Hiking to McAfee Knob

As part of our Mini-Moon Adventure (we took a few days off work after the wedding to explore Roanoke, VA!), we knew we wanted to hike McAfee Knob.

McAfee Knob is the one of the most photographed points along the Appalachian Trail. Recognize it?

It feels super awesome to stand on the edge of a cliff overlooking the mountains in VA. Not scary at all!

We started 3.9 miles away, at the Route 311 crossing. This seemed like the best point of entry for us to day hike – 8 miles total. This website was super helpful for us – there’s a small parking lot where 311 intersects the AT, so it was easy to spot.

When we decided to take a mini-moon adventure after our wedding, postponing the full honeymoon trip (to the Florida Keys), my mind immediately jumped to Roanoke. McAfee Knob is one of the places on the AT I wanted to visit next.

My ultimate plan is to hike ALL of the AT, but in sections. I don’t know that I’ll have or give myself the ability to create a plan to hike the whole thing in one go (but you never know), so I’m planning to hike different sections at a time.

Virginia or Massachusetts were top on my list for the next pieces, and since VA is warmer than Mass in November…

 (hello wearing a tank top in November!!!)

We definitely gained elevation as we climbed toward McAfee Knob. Check out this elevation map:

We took our time, especially since there were a few smaller lookout places along the way. It was a gorgeous day to hike!

I love that we got to share this view as husband and wife. This was the first time for both of us being in this area and hiking to McAfee.

It was one of the harder hikes I’ve experienced. It’s neighbor, Dragon’s Tooth, we heard is even more difficult. It’s hard to imagine — there were some steep climbs and tall steps on the way to McAfee.

I love that Johnny wants to continue my AT dream with me — I’ve hiked 70/2,100 miles so far and want to keep going! This also falls into my 30 by 30 plan to hike more of the AT. Huzzah!

On to the next walk in the woods.