Hiking Old Rag: Permits Required

How do we combat terrible overcrowding on an incredible hike like Old Rag, you ask?  Simple!  Old Rag permits are now required to hike this amazing trail in Shenandoah National Park. But don’t be intimidated by this fact, let’s get educated so you can hit the trails!

Old Rag Mountain stands at 3291 feet and is an extremely popular hike.  And with its popularity comes crowds, and we all know that crowds of people can destroy the area.  So to combat this, Shenandoah’s most popular hike has implemented a solution.  Permits.  

But before we get into how awesome of a hike Old Rag is, let’s get a few basic pieces of information out of the way.  

Important Links (Map, State Park Website, Link to Camping Article)

Shenandoah National Park website

Old Rag Permits – get them here!

AllTrails Link – Download for hike

PDF Trail Map

Hiking Shenandoah National Park Trails – More Hikes Here

Backpack Checklist Freebie

Location

Shenandoah National Park is located in northwestern Virginia.   And while Old Rag is within the park boundaries, the trail begins outside of the park.  As you hike, you will cross into the park, summit the mountain, and then loop back to the parking lot where you started.  

The trailhead and parking lot is about an hour from the Harry Byrd Visitor’s Center, 2 hours from Washington D.C., 2 hours from Richmond, VA and just a few hours from other major cities.  

With Shenandoah National Park being so close to so many major cities, it’s a great place for a mountain getaway.  And while Old Rag is arguably the most challenging hike in the park, there are plenty of shorter and easier hikes for hikers of all skills.  

National Park Entry

One quick thing to note before we get into the permit details, don’t forget that you still need an Entrance Pass to get into Shenandoah National Park.  You can purchase these ahead of time here.

An Entry Pass is $30 per vehicle and is good for a week.   However, the much better bang for your buck is the America the Beautiful Pass, which is $80, good for an entire year, and includes free entry to all National Parks, National Seashores, and other federal land.  You can purchase this here or in person at the national parks or at any REI store.   

Alright, now that you have your Entry Pass to Shenandoah National Park, let’s dive into the Old Rag permit information!

Getting A Permit

Starting in March of 2022, Shenandoah National Park instituted a permit, or reservation system for Old Rag.  This is to help with overcrowding on the trails, especially on the weekends.  The 2022 pilot program did well and reservations are now permanently required. 

But there are so many questions that come with something like this.  I’m going to try and answer all your questions!

When Are Old Rag Permits Required?

Old Rag Permits are required at any time between March 1st and November 30th.  

How Many Permits are Distributed Per Day?

A grand total of 800 Old Rag permits will be available per day.  The permits are released in 2 different waves and are released on a rolling basis.  

When Can I Buy My Old Rag Permit(s)?

The booking windows for hiking Old Rag is as follows.

• 400 Permits/Tickets are released 30 days in advance at 10am EST.
• The remaining 400 Permits/Tickets are released 5 days in advance at 10am EST.  

Can I Buy an Old Rag Permit at an Entrance Station?

No!  You MUST buy your permit prior to your visit.  

Where Do I Get My Old Rag Permit?

You can easily buy your required tickets on Recreation.gov.  From here you will choose your date and the amount of permits (or tickets) you will need for said date.

How Much Does an Old Rag Permit Cost?

Each permit costs $2 per person.  Yes, even children cost $2 each.  Unlike other reservation systems, this ticket system is per person, not per vehicle.  

I’ve Secured My Old Rag Permit, Now What?

Once you buy your required permits, you will bring said permit, as well as a photo ID, to the Old Rag Entrance Station.  (Only the person who purchased the permits is required to show ID).  

I suggest printing or screenshotting a digital copy of your reservation with the confirmation code, as there is NO CELL SERVICE, or WiFi, at the entrance to the parking lot.  Your Old Rag Permit will be scanned to verify the reservation.

IMPORTANT (again)

There is no phone service or wifi for you to pull up your permit once you are there.  Make sure you have this saved ahead of time so you aren’t stuck driving away from the entrance in order to get it to load!  

Parking 

Alright, let’s discuss the first part of your adventure: Parking!  Once you secure those Old Rag permits, you’ll need to head to the parking lot on the day of your reservation.

The Old Rag Parking Lot can be found using this link, or by typing in the address below.  

Parking Address: 2577 Nethers Rd, Etlan, VA 22719

Be warned, you will still want to get to the parking lot pretty early.  Just because you have the Old Rag permit in hand, DOES NOT guarantee you a parking spot.  Even Recreation.gov recommends that you get there early or that you carpool.  

Trail Stats

Old Rag is a very strenuous hike and should not be taken lightly.  There are plenty of easier trails for all skill levels throughout Shenandoah National Park, but Old Rag is definitely difficult.  

