Rocky Mount and Gap Run Loop

Begin at the grassy roadside trailhead near Skyline Drive milepost 76.1. If that pullout is full, the park lists Two-Mile Run Overlook as another place to park; from there, walk a short distance north along Skyline Drive to the trailhead. Skyline Drive is inside the park’s fee area, so bring an entrance pass or pay the entry fee. The loop can be walked in either direction. If steep downhill sections are the part you most want to avoid, reversing the park’s described direction may make them easier to handle.

The early miles have a punishing profile: the first two miles lose roughly 800 feet, followed by a climb of about the same amount over the next 1.2 miles. The trail keeps changing grade instead of settling into an easy ridge walk. Near the summit, a short, unmarked spur reaches a small rocky outcrop with a broad view opening across the South Fork Shenandoah and the ridges toward West Virginia.

The outcrop is the route’s clearest payoff, but it has 15–20-foot drops off its rocky edge. Stay on stable rock well back from the lip. It’s a good place to frame the valley with a bit of ledge in the foreground; you don’t need to scramble to the edge for the view.

After the summit area, the path descends steeply for several miles. Views are sparse through much of this stretch, with one notable opening where the trail crosses a large scree slope. Gap Run is more wooded and follows a stream before climbing back to Rocky Mount Trail and the shared lower route to the car. Water is reported along Gap Run for a short stretch around miles 5 to 5.6, but availability is not dependable. Carry what you need, and treat any backcountry water before drinking it.

The park’s backcountry itinerary spreads the walk over two days, with a campsite along Gap Run. A fit hiker can walk the circuit in one long day, but the park calls it strenuous and says not to let the mileage fool you. Overnight camping requires a backcountry permit; day hiking does not. Dogs are allowed on this trail on a physical leash no longer than six feet.

These slopes are part of the Blue Ridge, an old section of the Appalachians rounded by a long stretch of erosion. The summit’s bare rock makes the ridge feel more rugged than the wooded miles below, though the sources don’t establish a specific rock type or trail-side history for this outcrop.