Scenic pullout · Shenandoah National Park
Try the north end for river bends across Browntown Valley.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Shenandoah Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Shenandoah National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Shenandoah audio tourRecorded for this place
Gooney Run Overlook: Follow the Valley“Gooney Run Overlook is ahead, a small pullout looking northwest over Browntown Valley. If trees block the middle, try the north end for a clearer view of the valley and river below.”
Plays as you drive up to Gooney Run Overlook in the Parkwolf Shenandoah Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Gooney Run Overlook is a small roadside pullout on Skyline Drive at mile 6.8, about 2,085 feet up and facing northwest over Browntown Valley. Keep it for a quick look at the valley and the river below; this is a short stop, not a destination hike. Trees can narrow the view from the middle, so walk toward either end if branches get in the way.
Start at the north end and look right for bends in the Shenandoah River, Signal Knob on Massanutten Mountain beyond, and Dickey Ridge closer across the valley. On a clear day, Massanutten stands beyond the smaller ridge that separates Browntown Valley from the Shenandoah Valley. For a photo, frame the river bends with Signal Knob behind them.
Gooney Run is the stream that drains Browntown Valley into the Shenandoah River. The small waterway gives this overlook its name, and links the valley below to the broader Shenandoah landscape.
Wildlife
325 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
21 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
1,036 sightingsWhite-tailed DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
167 sightingsWild TurkeyMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
93 sightingsTimber RattlesnakeMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
24 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Shenandoah. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
EasyLands Run Falls Hike1.3 mi · 1.5 hr · 1.3 mi awayA quick gravel-road walk to falls that may run dry.
ModerateHickerson Hollow Trail2.1 mi · 1.8 hr · 1.4 mi awayA short forest walk past old homesites in a quiet hollow.
ModerateSnead Farm Loop3.7 mi · 2.5 hr · 2 mi awayA 3.7-mile loop to the Snead barn and a west-facing ridge view.
EasyFox Hollow Trail1.2 mi · 1 hr · 2 mi awayA short loop through a former mountain homestead.
ChallengingAppalachian Trail through Shenandoah101.2 mi · 2.3 days · 2.2 mi awayA 101-mile walk on the white-blazed Appalachian Trail through Shenandoah.
ModerateCompton Peak2.4 mi · 1.8 hr · 2.4 mi awayA short ridge climb rewards you with views and ancient rock columns.
EasyFort Windham Rocks Hike0.8 mi · 1 hr · 2.4 mi awaySplit boulders and a hidden cleft just off the A.T.
ChallengingMount Marshall and Bluff Two-Night Loop15.2 mi · 12.5 hr · 2.8 mi awayA two-night ridge loop with rocky views from the Appalachian Trail.
Scenic pullout · 0.5 mi awayGooney Manor OverlookA quick pullout for a Browntown Valley view and local history.
Sight · 1.1 mi awaySnead FarmWalk to a white barn and stone farmstead remains.
Scenic pullout · 1.1 mi awaySignal Knob OverlookA sunset pull-in above the Shenandoah’s looping river and layered ridges.
Scenic pullout · 1.4 mi awayNo Name OverlookA quick Skyline Drive stop for Shenandoah Valley views.Sight · 1.4 mi awayLands Run FallsA short hike to an 80-foot cascade that can run dry.
Picnic area · 1.8 mi awayDickey Ridge Picnic GroundsA shaded lunch stop with a 1930s motorist retreat behind it.
Visitor center · 2 mi awayDickey Ridge Visitor CenterYour best first stop for ranger advice, maps, and ridge views.Sight · 2.2 mi awayFort Windham RocksA short hike to towering rocks split into narrow passages.Parkwolf’s Shenandoah ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
