Big Meadows is a recreational area of the

Shenandoah National Park Shenandoah National Park (often ) is an American national park that encompasses part of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The park is long and narrow, with the Shenandoah River and its broad valley to the west, and the ...

in Madison County and Page County, in the US state of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. The

meadow A meadow ( ) is an open habitat, or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as these areas maintain an open character. Meadows may be naturally occurring or arti ...

is located on the

Skyline Drive Skyline Drive is a National Parkway that runs the entire length of the National Park Service's Shenandoah National Park in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, generally along the ridge of the mountains. The drive's northern terminus is a ...

at Milepost 51 and contains the park's

Harry F. Byrd Harry Flood Byrd Sr. (June 10, 1887 – October 20, 1966) was an American newspaper publisher, politician, and leader of the Democratic Party in Virginia for four decades as head of a political faction that became known as the Byrd Organization. ...

Visitor Center, a lodge, camp store, and camping area. Several

hiking trails A trail, also known as a path or track, is an unpaved lane or small road usually passing through a natural area. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, a path or footpath is the preferred term for a pedestrian or hiking trail. Th ...

can be accessed from Big Meadows, including the ''Mill Prong Trail'' which leads to

Rapidan Camp Rapidan Camp (also known at times as Camp Hoover) in Shenandoah National Park in Madison County, Virginia, was built by U.S. President Herbert Hoover and his wife Lou Henry Hoover, and served as their rustic retreat throughout Hoover's administ ...

on the

Rapidan River The Rapidan River, flowing U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 through north-central Virginia in the United States, is the largest tributary of the Rappahannock ...

, the

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

retreat of President

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gr ...

from 1929–1933, which is now restored to its 1930s configuration. President

Roosevelt Roosevelt may refer to: *Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), 26th U.S. president * Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945), 32nd U.S. president Businesses and organisations * Roosevelt Hotel (disambiguation) * Roosevelt & Son, a merchant bank * Rooseve ...

used Big Meadows in 1935 as the site for dedicating Shenandoah National Park and Skyline Drive. In 1962, during the

Ash Wednesday Storm Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

, Big Meadows recorded Virginia's greatest 24-hour

snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...

fall with 33 inches, and the total storm snowfall was 42 inches at Big Meadows. In the Blizzard of 1996, Big Meadows recorded Virginia's greatest storm snowfall accumulation at 47 inches. Big Meadows Site was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1985.

Activities

Big Meadows has a dining hall, gift shop, horse trails, and a series of lodges for guests to stay in. Each lodge guestroom has a stone fireplace and a supply of firewood, although the building has natural gas-fired

central heating A central heating system provides warmth to a number of spaces within a building from one main source of heat. It is a component of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (short: HVAC) systems, which can both cool and warm interior spaces. ...

- the fireplaces are for decorative purposes only. Big Meadows Wayside has a campground with some 200 lots. There is a shower building, laundry accommodations, a storage building for packaged campfire wood, and a small office at which ice, firewood and basic supplies can be purchased. There are several hiking trails: :Lewis Spring Falls follows the

Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian ...

for about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the main campground to the falls overlook. It is an easy trail with standard hard-packed pebbles and dirt, with a few rock scrambles along the way. :Dark Hollow Falls begins at a parking lot close to the Byrd Center. From the parking lot, a 0.7-mile (1.1 km) trail takes hikers to overlooks at the top and bottom of the falls. The trail is scenic and wide, but somewhat steep on the return. The summit of Blackrock Mountain is located 0.3 mile (0.5 km) from the main campground and adjacent to the Big Meadows Lodge. It is the highest point at Big Meadows and provides a scenic view of the Shenandoah Valley.

The Big Meadow

A part of the campground area, called The Big Meadow, is adjacent to the camp store and the Byrd Visitor center. Campers often wander the grassy trails of the meadow, looking for blueberries and

blackberries The blackberry is an edible fruit produced by many species in the genus ''Rubus'' in the family (biology), family Rosaceae, hybrids among these species within the subgenus ''Rubus'', and hybrids between the subgenera ''Rubus'' and ''Idaeobatus' ...

. Usually, bears have already foraged the ripe berries before hikers arrive; in early-morning hikes, bears are sometimes spotted around the edges of the meadow.

Wildlife

There are

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...

chipmunk Chipmunks are small, striped rodents of the family Sciuridae. Chipmunks are found in North America, with the exception of the Siberian chipmunk which is found primarily in Asia. Taxonomy and systematics Chipmunks may be classified either as ...

s, skunks, squirrels and a variety of

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

s who visit the campground area and are very used to people. The deer are eager to find campers who will hand out food and treats. The rangers discourage this, but the result is that the deer wander the campgrounds throughout the day. It is not uncommon to have a deer take food from a human's hand in a campsite. Daytime bear sightings are not uncommon. The black bears are not aggressive, and no attacks on humans have been reported. The park provides bear-proof metal lockers around the camp area to protect food at night. The biggest concern is the skunk population. Like the deer, they forage the campsites for food. Campers will sometimes note the aroma of a skunk who was startled during the night. Wise campers ensure there is no food on the ground to attract skunks, and that the tent flap is secured against skunk entry. Other wildlife includes venomous snakes, although they are relatively rare. The park houses rattlesnakes,

copperhead Copperhead may refer to: Snakes * ''Agkistrodon contortrix'', or copperhead, a venomous pit viper species found in parts of North America * '' Austrelaps'', or Australian copperhead, a genus of venomous elapids found in southern Australia and Ta ...

s, as well as

garter snake Garter snake is a common name for generally harmless, small to medium-sized snakes belonging to the genus ''Thamnophis'' in the family Colubridae. Native to North and Central America, species in the genus ''Thamnophis'' can be found from the ...

s and other non-venomous species.

Climate

References

Restoring a National Historic Landmark: President and Mrs. Hoover's Rapidan Camp, Shenandoah National Park''The Free-Lance'', Fredericksburg, Virginia, newspaper article 10/9/2005

External links

*Geographical coordinates: (click for maps and satellite photos of Big Meadows, Virginia)
Shenandoah National Park
{{Authority control Madison County, Virginia Geography of Virginia Geography of Madison County, Virginia Geography of Page County, Virginia Archaeological sites in Virginia Shenandoah National Park Tourist attractions in Madison County, Virginia Tourist attractions in Page County, Virginia