Rochytop-Big Run Portal Loop

by Ed Britt

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My brother, Brooks, and I hiked the Rockytop-Big Run Portal Loop in the southern section of Shenandoah National Park, VA. on May 4th and 5th, 2002. Neither of us had done much hiking since we were teens but the trail wasn't too difficult for us.

We parked at the Browns Gap Parking Area (Mile 83 of Skyline Drive) and started about 1:00 PM. We came across 5 instances of down trees across the Rockytop Trail. Since we were hiking on the side of a canyon with steep walls we couldn't go around them. We had to take off our packs, crawl over and/or thru and then the other would pass the packs. The trail was a little overgrown but not so much you couldn't find it. The Rockytop trail is rocky underfoot and crosses several Talus slopes. We ventured onto the Lewis Peak Trail to check out the view and find a place to camp.

About that time the rain, which had been merely drizzle, began in earnest. We set up camp, ate and crawled into our sleeping bags. The rain continued unabated all night and finally quit before 3:00 AM, when I got up to relieve myself. We got a little bit of a late start on Sunday morning because we were trying to dry out a little bit, which was a waste of time.

We began day 2 by returning to the Rockytop trail and continuing the intersection with the Big Run Portal Trail. The views were wonderful, partially due to the lack of tree cover (many trees are dead due to Gypsy Moth, Wooly Adelgid damage). We saw some Turkey Beard in bloom and also some Rhododendron and Mountain Laurel in early bloom. We also saw what looked like some sort Iris, which was purple and yellow.

From Rockytop to Big Run Portal there is a long downhill section that was a little difficult for us Tenderfoots but we took frequent breaks, which helped. We reached the intersection with the Big Run Portal Trail and started a very gently ascent. We quickly discovered that the rain had swollen Big Run into a raging torrent (okay, a little exageration). Before it was done, we had to make about 9 crossings of Big Run, Rocky Mountain Run and some smaller tributaries. In all but 2 instances we had to remove our boots and put on sandles to cross in. Since my brother neglected to heed my advice and bring any shoes or sandles to wade with, I had to cross, remove my sandles, and throw them across the creek for him to wear across. This was time consuming.

Instead of camping a second night at the confluence of Big Run and Rocky Mountain Run, we decided to push on and finish (the rain the previous night and the pack digging into my bro's shoulders had dampned his enthusiasm a little). We should have looked closer at our Topo Map. If we had we would have noticed the last couple of miles were straight up. We finally finished a little after 7:00 PM and were exhausted. We had hiked over 10 miles that day, which ain't bad for a few greenhorns.

I recommend this trail but suggest bringing extra shoes or sandles to wade Big Run with. The view from Lewis Peak (I went up by myself Sunday morning while my brother dried out) was excellent. A sea of white clouds lay before me with Mountain islands poking up through them. Watching fog roll up the hollows and valleys was great.

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