Hike: Compton Peak, Shenandoah National Park, VA
Sat, Apr 12
|Warren County
Compton Peak is notable for its set of columnar jointing of basalt crystals with their distinctive hexagonal shape.
Time & Location
Apr 12, 2025, 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM EDT
Warren County, Compton Peak, Virginia 22610, USA
About the Event
$36 plus park fee or pass. Long hike: 10 mi., 3200 ft. elevation gain. Moderate hike: 6½ mi., 1700 ft. elevation gain.
Long hikers start in Chester Gap at Rt. 522 and ascend the AT into park, with moderate hikers joining their route at Compton Gap Trail. Both hikes end at Hogwallow Flats Overlook on the Skyline Drive. The high point of the hike, both literally and figuratively, is the 2,909-ft. Compton Peak, where optional side trails lead to the columnar basalt outcrop and to a viewpoint of the Shenandoah Valley below. Each side trail adds about ½ mile and 100-200 feet of ascent to the total hike mileage and elevation gain.