes pass when I rap on a tree with a cavity hole approximately twenty feet off the ground, like I always do. You never know. And out comes a southern flying squirrel! First one I’ve rousted in about two years. Not that flying squirrels are uncommon. In fact, studies have found that many eastern deciduous forests have more flying squirrels than gray squirrels. You just don’t normally see them during the day.

We travel further into the Hazel Country area along the Hot Mountain - Short Mountain trail. This area was heavily populated during the first part of the last century (can you believe that means the 1900’s?). And, although most of the homes were burned to the ground to prevent squatters from taking up residence at the time of the Parks’ formation in 1935, the stone foundations and chimneys, stone walls and terraces, and overly mature apple trees show testament to their existence. Winter is the time of year to search for these cultural relics, and we were to see many signs of their habitation throughout the day, but let me tell you about our best find of the day. If you look at the PATC central district map, you’ll notice the trail makes a large loop to the west near the northern end of the trail. You’ll know when you get there by the heavy growth of young ailanthus shoots (tree-of-heaven), overcoming the former open grounds along the trail (the former road). We were initially drawn off the trail to the west of the loop to investigate a metal object some 30 yards distant that turned out to be a metal basket (trash burning?). As we meandered through the area, we noticed a chimney another fifty yards to our south. After some scrambling, we found ourselves at a home site with three stone foundations and two chimneys. It was challenging, and fun, guessing the history to the site. Perhaps this one had been added to over the years to accommodate a succession of generations who made this site their home. Further inspection of the largest stone fireplace showed where the original open hearth had been filled in to allow for a more modern stove duct. For some great reading about these former residents, you should look for Carolyn and Jack Reeder’s "Shenandoah Secrets", or Darwin Lambert’s "The Undying Past of the Shenandoah National Park".

Our venture just continued bringing up more highlights. Two more bobcat and two sets of bear tracks later, we came across the remains of a raptor’s dinner in the middle of the trail. The skull and a few feathers were all that was left of this prey, but it was enough for us to identify it as a yellow-bellied sapsucker; another winter visitor, this being one who will never return to its northern nesting grounds.

It was late in the afternoon as we bushwhacked from the Nicholson Hollow trail, outside the Park boundary north to the former Pine Hill Gap road. Even here, we came across tracks of our second ruffed grouse, a flock of about a dozen turkeys, and a fox.

All in all, quite a remarkable trip. It’s funny, Kurt Rowan and I had a pre-hike goal of finding coyote tracks in the Park. We didn’t find any, but you just never know what you’re going to find when you go out in the woods.