Route Climbed: Ridge Trail up, Forest Road down Date Climbed: November 9, 2003
I talked my wife into coming along with me on this trip....had wonderful weather and great views from the summit ridge on. The scramble up the last several hundred feet was memorable and I would recommend this climb to anyone. Note: If you are going on the weekend, it would be wise to get there early to avoid congestion on the summit ridge. Enjoy!
Route Climbed: Ridge Trail(up), Forest Road(down) Date Climbed: October 10, 2003
My firend Michael and I decided to climb this mountain largely thanks to this website. I had not even heard of Old Rag before! It was definitely the best mountain climb I have ever done in Virginia. I can see why so many people like to climb this one. Lots of fun scambles near the top and many fun boulders to try and climb. Round-trip this hike is about 7 miles, 2,200 vertical-foot climb. I recommend climbing this mountain on a weekday, as weekends can be crowded and bottlenecks in certain scrambling sections are likely to occur.
Route Climbed: Ridge Trail Date Climbed: July 17, 2003
This was my second trip to the top of Old Rag and I was able to do it with my 9-year-old son. He did a great job and I was very proud of him. We had great weather with a quiet summit. I hope to go back for a winter climb this year.
Route Climbed: Ridge Trail Date Climbed: September 23, 2002
Had a great day with the mountain essentially to myself early on a Monday morning. I started at 8 and reached the summit by 10. I spent almost an hour alone on top without a soul in site. I was impressed by the amount of scrambling I had to do to get over some of the boulders going up. I took the Weakly Hollow Fire Road down. It added about 1.5 miles to the trip, but was well worth it. About 1/2 a mile from the upper parking lot I encountered a young black bear. We startled each other and he/she ran up a tree about 15-20 feet off the trail. As my heart rate decreased, I got some great digital pics and some video shots after I looked around carefully for momma bear. I'm looking forward to doing the climb again, hopefully deeper into the fall when more colors are coming out in the trees.
Route Climbed: Ridge Trail Date Climbed: May 17, 2002
A freak thunderstorm stopped us right below the summit and forced us to turnaround! Darn!
**Note** For the especially daring, recommend climbing the mountain in the late afternoon, watching the stars come out from the summit and then making your way back down the rock scramble with only headlamps. Scary and dangerous? You bet. Exciting and challenging? Absolutely!
Route Climbed: standard(?) - did the summit via a loop hike Date Climbed: Thanksgiving of '99
At that time (before having moved out west) this was by far the coolest hike we've done!! Hand assists, minor rock scrambles - we were very impressed!!! Fog/drizzle all the way - good for lack of crowds, bad for lack of views.
Coonman - Dec 27, 2003 10:05 pm
Route Climbed: Ridge Trail up, Forest Road down Date Climbed: November 9, 2003I talked my wife into coming along with me on this trip....had wonderful weather and great views from the summit ridge on. The scramble up the last several hundred feet was memorable and I would recommend this climb to anyone. Note: If you are going on the weekend, it would be wise to get there early to avoid congestion on the summit ridge. Enjoy!
climber46 - Nov 10, 2003 9:00 pm
Route Climbed: Ridge Trail(up), Forest Road(down) Date Climbed: October 10, 2003My firend Michael and I decided to climb this mountain largely thanks to this website. I had not even heard of Old Rag before! It was definitely the best mountain climb I have ever done in Virginia. I can see why so many people like to climb this one. Lots of fun scambles near the top and many fun boulders to try and climb. Round-trip this hike is about 7 miles, 2,200 vertical-foot climb. I recommend climbing this mountain on a weekday, as weekends can be crowded and bottlenecks in certain scrambling sections are likely to occur.
shanrickv - Jul 18, 2003 7:52 pm
Route Climbed: Ridge Trail Date Climbed: July 17, 2003This was my second trip to the top of Old Rag and I was able to do it with my 9-year-old son. He did a great job and I was very proud of him. We had great weather with a quiet summit. I hope to go back for a winter climb this year.
shanrickv - Sep 25, 2002 4:53 am
Route Climbed: Ridge Trail Date Climbed: September 23, 2002Had a great day with the mountain essentially to myself early on a Monday morning. I started at 8 and reached the summit by 10. I spent almost an hour alone on top without a soul in site. I was impressed by the amount of scrambling I had to do to get over some of the boulders going up. I took the Weakly Hollow Fire Road down. It added about 1.5 miles to the trip, but was well worth it. About 1/2 a mile from the upper parking lot I encountered a young black bear. We startled each other and he/she ran up a tree about 15-20 feet off the trail. As my heart rate decreased, I got some great digital pics and some video shots after I looked around carefully for momma bear. I'm looking forward to doing the climb again, hopefully deeper into the fall when more colors are coming out in the trees.
mary chiappetta - Sep 16, 2002 12:52 pm
Route Climbed: Ridge Trail Date Climbed: September 7, 2002The views were amazing for someone used to western PA rolling hills. This was a great trail for a beginner - challenging, but possible.
Jerry L - Jun 30, 2002 1:54 pm
Route Climbed: Standard Date Climbed: May, 2001Too many people.
Chipmunk5 - May 30, 2002 9:18 pm
Route Climbed: Ridge Trail Date Climbed: May 17, 2002A freak thunderstorm stopped us right below the summit and forced us to turnaround! Darn!
**Note** For the especially daring, recommend climbing the mountain in the late afternoon, watching the stars come out from the summit and then making your way back down the rock scramble with only headlamps. Scary and dangerous? You bet. Exciting and challenging? Absolutely!
rpc - Mar 21, 2002 2:25 pm
Route Climbed: standard(?) - did the summit via a loop hike Date Climbed: Thanksgiving of '99At that time (before having moved out west) this was by far the coolest hike we've done!! Hand assists, minor rock scrambles - we were very impressed!!! Fog/drizzle all the way - good for lack of crowds, bad for lack of views.