Bears Den Overlook Hike

Bears Den Overlook - Bluemont, Virginia


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Length	Difficulty	Streams	Views	Solitude	Camping
1.8 mls		N/A			N/A
Hiking Time: Elev. Gain: Links: Resources:	1.5 hours with breaks 310 ft Bears Den Trail Center Topo Hike Trails Map (PDF) Bluemont Weather Forecast Garmin (GDB), Gaia/Trails App (GPX) (What's this?) 3D View of Route
From:	Commuter Lot Parking: Park on the south side of Rt. 7 at the ridge. 39.11528, -77.84719

A short easy hike with a beautiful overlook to the west. Starting at the same parking area on Rt. 7 as the Raven Rocks hike, this out and back hike climbs a gentle 280ft of elevation along the Appalachian Trail to the Bears Den Overlook. Also make the short loop around the Bears Den Trail Center and explorer the surrounding grounds. This hike is popular on nice days and the main overlook can be busy. A good way to beat the crowds is to make the hike in the evening and catch the sunset to the west.

Mile 0.0 - From the large commuter parking area on Rt. 7 start down the west side of the ridge staying on the left side of the Rt. 7 guardrail. DO NOT be tempted to take the unmarked trail that starts up the mountain at the end of the parking area. This unblazed trail marked on our map as blue dotted is generally muddy most of the year and has a large amount of poison ivy on either side.
Mile 0.2 - Turn left at the white blazed Appalachian Trail off Rt. 7 heading into the woods uphill. This section has old growth forest, but beware of poison ivy in this area.
Mile 0.3 - Pass the intersection of the non-blazed connector trail (muddy) back to the parking area. The Appalachian Trail will make three main switchbacks climbing the ridge then levels off. There are large granite boulders in the trail with veins of quartz.
Mile 0.6 - Pass the Bears Den Trail Center connector Trail and arrive at the main Bears Den Overlook. Turn around and head uphill on the Bears Den Connector Trail and shortly arrive at the blue blazed Bears Den Loop Trail. Turn left and follow the loop trail through two clearings and pass around the Bears Den Trail Center. Start downhill on the blue blazed southern portion of the loop trail and soon arrive at the intersection of the Appalachian Trail.
Mile 1.1 - Turn right/north on the white blazed Appalachian Trail passing the main overlook and retrace your route back to Rt. 7 turning right back to he parking area.
Mile 1.8 - Arrive back at the parking area on Rt. 7.

Early June

Bears Den Overlook Hike Comments

Archived Comments

By: Eric Krueger	Rating:	Date of Hike: Sunday, November 3, 2019
Parking was pretty east, it was not too crowded. There were a decent amount of people, but we were not passed or passing people very often at all. I enjoyed the hike well enough, it had a little bit of a rocky terrain, but the overlook was great to me because I could climb up and down all the big rocks.

By: King Juicehead	Rating:	Date of Hike: Monday, October 14, 2019
Went on this hike with my 9 year old son. We both loved it. Would probably be better when the leaves all fall off the trees for better views. Also, very, very rocky wear the right shoes.

By: Alex S	Rating:	Date of Hike: Sunday, December 30, 2018
Good climb, but too short. I actually enjoy doing this hike quite a bit. However, I will typically double the mileage by performing the hike two times over. When I did the hike today I reversed as soon as I reached the overlook. On the second climb I circled the Bears Den overlook then climbed back down. With the rains we’ve had the blue blazed connector trail going from the parking lot was essentially a mud pit. Don’t use it. Instead, walk along Route 7 and use the AT for the whole hike. Bears Den also has a small network of trails you can use to lengthen your hike if you don’t want to just walk out and back a bunch of times.