Old Rag Hiking & Lodging FAQ

No — the house is entirely yours. We do not live on site and we will not drop in. Check-in is by lockbox from 4:00 PM, so you arrive on your own schedule with no meeting to coordinate and no keys to collect.

That said, you are not on your own. A neighbour of ours turns the houses over between stays, and Danny, our handyman, lives locally and can be there quickly if something needs fixing. We answer texts ourselves, and we are at Old Rag Trailside often enough that we can sometimes lend a hand in person.

All three houses have a private hot tub, a well-stocked kitchen, an outdoor gas grill, a fire pit, indoor and outdoor games, and mountain views. Old Rag Trailside and Old Rag Foothills each have a wood-burning stove. Old Rag Overlook has a game room with a pool table and ping pong in its converted smokehouse.

Yes, everything. Beds are made up with fresh linen before you arrive and there are towels for every guest. You do not need to bring bedding or towels. Each house also has a washing machine and a dryer if you want to run a load while you are here.

Every house has a drip coffee maker and a moka pot for the hob. Old Rag Overlook also has a Keurig with K-cups in the cottage. We leave starter supplies — coffee, filters, tea, sugar and the basics — so you can put a pot on the first morning without finding a shop first. Sperryville is about fifteen minutes away when you want to restock, and has good coffee of its own.

Yes to both. All three houses have an outdoor Weber gas grill and we supply the propane, so there is nothing to buy or carry. At Old Rag Trailside the grill is plumbed straight into the house gas line, so there is no tank to think about at all. If you find one running low, text us and we will get it swapped.

Wifi is good, and you can work from the house. Old Rag Overlook is on Firefly broadband, and Old Rag Trailside and Old Rag Foothills are on Starlink, which we hope to move over to Firefly before long. We routinely work from these houses ourselves and take video calls on it without trouble, and streaming is not a problem either.

In bad weather it can drop or slow right down, which is worth knowing if you have something you cannot miss. If that happens there are cafés in Sperryville and Madison, and the public library in Madison, all a short drive away.

Cell reception is another matter: there is very little. The surrounding mountains block most of it, so do not count on a signal once you are outside the house. Use the wifi for calls and messages, and download your maps and your Old Rag ticket before you set off for the trailhead.

Usually yes, and it is one of the better reasons to stay here. Check-out is in the morning, but you are welcome to leave your car at the house until around 3pm and walk to the trailhead from the door — no parking lot, no queue, no driving back out mid-morning. You cannot go back into the house once you have checked out, because the cleaners need it, so take what you need for the day with you. Let us know in advance if you are planning this, so we know the car is yours.

Often, but not always. If the house is empty the night before we can usually let you park early and set off on the hike before the room is ready. If someone is checking out that morning we cannot let you in until they have gone and the cleaners have been through. Ask us when you book and we will tell you honestly what that date looks like.

None of the three houses is ADA compliant and all the doorways are standard width, but they are not equally easy to get around.

Old Rag Overlook is the most workable. The main house has a bedroom on the ground floor that can be reached from the side of the house up just two steps, and the cottage has a single step up to the door with all of its bedrooms and bathrooms on one level.

Old Rag Trailside and Old Rag Foothills are harder: three or four steps up to the front door with no ramp, and every bedroom upstairs on a staircase that would be difficult to carry someone up.

If mobility is a concern, message us before you book. We would far rather talk it through honestly than have you find out on arrival.

We do not supply firewood. Danny, our handyman, sells it locally and can drop a load at the house — message us a few days before you arrive and we will put you in touch. You are also very welcome to bring your own. There is sometimes wood left over from previous guests, but never count on it for a fire-pit evening.

No, not anywhere — indoors or outdoors, at any of the three houses. These are wooden homes in the woods, and for much of the year the fire risk is real.

No — none of the three houses can take it. The wiring out here was never built for vehicle charging, and the risk is both fire and expensive damage to the house supply.

There are chargers nearby, though, and two of them come with lunch: Blue Rock at Little Washington and Off The Grid in Sperryville both have charging. For anything else, the station locator at vacleancities.org is the one to use.

Message us as soon as you notice. We will ask whoever turns the house over to look, and if it turns up we will arrange to post it on to you. We cannot promise — small things do disappear between a check-out and a turnover — but we will always look.

Old Rag Trailside and Old Rag Foothills take a two-night minimum. Old Rag Overlook will take a single night, which suits anyone driving out the evening before an early start on the mountain. Longer minimums can apply over holidays and busy weekends; the calendar on each house will tell you as you pick dates.

When you put your dates in you will see three things: the nightly rate, a one-off cleaning fee, and tax. Nothing else appears later. If you are bringing a dog, there is a pet fee as well.

The cleaning fee is the same whatever the length of your stay, and it is not something we can discount. Our cleaners turn over the whole house either way — every bed, every bathroom, the kitchen and the hot tub. One of them is a neighbour, but the other drives an hour each way to reach us, and we pay them both properly for the work and the journey.

Trailside & Foothills: Each of these houses features 4 bedrooms with 5 beds, accommodating up to 10 guests. If your group includes children, we can make a playpen/crib available upon request. For groups larger than 10, you can book Trailside and Foothills together, or add Overlook and rent all three properties at once (subject to availability).

