The highpoint of Albemarle County is an easy drive up from Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park. It is located in the middle of a campground! Other reports note this campground is closed during winter, necessitating a short hike from the main road to achieve the summit. During summer one can simply drive up to the top.

My wife Beth and I were visiting her folks in Millwood, near Winchester. After a few days there we started our drive south towards Staunton and Lexington, where Beth went to college. We decided to take the scenic route and go up into the mountains and follow Skyline Drive south until it ended near Waynesboro. Last November we had driven much of Skyline Drive in the northern part of the park, but rain and fog blocked any good views for us. Today, however, was just the opposite: a cool, dry Canadian airmass came down and kicked out all the humidity, leaving crystal-clear conditions as far as one could see. Beth kept on telling me "this is unusual, this isn't really how it is...". Well, it was damn lovely, that's what it was!

So anyway, we got on to the Skyline Drive from its junction with US-30, and drove south about 16 miles to the Loft Mountain area. This is a camping complex as well as a place to get gas, get some basic groceries and do a little souvenir shopping. From Skyline Drive we followed the Loft Mountain Road to the top. Then it was just a matter of finding the little access road to the right area. After one pass we parked and walked the final short bit, eventually coming to the broad, flat summit area, which is topped by two large water tanks and enclosed by a fence. We poked around the perimeter of the fence a bit. The highest ground seemed to be inside the fence, but ground on the outside seemed to be just as high. A good-sized rock nearby a picnic table just a few feet from the top seemed to be actually a bit higher than the ground inside the fence. In any case we stepped all around. The Albemarle county line crosses the top so we had to do a little guessing as to its whereabouts, too. All in all, not a whole lot of effort, and no great views to speak of. Back to our car we drove to a nearby picnic grounds where we had lunch, and where the views were quite pretty. Next up was the easy Staunton City highpoint, and our hotel.