What we’re about
THE CLUB www.nvhc.com
The Northern Virginia Hiking Club (NVHC) offers a range of hikes of various difficulty levels in Virginia, Maryland, DC, and beyond. The club also offers other outdoor events occasionally. NVHC members reflect the rich diversity of the Washington DC Metro area. Annual membership fee is $5. Guests are welcome and enjoy a month’s free participation in the club events. NVHC is a nonprofit organization and donates funds to local parks and trail maintenance organizations from time to time. The selection of the parks and organizations is based on club usage - it is our way of giving back. Monies vary each time - $7,200 were donated in 2023.
Members are required to accept the liability disclaimer by typing “Accept” in the fields presented when they join the club.
DIFFICULTY RATINGS
NVHC hikes are assigned difficulty ratings. A combination of linear distance and elevation gain is used to determine the rating, with 400 feet of elevation gain considered to be equivalent of 1 mile of linear distance. With the “miles” derived from elevation gain added to the linear distance, following are the ratings:
A+= Very Difficult (19 miles or more)
A = Difficult (13 miles or more, but less than 19 miles)
B = Moderately Difficult (10 miles or more, but less than 13 miles)
C = Moderate (7 miles or more, but less than 10 miles)
D = Easy (Less than 7 miles)
For example, a nine-mile hike with 1,000 feet of climbing would be rated B (9 + 2.5 = 11.5).
Elevation loss is not measured in this system. Also, the difficulty rating is separate from the pace of the hike, which is determined by the leader, and is usually specified in the individual hike descriptions.
RSVP ETIQUETTE
Often there are limits on the number of participants on NVHC events, set by our leaders. This creates wait lists on Meetup. If you find yourself in this situation, we request that you keep in mind the interest of the leaders and your fellow hikers, and follow the guidelines below:
- If you RSVP’d “yes” for a hike, change your RSVP to “no” as soon as you decide not to go, so that someone else can go.
- If you RSVP’d “yes” to overlapping events on the same day, decide on one as soon as possible, and change your RSVP to “no” for all others.
- If you are on a wait list and decide not to go, remove yourself from the list.
DOGS ON HIKES
Dogs are welcome on NVHC hikes at the discretion of the hike leader. Several restrictions apply including advance notification to the leader, dogs being well behaved, and their being kept on a six foot leash. See dog policy located at [https://tinyurl.com/nvhcdogpolicy] for details.
Upcoming events (4+)
See all- Hull School-Thornton River-Neighbor Mountain Loop (Rating: A)Centreville Park & Ride, Centreville, VA
You must read the following NVHC Sign-in Sheet Statement/Liability Disclaimer, https://nvhc.com/signin.pdf and then answer the question that you will see when you RSVP with "I accept" to be permitted on the hike.
This is a 10-mile loop hike with 2100' feet of elevation gain in very lightly used back country.
The hike starts at the Beahms Gap Overlook on Skyline Dr., about 4 miles north of the Thornton Gap entrance to Skyline Dr.
From the Beahms gap parking area, we'll cross Skyline Dr just south of the lot and take a very short hike on the AT to a left on Rocky Br. Trail. We will take that .4 miles to the Hull School Parking lot, cross over the lot to Skyline Dr, and take a right on Hull School Trail just past the lot. We'll hike downhill about 2.5 miles and take a left on to the Thornton River Trail (TRT). We will proceed on the TRT up hill about 3 miles to Skyline Dr., where we'll turn left on Skyline Dr a short way and cross it to continue up hill on the TRT another half mile (steep) to it's intersection with the AT, where we'll have lunch. We'll proceed left (south) on the AT from there, and take left on to the Neighbor Mountain Trail to it's summit and Byrd Shelter #4. We'll then backtrack on the Neighbor Mountain Trail back to the AT and continue south on the AT back to the parking lot.
There are multiple stream crossings on this hike, so be prepared with poles, change of socks, etc.We hike at a pace of 2.5-3.0 mph when moving.
Dogs are permitted on this hike in accordance with the NVHC Dog Policy. https://tinyurl.com/nvhcdogpolicy
Leader: John H
This hike has an "A" rating for difficulty. Rating: A
Carpools: Meet at the Centreville Park and Ride at 7:20am and leave by 7:30am.
Driving time to trail head: One hour 20 minutes.
The trailhead is 60 miles from the suggested carpool location.
Suggested carpool fee is $7.
