What to Wear On a Fall Hike with Ageless Style

Ageless Style is a monthly style challenge and link up for women of all ages.   Each month we pick a different theme and style an outfit based on that theme.  This month's theme is:  ""What Would You Wear to a Fall Event?" and was picked by Cathy

This month Cathy challenged the ladies of Ageless Style to pick an outfit that you would wear to a fall event like "taking kids to a pumpkin patch, apple picking, or a hayride;  hiking or driving through places with changing leaves, football games, bazaars and festivals:  whatever happens in your part of the country."

The only activity I do from that list is hiking or driving to see fall foliage, and ya'll know this gal does a lot of hiking!  Hiking is my favorite activity and hiking in the fall in the best:  the weather is cooler, there are no bugs, and the beautiful fall foliage is amazing!

Now, I normally wear active wear when I go hiking, but because of Cathy's challenge, and the fact that we went hiking straight after church, I had regular clothes on for this hike.  I tried to pick an outfit that was both church appropriate (we attend a very casual church) and an outfit I could easily wear hiking.

I opted for loose, lightweight olive green utility pants from Target, a long, loose white sweater with a tank underneath for extra warmth, a lightweight scarf, and some fashionable boots.

I did have jewelry on since I was hiking after church, but I would normally not wear jewelry hiking.  I wore a necklace in case I got warm and had to take my scarf off, but it also peeks out a bit with the scarf on too.  I picked a multi strand bracelet and drop brown stone earrings.

I cannot recommend these Target utility pants enough.  They are so comfy I can't stop wearing them.  I am so over skinny jeans, and although I still have a few pair of skinnies in my closet, I've been slowly replacing them with other styles of jeans.

I was perfectly comfortable hiking in this outfit.  The loose, lightweight clothing allowed me to have plenty of movement underneath and they kept me warm yet not too hot.

The boots I wore are the "Crown Vintage Marley Bootie" from DSW.  Now, I would normally not wear fashion boots while hiking, I always wear my Merrell Hiking Boots.  But, I made an exception since it was a fashion challenge, and I was completely awed by how comfortable these boots were!  They held up well for the entire hike.  They have a really good rubber grip on their soles too to prevent slipping.

Finally, here's a short video showing all the beautiful foliage we saw on our hiking adventure.  Enjoy.

 Be sure to check out what all the other ladies are wearing and link up with below too!

Have a Great Day!  Amy

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Amy ~ Amy’s Creative Pursuits

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Bo ~ Bo's Bodacious Blog

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Cathy ~ My Side of 50

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Joanna ~ My Slice of Life

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Jodie ~ Jodie’s Touch of Style

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Leslie ~ Once Upon A Time Happily Ever After

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Marsha~ Marsha in the Middle

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Mireille ~ Chez Mireille Fashion Travel Mom

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Rosemary ~ Distinctly Southern Style

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Shenandoah National Park, Day Four, Part Two: Doyle River Falls and Jones Run Falls

This is the final post of a travel series to Shenandoah National Park.  If you'd like to start at the beginning, go HERE.  Day Two is HERE, and Day Three is HERE, and Day Four, Part One is HERE.

Our very last hike in Shenandoah National Park was our hardest hikes, but it was one of the most beautiful hikes of them all.  The weather was absolute perfection:  a sunny, 70 degree day.  We were on the quest to see two more waterfalls:  Doyle River Falls and Jones Run Falls, but we had no idea the entire trail would be filled with lots of waterfalls!

The Doyles River Trailhead is a beautiful trek through the wilderness that takes you along cool, clear mountain streams to two unique waterfalls.  There is one stream crossing where you have to walk on rocks to cross.

If you only go to the Doyles River Falls (we went farther to see Jones Run Falls) the trail is a 3.3 mile round trip hike.  It is rated as Moderate, although I would probably rate it as Difficult because on the return trip, you are hiking straight uphill all the way.  However, we did just hike a long hike in the morning too, so our energy could have been depleted from that. It takes 2 hours and 15 minutes to hike and has an elevation gain of 1,189 feet.  

There are so many smaller waterfalls along the trail where one could stop and take a dip and get refreshed!

