Our fall hikes included lots of old favorites, a few urban walks and three great family hikes, with grandkids as young as 5 along for hikes of nearly eight miles total—in the cold! Andy, 5, led the way on a walk to Cove Mountain Shelter and Mabel, 6, braved ice and cold and little-traction shoes on the walk to partially frozen Apple Orchard Falls.
- October 1. Urban hike from home to Tanglewood Mall and back. 6 miles
- October 8. Appalachian Trail from U.S. 11 to Fullhardt Knob ridge line and back. 6.2
- October 16. After bike rides to downtown Roanoke for GOFest, a walk from Elmwood Park through Southeast Roanoke to Roanoke River Greenway and back to Elmwood. 4
- October 22. At Carvins Cove, Horse Pen and Lakeside trails to favorite waterside lunch spot and back. 4
- October 29. On Mill Mountain, Star, Woodthrush, Monument trails through South Roanoke to Athens Grill and back. 6
- November 4. Home to downtown Roanoke for lunch at Big Lick Brewery and back. 5.6
- November 12. Appalachian Trail from Va 614 north to Bryant Ridge Shelter and back. A challenging family hike with several hard-working grandkids and their parents. 7.8
- November 19. On Mill Mountain, Star and Monument Trails to downtown Roanoke lunch at Athens Grill and back. 6
- November 24. Chestnut Ridge Loop Trail. 5.4
- November 26. Appalachian Trail from Va 614 south to Cove Mountain Shelter and back. Another glorious family hike, with a whole different set of grandkids and some of the same parents. 7.6
- December 4. On Mill Mountain, Star, Woodthrush, Ridgeline, Big Sunny and Riser trails to Fork in the Alley and back. 7.8
- December 9. At Grassy Hill in Rocky Mountain, the eastern side of the trail system before on to Franklin County High for a grandson’s basketball game. 5
- December 18. On Mill Mountain, a repeat of the longish, lunch-satisfying Dec 4 walk to Fork in the Alley.
- December 24. Home to downtown Roanoke’s Nawab Restaurant and back. 6
- December 27: FR 59 to Apple Orchard Falls and back. 4.2. This family hike started about a tenth of a mile early due to a fallen tree across the forest road. Six-year-old granddaughter Mabel made a hero of herself over the icy parts of the hike.
- December 29. Va 311 on Appalachian Trail north to McAfee Knob and back. 7.8