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For the casual weekend hiker, Jones Run Falls is one of the easier waterfalls to reach in the Shenandoah National Park of Virginia. The round trip of 3.4 miles has a moderately steep climb of 915 feet on the return leg of the trail. At a leisurely pace the walk takes about 3 hours.
The parking lot for the falls is at the 84.1-mile marker in the park. It sits off the road as a small cove in a sea of 40-foot trees and in the summer emerald light flickers between the latticework of leaves. The local population of white-tailed deer have a cautious trust of humans and can often be seen browsing the shrubs along the pavement, their soft-brown ears cocked back toward the road and people noise. When sufficiently startled, they melt into the woods, tails held high to reveal the startlingly white undersides that gave them their name.
The trail begins on the far side of the parking lot. Wrapped in shadows, the woods are noticeably 10 degrees cooler. Within two steps the path crosses the Appalachian Trail as it wanders from Maine to Georgia. Hiking boots are the preferred footwear as the trail begins with a somewhat rocky slope. It meanders downhill beside a ravine on the right looping over and around tree roots. The bank on the left of the trail cuts sharply upward; nannyberry bushes hang heavy in August with not-quite-ripe fruit and partridgeberry patches cover the ground in colors of green, white, and red.
After traveling downhill a half-mile the trail crosses a stream. It’s shallow and narrow here, welcoming travelers to ford across on the stepping stones seemingly placed there specifically for that purpose. Sometimes orange or brown non-poisonous watersnakes glide out of the stream to warm themselves on nearby logs. An observer will need to be vigilant in their search for the legless creatures, so well do the snakes blend into the surrounding habitat.
Now the path becomes flatter and wider as it follows an old road. Oak, maple, ironwood, and pine throw shade on the trail from either side and the sunlight gleams through the thick canopy to playfully touch the skin of passers-by with hot quick fingers. Ostrich ferns carpet the forest floor with lime-green fronds as far as the eye can see; they are lovers of the cool shadows. The fragrance of the woods is clean and gentle with the mingled scents of the plants. The world is slower here, and hushed - a soothing sanctuary of twilight that inspires wonderment.
The trail soon begins to run parallel to the stream. Around a bend on the left, the first waterfall comes into view through the leaves of young maple and oak. It’s small, falling only 15 feet over a boulder in the water’s path. But the thin curtain of water is a tranquil prelude to the larger falls ahead.
The path dips sharply, making a series of switchbacks through the woods. Rounding one curve a four-foot rock appears on the right. Upholstered with an astonishing diversity of moss and lichen in hues of green, red, and yellow it sits against the backdrop of dense vegetation like a child’s forgotten finger-painting project. On closer inspection, the moss takes on the shapes of tiny umbrellas and the woven textures of linen and wool.
The path then begins to make a series of curves as it rebounds off of the enormous boulders carelessly scattered throughout the area. These ancient bits and pieces of the mountain are a strange divergence from the calm sea of ferns. Dark shadows of caves appear in the scared and cracked granite as evidence of the mountain’s tumultuous birth eons ago. Now they have become welcome shelters.
Sloping away from the stream momentarily, the path then veers sharply left and the second waterfall is heard before seen. It falls forty-two feet down a rough granite face in narrow, broken streams. Ages of relentlessly pounding water have worn a hollow in the rock below and the water pools to rest momentarily before tumbling further down the ravine. Touch-me-nots, festooned with brilliant orange blooms in August and September, adorn the cliff wall opposite the creek. Sedges and small shrubs have gained toeholds in the rocky crags and flourish in the moisture-laden air. Yellow and black striped swallowtail butterflies gather at the pool’s edge, their movements erratic in flight as they twist and turn to dodge the prisms of cold water thrown by the falls.
The large flat rocks in and around the stream offer a respite from the hike down. Insect sound and bird song can be heard through the trees as they mark their territory or search for mates. Sunlight tickles the cold water’s surface with diamonds of light in a silent recital of musical pauses. The imaginative eye will find gnomes and wood nymphs here among the forest dwellers.
There are eight more waterfalls to hike in Shenandoah National Park. Bring water, a camera, and a quixotic mind. There are no windmills to joust, but you might discover similar distractions in this enchanting park along Skyline Drive.
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