This is Upper Doyles Falls.  It has two levels or drops, and of course my crazy adventurous son had to climb on top of it.  

This waterfall is only 28 feet tall (it looks so much taller than that, doesn't it?), but it so beautiful!

I always enjoy waterfalls where you can get to the base and look up rather than from an observation deck above.

We saw lots of wildflowers on this trail, like this perennial geranium.

This was one of my most favorite photos my husband took of our vacation.  I just love how it captures the scenic beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the distance with the water in the foreground.

There were so many great rock formations on this trail!

This is the Lower Doyles River Falls.  This one is taller, at 63 feet.

The lower falls may be taller, but I was far more impressed with the beauty of the upper falls.

Well at this point, you could turn around and go back the way you came, but my hubby and son really wanted to see Jones Run Falls.  I wasn't sure that was a great idea, as we were pretty spent by now, but this was our last day in the park and we wanted to make the most of it, so we pushed on.  

I couldn't believe all the beautiful, moss covered rocks on this trail.

The Jones Run Trail coming from the Doyles River Fall Trail was BEAUTIFUL.  It was very rugged however, and muddy, and there were a couple of treacherous areas to get through.  As always, I was grateful to have my poles for stability.

I always feel when I'm hiking these type of trails that I'm in a magical fairyland.  Oh, this trail was stunning!  Water flowing, moss covered rocks everywhere...it was breath taking!  And did I mention how peaceful it was?  We hardly ran into anyone on the trail and felt we had the whole forest to ourselves!

Although we were so tired, the extra miles were worth it because Jones Run Falls is beautiful.  It is only 42 feet tall, but it is like a wide semi circle and the water flows gracefully over black rock.

We were so proud we made it!  

If you only wanted to hike the Jones Run Falls Trailhead, it is a 3.2 mile round trip hike, rated as Moderate, with an elevation gain of 1,045 feet.  It takes 2 hours and 30 minutes to complete.

There is also a loop called the "Browns Gap Hike" where you can see both the Doyle River and Jones Run falls.  That hike is a 6.5 mile circuit hike, rated as Moderately Strenuous, and takes 7 hours of hiking time with an elevation gain of 1,400 feet.  We didn't have seven hours, so we just hiked to the waterfalls and back.  I think we added about two miles to our trip, making the total 5.3 miles or more.

We couldn't believe all the other stunning waterfalls that were on this trail.  I swear, the whole trail is nothing but waterfalls, and only two had names.  My son asked "I wonder why they name some falls and not others?"

If you love water, waterfalls, and magical forests, this is the hike for you!  I think it's also a great hike to get away from the crowds, as not a lot of people were on this trail.

And finally, here is a video of Jones Run Falls so you can get a little glimpse of the moving water that photos just can't capture.

 Well, that concludes my Shenandoah National Park travel series.  I regret to inform you that I don't know when or if I'll be taking another vacation.  We usually take a fall vacation but this year with the uncertainty of the times and the rising gas prices, we are hesitant to plan another road trip.  It makes me sad.  I long for the $2.00 a gallon gas and world peace we had before the current administration took over.  We do hope that we will at least be able to drive to Indiana in late summer and early fall to spend some time with the grandkids, but with the downward spiral our country is taking, who knows if that will be possible.  I pray that at least that little bit of joy will not be taken from me too.

Hoping for Better Times Ahead!  Have A Great Day!  Amy

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Shenandoah National Park, Day Four, Part One: South River Falls

This is Day Three of a travel series to Shenandoah National Park.  If you'd like to start at the beginning, go HERE.  Day Two is HERE, and Day Three is HERE

Day Four in Shenandoah National Park was our last day in the park so we had two ambitious hikes planned.  I decided to divide Day Four into two separate posts because the hikes were very long and there were a lot more photographs.

Our last day in the park was our best day in the park.  We didn't plan on "saving the very best for last", it just happened that way. The weather was a gorgeous 70+ degrees.  The snowstorm days earlier had become a distant memory, and the two hikes we took were are favorites of the week.

