This 12.0 mile north to south hike will begin at Big Horse Gap (elevation 4000 feet) and end at the Falls of Dismal Creek.(about 2300 feet of elevation). It will be a one-way hike and will require a car shuttle.

The hike begins with a slight descent and turns onto an old woods road at about 0.8 of a mile. After 2 miles we leave the old road and begin our ascent to the ridge crest of Sugar Run Mountain (3870 feet) and a rock outcrop and views of Pearis Mountain and Wilburn Valley.

The descent begins from Sugar Run Mountain and about 4.2 miles we enter an old woods road and shortly cross the upper branch of the Dismal Creek. At 5.6 miles we will see the spur trail to Wapiti Shelter. Here we will turn off of the road and cross Dismal Creek over a bridge. The trail flattens out and we will cross Dismal Creek several more times before coming to Lions Den Road at 7.8 miles.

At 10.6 miles into the hike we cross a bridge over a deep gully. The trail turns sharply and we move away from the creek. At 11.7 miles we will come to the spur trail to Dismal Creek Falls. The end is near.

Plan on spending 7 to 8 hours on the trail.

The morning of the hike we will be meeting at the Hardee's Restaurant in Pearisburg located at 528 N. Main Street, zip code 24134. The telephone number for the Hardee's is (540) 921-2503.

We will be leaving the Hardee's for the trailheads at 8:00 AM sharp. Please plan to arrive earlier for breackfast and instructions.