Hiking Field Guide of the NRV

Grayson Highlands State Park offers nine hiking trails some of which lead to beautiful mountain overlooks, and some of which lead to towering waterfalls.  The park itself is unique in that they use shetland ponies to control the vegetation in the area, there is no upkeep by the park staff the horses simply eat all of the grass.  This is also incredibly useful for stopping invasive plants from growing as the horses will eat those as well.  It is asked that you don't pet the horses as they are wild to a certain degree and can be dangerous but if you would like to see them the Rhododendron Trail leads straight through their usual grazing areas and they aren't shy.  Due to the colder climate and windy plains you aren't likely to see much other wildlife but the occasional rogue mountain lion has been known to make an appearance so be wary and travel in groups.  The climate at this high elevation is almost alpine with no flowers, very few trees most of which are short pines, and several species of mountain shrubs.  From the Massie Gap parking lot guests can take the Rhododendron Trail to the AT which will connect you to Mount Rogers, the tallest point in Virginia.  Backpacking is popular all throughout this area but the weather can be incredibly frigid and is often recommended only for seasoned campers.