The leader will not be at the carpool location.
GPS Coordinates: 38.836038, -77.455371
https://goo.gl/maps/hc3LRG7Hsy2wMJs18Trailhead: Meet at Beahms Gap Overlook by 8:50 so we can start hike at 9:00am.
GPS Coordinates: 38.69511, -78.31997
https://maps.app.goo.gl/fAYczA3QifjWrqRR9
The parking lot is U-shaped. There are two entrances into the lot.Neither the Club nor the hike leaders are responsible for coordinating transportation to/from the trailhead. Hikers are not guaranteed to get a ride to the trailhead from the carpool location. Carpooling is organized by the participants and they participate at their own risk. Use the comment section to organize carpools.
Park Entry Fee: $30 (free with park pass)
You must be experienced in hikes of this distance, pace and elevation gain.
- Beaverdam Reservoir Park- Loudoun County (Rating: C)Beaverdam Reservoir Park, Ashburn, VA
You must read the following NVHC Sign-in Sheet Statement/Liability Disclaimer, https://nvhc.com/signin.pdf and then answer the question that you will see when you RSVP with "I accept" to be permitted on the hike.
This is a 7.25 mile hike with 225 feet of elevation gain around Beaverdam Reservoir in the Brambleton/Ashburn area of Loudoun County. At the halfway point we will stop for a snack break. Trails may be muddy.
GPS Coordinates for Reservoir Park: 39.003061, -77.535332
https://maps.app.goo.gl/qjhqvU1L6pYmgVVx9
Meet at the parking lot near the Visitor Center.Google Maps may try to take you into the park on Alford Rd, do not go that way you cannot get in that way as it is gated. From the main road you need to turn where the sign says NRPA then continue straight in past the ballfield parking lot until you see the entrance sign to Reservoir Park, then follow to Visitor Center.
We hike at a pace of 2.5 to 3.0 mph while moving.
Dogs are permitted on this hike in accordance with the NVHC Dog Policy.
https://tinyurl.com/nvhcdogpolicyLeader: Ed Brimberg 703-944-9920
Park Entry Fee: $0.00
AllTrails Map for hike: Beaverdam Reservoir
- Little Devils Stairs (Rating: A)Little Devils Stairs, Virginia, VA
You must read the following NVHC Sign-in Sheet Statement/Liability Disclaimer, https://nvhc.com/signin.pdf and then answer the question that you will see when you RSVP with "I accept" to be permitted on the hike.
This hike is a ~7½ miles’ loop with an elevation gain of ~2100 ft., featuring a beautiful initial hike up the steep Little Devils Stairs Trail canyon. Most of the elevation gain is in these initial 2 miles. However, there is another climb toward the end of the hike of 485 ft, starting at the 5½ mile mark where we climb the Hull School Trail from the Piney River up to the Keyser Run Rd to see the Bolen family Cemetery, before descending back to the parking lot.
Trail maps
pdf map:
https://www.icloud.com/iclouddrive/092HM0dNKDqTu8UpB6TGyilBQ#Little_Devils_Stairs
Shenandoah NP Keyser Run Area map
https://www.icloud.com/iclouddrive/0dagfKAPUnQSGKiNVAD0_73-A#MP_20-26_KeyserRun_RoadTrail
GaiaGPS map:
https://www.gaiagps.com/map/?loc=11.9/-78.2829/38.7286&pubLink=Chv9qJv1m8rhovXfXYaM4lo4&trackId=23e27e16-b81c-4813-b34e-64e759df2618Difficultly Rating: A
At 7½ mi + 2100/400 =12¾ mi, this makes this a hard B-hike.
However, the last time I hiked this it came out 8¼ mi + 2000/400 = 13¼ mi, which is an easy A-hike, and some of the hikers commented it was too hard to be a B.
So it's listed as an A-hike.
https://nvhc.com/hikeinfo/ratings/Pace: ~2.5 mph
We'll go slower up the canyon, but may go a bit faster elsewhere.Trailhead: We'll meet at the Little Devils Stairs Parking Lot which is at the end of Keyser Run Road. To get there take US 211 west to Gid Brown Hollow Rd (Rt 622), then 1.9mi to Keyser Run Rd.
TH Coordinates: 38.7305, -78.2583.
It's a 65 minute drive from Centreville Park & Ride.Dogs permitted per NVHC Dog Policy: https://tinyurl.com/nvhcdogpolicy
