Shenandoah National Park rules?

[Coffee]

I've never even seen a backcountry ranger in SNP much less have my permit checked. Sounds like much has changed since the 1970s

[Alligator]

I've never even seen a backcountry ranger in SNP much less have my permit checked. Sounds like much has changed since the 1970s

I saw rangers 2 out of the 3 times I was sectioning through the park. One time, I saw a ticket given at the shelter I was staying. The other time, the rangers were checking up on hikers as the road was closed due to snow/ice. It is easy for the rangers to drop in as the road is nearby. It was easy to get a permit and to camp except one section of the park had a spacing issue and we hiked a long day. I think it also had something to do with how my endpoints were located too, I had divided the park into 3 hiking trips.

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Mainly I am just mentioning that the rangers do venture backcountry. It was relatively easy to get the permits and to find suitable camping.

[bigcranky]

We saw rangers twice in SNP during a five day hike, both times at shelters. No tickets issued, but they were checking up on things.

[Dogwood]

I saw rangers 2 out of the 3 times I was sectioning through the park. One time, I saw a ticket given at the shelter I was staying. The other time, the rangers were checking up on hikers as the road was closed due to snow/ice. It is easy for the rangers to drop in as the road is nearby. It was easy to get a permit and to camp except one section of the park had a spacing issue and we hiked a long day. I think it also had something to do with how my endpoints were located too, I had divided the park into 3 hiking trips.

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Mainly I am just mentioning that the rangers do venture backcountry. It was relatively easy to get the permits and to find suitable camping.

We saw rangers twice in SNP during a five day hike, both times at shelters. No tickets issued, but they were checking up on things.

This. Over the last 11 yrs or so I've seen SNP Rangers on foot on the AT the three times I've hiked it in it's entirety through the park. I've had my self registering permits checked on all occasions. On several other SNP hikes when not thruing the AT I saw SNP rangers in vehicles at THs and/or on foot every time.

The current SNP Rules for the AT are not difficult to follow IF you're a sensible agreeable individual that makes themselves aware of the rules and abides by them.

Have a great hike.

[Coffee]

Interesting to see that I'm in the minority in terms of not having my permit checked. In any case SNP is so easy to deal with that it is a non issue. Permits are self issued and no quotas apply and the regulations are not that onerous.

[squeezebox]

What about dogs in SNP?

[Coffee]

What about dogs in SNP?

http://www.nps.gov/shen/planyourvisit/pets.htm

[LAZ]

Thanks for the interesting piece of history. There seem to be a lot of compplaints about some of the restrictive rules in place today on the trail, and the way people breaking those rules hurt everyone by bringing on more rules. It's interesting to hear about old restrictions that really do sound onerous. It seems we are relatively privledged in the way we are able to access the trail today.
I am interested in how you are planning to get from the Amtrack stations to the trail, as I am planning a hike starting at the beginning of the SNP or thereabouts and haven't worked out transportation yet.

[johnnybgood]

Add me to the list also of having my backcountry permit checked. Just happened once, but don't be lackadaisical about filling one out. Oh yeah, also worth noting-- he was polite and I was obliging

[Hikerhead]

I had mine checked once also. It happened in a parking lot as I was getting ready to do an overnighter. He looked it over, said everything was in order and wished me a good hike. Nice guy, very polite and you could tell he liked what he was doing.

[Woodturner]

I am interested in how you are planning to get from the Amtrack stations to the trail, as I am planning a hike starting at the beginning of the SNP or thereabouts and haven't worked out transportation yet.

There are shuttles that operate out of Staunton (maybe not based there) and taxis can get you to Rockfish Gap from Charlottesville. Since I don't know for sure that I will be able to go I haven't really ironed out all the details yet myself.
In 1986 I bicycled the Blue Ridge Parkway from Rockfish Gap to Cherokee, NC. The Taxi from the airport at Charlottesville to Rockfish Gap cost sixty bucks back then. Long before I leave home I will have checked with Charlottesville taxi companies and any possible contacts on the shuttle list to have the best price.
I'm figuring a night in a motel before I start hiking. At best, it is around 13 hours by Amtrak from where I live to Charlottesville. Actual time is often one to three hours more.

[Coffee]

There is a local bus that will get you from the Staunton Amtrak to Waynesboro which is around five miles from the trail so it should be possible to get there at little or no cost.

