Shenandoah National Park

One of our greatest privileges is to be a permitted guide service and outdoor education provider in Shenandoah National Park. This park, home to the famous Skyline Drive, has so much more to offer than just a ridge top 100 mile scenic highway. The Appalachian Trail, dozens of scenic waterfalls, 40% is designated as wilderness areas, more than 500 miles of hiking trails, mountain peaks that exceed 4,000 ft, remote hollows and valleys, a cultural history that dates back more than 10,000 years… It’s home to bear, deer, bobcat, fox, coyote.. plus birds of all description....

The riotous wildflowers of Spring are breathtaking. Summer days are bright and warm, (and the nights are cool!). Autumn’s colors come early (Sept-Oct) and Spring’s leaves don’t arrive on the mountaintops until early June. Winter is a cold and quiet time, often framed in ice and muffled in snow. The water is ALWAYS bracing.
 
The SMG staff grew up with Shenandoah, literally, in their back yard. Through their childhood and youth, the Park was the main source of recreation and escape. Few people know the Park’s nooks and crannies better than the staff of Shenandoah Mountain Guides.

Our self-defined mission in the Park is to help folks get out from behind the steering wheel and out of the car to see/hear/feel what a treasure SNP is. Towards that end we have developed a complete activity schedule designed to introduce different sections of the park at particularly special and scenic times.

The primary concessionaire in the Park is ARAMARK. Their specialty is providing sleeping and dining accommodations. Beginning in 2006, (the 75th anniversary of Shenandoah’s creation) SMG partnered with ARAMARK to offer the visitors to Shenandoah a complete park experience. Hiking, climbing, exploring the backcountry.. all done with SMG’s knowledgeable guides. (In particular, the Waterfalls and Wildflowers™ hikes are always popular and always breathtaking.)

Whether you visit Shenandoah with us or on your own, we hope you will take the time to explore this mountainous gem of a national park. Oh, and you can just park the car. The only way to experience SNP is under your own power. Bring your bike, shoes for walking, a daypack, water bottle and a camera… You’ll be amazed at what you find!