Big Meadows

Big Meadows is Shenandoah’s largest open meadow, a broad grassy plain at about 3,548 feet near the center of the park. The field is a striking change after the forested miles on Skyline Drive. The reason this high-elevation opening formed is still not fully understood. The broad sky also makes it a natural place to watch the stars.

Paths weave through the grass, so this is a good place to stretch your legs without committing to a major hike. Follow Skyline Drive to Milepost 51, then take Big Meadows Entrance Road and Big Meadows Visitor Road to the meadow parking area. Parking and restrooms serve the site. For a landscape photo, leave some grass in the foreground and frame the open field with the tree line or a lone tree; a tight crop loses the scale of the clearing.

White-tailed deer are the wildlife visitors mention most often. Early morning and late day are common times to look, though sightings are never certain. The open sky makes raptors easier to follow, too: Chipping, Field and Song Sparrows use the meadow, Broad-winged Hawks pass through during migration, and Bald or Golden Eagles are occasional visitors. Butterflies move among the blooming wildflowers.

Two mafic fens within the meadow support globally rare plant communities believed endemic to the park, along with eight plant species considered rare in Virginia. Gray birch reaches its southernmost outpost here. There is a lot going on in the cool, damp parts of this open landscape.

Archaeological evidence at Big Meadows records use from about 2500 BCE to AD 800. It includes the park’s oldest known example of prehistoric art and evidence of a possible Blue Ridge dwelling. Finds from both local and distant sources point to seasonal use across a broad territory.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicated Shenandoah National Park at Big Meadows on July 3, 1936. A few years earlier, the meadow had been designated a national soaring site for gliders; the Civilian Conservation Corps built a runway and temporary hangar. The CCC camp here, later called Camp Fechner, housed about 200 men who built trails and shelters and ran a native-plant nursery.

The Byrd Visitor Center, Big Meadows Wayside, Lodge, Campground and Picnic Ground are nearby, but they are separate facilities from the meadow itself. The Wayside has grab-and-go food and supplies, while the Lodge has dining. Both operate seasonally, so check what is running before making them part of the plan. The wider Big Meadows cultural landscape is a National Historic Landmark, with its early park buildings and recreation areas arranged around the meadow.