[Slo-go'en]

There is a local bus that will get you from the Staunton Amtrak to Waynesboro which is around five miles from the trail so it should be possible to get there at little or no cost.

Once you get to Waynesboro there are a bunch of trail angles who will drive you up to the trail. Any of the motels in town will have the list of numbers to call.

[LAZ]

Thanks for the info. I knew I'd figure out something, but it's better than I hoped - as someone who doesn't drive and thus always takes public transit, I expected it to be messier.

[full conditions]

To the OP: you are negatively exaggerating SNP Rules for the AT. As others have said, they are rather lenient for AT section and LD hikers going through SNP as compared to perhaps some other NPs. With your negative perspective of SNP it will decrease from the overall positive experiences you want. Readjust your mindset. SNP Rules are not the "insanity" you ascribe to them.

Further, it sure sounds like you are defining "stealth camping" as bypassing rules as if they shouldn't apply to you. This is exactly the type of mindset that may be increasing on the AT, and perhaps other trails in general, that causes SO MANY ISSUES for potentially not only yourself but for others. That mindset usually leads to a greater degree of rules.

Be a responsible self governing AT hiker that is knowledgeable of and abides by rules. Be considerate even IF you do not REALLY know why SNP rules are in effect. It's for everyone's benefit.

To be fair Dogwood, he is describing the rules for SNP in 1975 perfectly. I thru hiked the trail in 1976 and the rules were the same and he is in no way exaggerating. All shelters were for day use only and you were not allowed to camp within sight of one - or within sight of or fifty meters of: any road, trail, structure, campground, water source or other campers. It was extraordinarily difficult to comply with the rules - I managed but it was tough. They were trying to encourage dispersed camping at a time when back-country use was exploding and it made through hiking/ a tremendously difficult task. The current rules are far more reasonable and fairly easy to comply with - but back then....

[Odd Man Out]

Once you get to Waynesboro there are a bunch of trail angles who will drive you up to the trail. Any of the motels in town will have the list of numbers to call.

What about transportation options at Front Royal? I'm contemplating a hike through SNP. I could drive to FR in a day (650 miles). But getting to Rockfish gap so I could hike back to my car seems to be problematic without a very expensive shuttle.

[Woodturner]

What about transportation options at Front Royal? I'm contemplating a hike through SNP. I could drive to FR in a day (650 miles). But getting to Rockfish gap so I could hike back to my car seems to be problematic without a very expensive shuttle.

Since bus service isn't what it used to be (Unlike Amtrak, I couldn't find a listing of cities that Greyhound serves. It makes planning a trip kind of difficult.) your best bet might be to rent a car in Waynesboro and drive back to Front Royal yourself. Depending on the car, it looks like it would be in the fifty dollar range.

[BillyGr]

Once you get to Waynesboro there are a bunch of trail angles who will drive you up to the trail. Any of the motels in town will have the list of numbers to call.

Acute, Right or Obtuse?

[Dogwood]

To be fair Dogwood, he is describing the rules for SNP in 1975 perfectly. I thru hiked the trail in 1976 and the rules were the same and he is in no way exaggerating. All shelters were for day use only and you were not allowed to camp within sight of one - or within sight of or fifty meters of: any road, trail, structure, campground, water source or other campers. It was extraordinarily difficult to comply with the rules - I managed but it was tough. They were trying to encourage dispersed camping at a time when back-country use was exploding and it made through hiking/ a tremendously difficult task. The current rules are far more reasonable and fairly easy to comply with - but back then....

I get the rules for 35-40 yrs ago.

However, is it fair to insinuate tanking up with H2O and then finding a legal flat space to disperse tent, tarp, cowboy camp, or hang 50 m away from the AT, day use only shelters, other campers, and roads is difficult...especially for a thru-hiker? REALLY? Wow!

[TexasBob]

However, is it fair to insinuate tanking up with H2O and then finding a legal flat space to disperse tent, tarp, cowboy camp, or hang 50 m away from the AT, day use only shelters, other campers, and roads is difficult...especially for a thru-hiker? REALLY? Wow!

Actually, in the northern section of the park (from 211 north to Front Royal) it is difficult to satisfy all those conditions and there are limited areas where you can legally camp that are flat. The rangers will gladly tell you where the legal flat areas are and even mark them on the map for you there just aren't many places that meet all the criteria.