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This is a car shuttle. You will need to leave a car at the Spy Rock and Crabtree Falls parking lot.
From the trailhead hike up the blue blazed road until you reach the Appalachian Trail in 1.0 mile. Turn left onto the white blazed AT until you reach a campsite in another 0.5 mile. Turn right onto the spur tail past the campsite and start climbing the rock formation until you reach the top. Enjoy the 360 degree view.
Continue on the AT Northbound for about 3 miles. You will cross 2 fire roads. Take a left on the second fire road. Follow the fire road for about a mile to the Upper Crabtree Falls parking lot.
Then continue to the top of Crabtree Falls. Start your descend along this long waterfall with multiple cascades. The Crabtree Falls Trail features a series of five cascades and a number of smaller ones that fall a total distance of 1,200 feet.
Take Exit 205 on I-81. Take VA 606 East towards Raphine. At route US 11 take a left. Then, shortly afterwards, take a right onto VA 56. Drive 8 miles to Fishhatchery Road and follow the signs to Spy Rock parking lot.
To Crabtree Falls:
Follow the directions to Spy Rock, but keep going on VA 56 for another 3 to 4 miles past the turn for Spy Rock.
You can also click on the marker on the map to get Google directions to the trailhead.
We just got back from hiking this trail over the past weekend with our family (mom, dad, 2 boys ages 9 & 14, and our 2 mutts). We also did a little geocaching along the trail. We expecially liked the AT between Spy Rock and CrabTree Falls trail head.
Additional information that could be added to the directions is that the "second fire road" is actually the Meadows "Jeep Trail" for OHVs. We had actually come over it a few days before in our Jeep Commander, and hiked up the Priest a couple of miles at the very same junction, so we felt like we were in familiar territory when we reached it! If you wanted to do a shorter hike, most vehicles could have been dropped at the parking lot here (several mini-vans in the lot!), for a hike in either direction.
I actually think it would be better if we had hiked it "backwards" and started at Crab Tree Falls, then gone on to Spy Rock afterwards. I felt like we "rushed past" the gorgeous Crab Tree Falls because it was at the end and could have better enjoyed it at the beginning.
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