Overlook (Etlan): Our expansive Overlook estate features 6 bedrooms with 11 beds, comfortably accommodating up to 18 guests.

All three homes are pet friendly. We welcome dogs! Guests can bring along up to three dogs, for an additional fee (given the additional cleaning required). The fee is $100 for one dog; $150 for two dogs and $200 for three dogs. Dogs must be at least one year old. Sorry, we do not allow cats under any circumstances.

Half when you book, and the other half automatically 30 days before you arrive. If you book inside that 30-day window, you pay in full at the time.

Separately, we place a refundable hold on your card two days before arrival — $400, the same at all three houses. A hold is not a charge: the money is never taken, it simply sits reserved on the card and is released seven days after you leave. Guests often spot it on a statement and wonder, so it is worth knowing about in advance.

Cancel at least 21 days before arrival and you receive a full refund. Between 21 and 10 days, you receive half. Inside 10 days we cannot refund, because the dates are very hard to fill at that notice. There is also a 24-hour grace period after booking: if you change your mind within a day, and your arrival is more than 72 hours away, you get everything back.

Booking direct here means you are dealing with us rather than a platform, so if something happens, tell us. We would rather find you another set of dates than keep your money.

Old Rag Trailside and Old Rag Foothills are outside Sperryville, in Rappahannock County, a short walk from the Old Rag trailhead. Nethers is the closest settlement to the trailhead itself. Old Rag Overlook sits on 32 acres near Etlan, about ten minutes’ drive from the farmhouses, in Madison County. Sperryville, about fifteen minutes north, is where you will find most of the restaurants, wineries and shops. Madison is about twenty minutes south, a quaint old town with more places to eat, and Culpeper is another twenty minutes on from there, larger and more urban.

An hour and forty minutes from Washington DC, about an hour from Charlottesville, and just under two hours from Richmond. Dulles is the closest major airport, about an hour and a half away. We are on the eastern side of Shenandoah National Park, so you approach from the Piedmont rather than driving over the mountains. Most guests drive out on a Friday evening and are at the trailhead early the next morning, which is the main advantage of staying at the bottom of the mountain rather than driving up from the city at dawn.

Old Rag Trailside and Old Rag Foothills are under a 15-minute walk from the main Old Rag trailhead, making them convenient for hikers and outdoor enthusiasts. They are also about a 15 minute walk away from the Nicholson Hollow Trail, another popular hiking destination. Old Rag Overlook is under 15 minutes away by car.

Trailside & Foothills: These two properties are located right next door to each other. Walking from one to the other takes less than five minutes.

Overlook (Etlan): Our Overlook property is a private estate located about a 10-minute drive away from both the Trailside and Foothills homes, making it easy to coordinate if you are booking multiple properties for a massive group.

Yes, you’ll find grocery stores, restaurants, wineries, breweries, and distilleries in the nearby towns of Sperryville and Madison. More details are available in the welcome package we send to guests once they have booked.

If you want to do a big shop, it is worth stopping on the way in, because there is no supermarket within twenty minutes of the houses. The nearest is the Food Lion in Madison. Culpeper has Aldi and Lidl; Warrenton has Harris Teeter, Giant and Food Lion; Gainesville has Wegmans, Giant and Harris Teeter if you are coming down from DC; and Charlottesville has Whole Foods, Lidl and Trader Joe’s if you are coming from the south. Closer in, Roy’s Farm Market just past Sperryville, the Corner Store in Sperryville and the Little Country Store in Etlan cover most of what people forget. Roy’s is a proper old farm market — local fruit, vegetables, meat and home-made pies — and it is cash or cheque only.

Yes, between 1 March and 30 November. Shenandoah National Park requires a day-use ticket for Old Rag in addition to normal park admission, and it has to be bought online in advance because there is almost no cell signal at the fee station. Tickets are released in two batches, thirty days and five days before the date. Our day-use ticket guide explains the timing in full. A ticket does not reserve a parking space, which is another reason walking from the house helps.

Trailside & Foothills: The Hughes River is located directly across the street from these properties, with excellent fishing access within a short 10-minute walk. Virginia actively stocks the Hughes River with trout, along with two other nearby rivers.

Overlook (Etlan): Located in beautiful Etlan, Overlook is situated in a premier trout-fishing corridor. Guests are just a short drive from some of Virginia’s best trout water, from the stocked runs of the Rose, Robinson and Hazel to the world-class native brook trout of the upper Rapidan.

Fishing seasons, trout stocking, licenses and regulations are available on the Virginia DWR website.

Happy Camper Equipment Co in Sperryville is the nearest outfitter: boots and trail shoes, packs, rain layers, socks and water bottles, along with fly fishing kit. Open 10–5, closed Wednesdays. They also run a thirty-day trial on shoes and a second-hand gear exchange, which is useful if you would rather not buy new for one trip.

For a guided day on foot, On Trail Guides runs guided hikes and backpacking and outdoor-skills courses in Virginia; their guides hold wilderness first-aid certification and teach Leave No Trace. They do not advertise Old Rag as a regular destination, so it is worth asking them what they can arrange.

For fly fishing, Happy Camper recommends three local guides: Brett Elford (818-825-7905), Page Valley Fly Fishing Service and Dragon Fly Fishing Company.

These are all independent local businesses. We have no affiliation with any of them and take no commission — we pass the names on because they are the ones people here use.