But before I share about our hiking adventure, I must talk about this quaint diner we went to for breakfast first.  It was a hoot!  My husband and I love discovering places like this when we travel.  C & S Diner is located in Elkton, Virginia.  Most of the week we were grabbing breakfast at a Burger King or McDonalds and my husband was ready for a sit down real breakfast meal, so he asked me to see if I could find a local diner.  I googled it and found C & S Diner and saw it had great reviews so off we went!

The place was adorable!  The waitress, pictured walking behind us, was so friendly, energetic, and quite the entertainment.  All the customers were local except for us, so we got a real flavor of the area.  We chuckled that they had a Trump sign on the wall and were not worried in the slightest of repercussions of that.  Then to top it off, a customer walks in, and starts talking to another customer about how he "can't retire because ever since Obama Care was  enacted he can no longer afford health insurance".  Ah, yes, we can relate to these people.

We thought their idea of putting the menu pages under the glass table top was genius.

The food was absolutely delicious and so ridiculously inexpensive we wondered how they could even make a profit.  I ordered the "Top Hash Brown" which was incredible!  It was "sausage, peppers, onions, tomatoes, scrambled egg with cheese, and topped with sausage gravy" for $7.50.  I highly recommend ordering this dish if you go to this diner.  And the coffee was the best!  So much better than a Starbucks coffee.  I have no idea what they do to it to make it taste so good.

And the most incredible part of this diner story is that all the food is cooked by this young lady pictured below.  Would you believe she is 86 years old?  What an inspiration.

And here is our waitress.  What a joy she was!  We really enjoyed meeting and talking with her.  On every vacation we take, my husband and I always pick the most interesting person of our trip...she was the winner for this one!

If you're ever in the Shenandoah Valley area, be sure to stop by this diner.  You will love it!  They are only open for breakfast and lunch and closed on Sundays (of course 😀).

Now on to our hike:  the South River Falls Trail.

Like most of the trails in the park, you have  options to take.  

1) A 3.3 mile moderate circuit hike which has an elevation gain of 910 feet and takes 2 hours and 15 minutes to complete.

2)  A 2.6 mile round trip hike rated as moderate with an elevation gain of 850 feet and takes 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete.

We chose to do the first hike because it takes you to the base of the waterfall, which has the best views, and not just an observation deck from the top of the falls.

Of all the trails in Shenandoah National Park, South River Falls was my absolute favorite.  Perhaps it could have been because it was a beautiful day.  Perhaps it was because it was our last day.  Or perhaps it was because we hiked it in the wee hours of the morning and had the trail pretty much to ourselves.  Whatever the reason, I loved every second of it.

If bird-watching is your thing (like it is mine) you will love the first part of this trail...especially if you hike it early in the morning like we did.  The birds were singing like you wouldn't believe.  We even spotted one I didn't even recognize.  I kept stopping on the trail and looking up to identify the birds.

After hiking so many monstrous trails the previous days, this trail seemed like a walk in the park.  Although in the reviews, a lot of people complained of the return hike being steep.  I did not find it to be nearly as bad as other hikes I had been on in this park.  "Moderate" is definitely the right description for this trail.

The best word I could come up with to describe this trail would be "Fairyland".  I just felt the whole time I was hiking that I was in some magical forest that was filled with moss covered rocks.  At any moment I expected a little fairy or creature to come out.  It was so enchanting.

Once you get out of the heavy wooded area where all the birds are, and you have descended down to the South River you are blessed to be walking next to running water for the rest of the hike.

South River is a beautiful water way filled with pretty moss covered rocks.

And if the birds weren't enough of a blessing on this trail, there were hundreds of gorgeous Trilliums in bloom too!

I saw both white and pink Trilliums.

The early morning sunshine seemed to make the trail even more beautiful.

You also get a nice view of the mountains while hiking this trail!

My favorite part of the trail was AFTER you reach the observation deck at the top of the falls.  Don't stop there, but continue on and descend down the trail because the best is yet to come!  Here you will enter an even more magical fairyland as you walk to the bottom of the falls.

South River Falls is an 83 foot waterfall that has a initial center drop, then splits into two separate falls.

South River Falls trailhead is great for wildflower and bird enthusiasts,  and I highly recommend it!

Now, here are some short videos so you can "experience" the hike a little bit for yourselves.

South River Falls

South River Falls Trail

South River

Have A Great Day! Amy

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