Stats: Old Rag Mountain Loop

• Distance: 9.4 miles 
• Elevation Gain: 2,600 feet
• Difficulty Level: Hard

Time on the Trail

Hiking Old Rag is not for the faint of heart, and it’s not just because of the distance.  In order to make it to the summit of Old Rag, you have a hard rock scramble ahead of you.  And I’m not talking about rock hopping, I’m talking about a true rock scramble where you will use your entire body to make it up some of these rocky sections.  

Let me put it this way, we saw many people wearing gloves so they wouldn’t rip up their hands as they scrambled to the top.  And believe me when I tell you how sore my arms were after this hike of pushing myself up and lowering myself down throughout this hike.

That being said, we spent nearly 7 hours on the trail hiking up, enjoying the view, eating lunch at the summit, and then the hike back down to the parking lot.  

Some people complete this hike in 4 hours, others take closer to 9 hours.  If you know your typical hiking speed, you’ll be able to get how long it will take you, but it typically seems to take 6 hours or more.  

What If I Can’t Get the Permits?? 

While 800 Old Rag permits per day sounds like a lot, it’s completely possible that you aren’t able to get them.  This isn’t a daily problem, but it does happen.  

If you aren’t able to get the permits on the day you want you have a couple options.  

1. Choose a different day.  Weekdays are going to be way less crowded than the weekends.  If you are visiting Shenandoah National Park for multiple days, then you will probably be able to get a permit for at least one of your days.
2. Skip this trail and hike one (or more) of the amazing trails in Shenandoah National Park or even choose a trail in the neighboring George Washington National Forest.  

Unfortunately, if you are unable to secure a Old Rag hiking permit, you are out of luck.  This is the worst part about this system.  But if you are able to snag a permit, you’ll be able to enjoy the trail with under 800 other hikers, instead of an unlimited amount.  

What to Expect When Hiking

Alright, so you purchased your National Parks Entry Pass, you secured an Old Rag Permit and you successfully got a spot in the parking lot.  Congratulations!  Now let’s get to the physical part!

This difficult hike starts on the Ridge Trail and follows the blue blazes to the summit.  From here you will continue on the Saddle Trail before you turn right and loop back to the parking lot using the Weakley Hollow Fire Road. 

This sounds simple enough to follow, but this hike is tough!

Ascent

From the time you leave your car the hike is entirely uphill until you reach the summit.  The summit is only about 3.5 miles from the parking lot, but during those miles, you will be navigating over 2500’ of elevation gain.

Initially, you start in the woods for this trail and then you come to what appears to be an overlook.  From here, the real struggle will begin.  

Following the blue blazes becomes an olympic sport as you try to figure out your best approach over and around the boulders of Old Rag.  Some of the rocks have been worn smooth from so many people over the years, so be sure of your footing as you go.

You’ll get a full body workout on this scramble as you use your hands, arms, core and legs to crawl your way up this mountain.  Don’t be afraid to take breaks as you need them on this hike.  And drink plenty of water!

The View

After what feels like forever, you will see a wooden sign directing you to the summit.  A renewed sense of excitement will course through your veins as you reach the summit and see that 360 degree view.

This view will be worth every second of struggle on the way to the summit.  

At this point, you’ll want to sit down, enjoy the view, and refuel.  Just remember, whatever you packed to the summit, be sure to pack back out.  Don’t be that guy who litters on top of a mountain.  

Descent

When you’ve had your fill of food, water, and the view, take it in one more time, and then continue to the saddle trail.  Your descent is rather steep on the Saddle trail, but then you will come to the fire road, and the way back becomes easier.

The hardest part of the descent is realizing how long you have to go back to your car.  This 6 mile slope is not challenging, just long.  

Finally you will see signs of light and emerge from the trees victorious, and probably exhausted!  Take advantage of the bathrooms at the trailhead and begin your drive back to wherever you are staying.  

Post-Hike

After a much-needed shower, make sure you are refueling and rehydrating!  Hiking isn’t easy and your body will have burned a lot of calories on this hike.  Take advantage of this and enjoy a high protein meal to help your recovery.  Drinking lots of water might not be enough, so you’ll also want to add electrolytes to your intake.  

The next day you will probably be sore.  In fact, you will probably need to take it easy for a day or so.  I know we were pretty sore and drove Skyline Drive the following day to give our legs a rest.  You might even just want to take it easy and relax in your room or at the campground the following day.  

Or you might be fine.  

However you feel the next day, listen to your body!  You don’t want to get injured by pushing your body too hard.  

Conclusion

Old Rag Mountain has become an east coast bucket list hike for many people.  And due to this growing popularity, Shenandoah National Park has put an Old Rag Permit system into place.  This limits the amount of people who can hike the trail in a day.

Despite the limited number of permits, if you are able to secure one, this hike is fantastic!  Difficult, but fantastic with 360 degree views of Shenandoah National Park and the Shenandoah Valley below.  Don’t miss out on this incredible hike!

As always, feel free to email me at averagewildexperience@gmail.com if you have any questions or need help planning your next visit to Shenandoah National Park.

Happy Hiking!