Autumn color in Shenandoah National Park, Oct. 20, 2021: Glynn Wilson

By Glynn Wilson –

SHENANDOAH NATIONAL PARK, Va. — Warm, humid October weather that could be attributed to climate change due to global warming from humans burning fossil fuels for energy has slowed the arrival of peak Autumn color in the mountains of Virginia.

But it was a beautiful day in the park anyway on Wednesday, Oct. 20. You can’t go wrong getting outside and enjoying a national park on a day like this with temperatures in the low 70s and not a cloud in the baby blue sky.

Take the time to sit on a rock wall at one of the many overlooks along Skyline Drive and thank those who were smart enough nearly a century ago who saw the need and benefit to preserve this wild and scenic land from private developers for wildlife and future generations.

According research complied by the National Park Service, the first traces of humans within Shenandoah National Park are around 8,000 to 9,000 years old. Native Americans seasonally visited this area to hunt, gather food, source materials for stone tools, and trade.

In the 1700s, European hunters and trappers explored the mountains of the Blue Ridge and Shenandoah Valley. Soon after 1750, European settlers moved into the lower hollows near springs and streams. Over the next century and a half hundreds of families worked the land, planting orchards and crops, building homesteads and mills, using the mountains for logging and mining.

By the late 1800s an increasingly urban American society yearned for places of recreation and refuge. Enterprising spirits built vacation resorts, marketing the mountain views, healthy water, and cool breezes. As congress established National Parks in the west, a call arose for an eastern National Park accessible to large population centers. It would take two decades to authorize Shenandoah National Park. Another decade passed before the park’s establishment.

Learning about the history of Shenandoah means learning about the lives and communities of past mountain residents, the establishment of the Park, the Civilian Conservation Corps, segregation of early park visitors, the dynamic shifting role of parks in our society, and much more. All of these subjects have a lasting impact on what Shenandoah is today and what it may become in the future.

I’ve been visiting, exploring, photographing and writing about Shenandoah for the past eight years, since I first moved to the D.C. area in a media camper van. See the links below the photographs to check out a few of our most important stories.

More Photos

Autumn color in Shenandoah National Park, Oct. 20, 2021: Glynn Wilson

Autumn color in Shenandoah National Park, Oct. 20, 2021: Glynn Wilson

Autumn color in Shenandoah National Park, Oct. 20, 2021: Glynn Wilson

Autumn color in Shenandoah National Park, Oct. 20, 2021: Glynn Wilson

Autumn color in Shenandoah National Park, Oct. 20, 2021: Glynn Wilson

Autumn color in Shenandoah National Park, Oct. 20, 2021: Glynn Wilson

This is what peak color looks like looking north from Black Bear Curve along Skyline Drive:

Skyline Drive in Autumn: Glynn Wilson

More Stories from Shenandoah

Climate Change Comes to Shenandoah

Shenandoah’s Lewis Mountain Campground Welcomed African Americans

Camping and Hiking in Shenandoah National Park in Virginia

Autumn Color 2020: Shenandoah National Park, Virginia

Herbert Hoover’s Camp Rapidan Tour, Shenandoah National Park

Yearling Bear Named ‘Boo Boo’ Chooses Awkward Glade at Big Meadows in Shenandoah National Park

Secret Vistas: A Spiritual Experience in Shenandoah

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