USGS benchmark appears on the boulder in the background.
I got the opportunity to spend a few days camping in Grayson Highlands State Park, which serves as the beginning of the trail to Mount Rogers. On the drive to the park, I took I-81 to exit 45, then took SR 16 and US 58 West to the park.
This was my favorite hike to date. The hike was 8.6 miles roundtrip (probably close to 10 including backtracking). I started my hike at Massie Gap from inside the state park. From Massie Gap I took the Rhododendron Trail, Appalachian Trail and Highlands Horse Trail to Rhododendron Gap (about 3 miles). Here is where the Appalachian Trail meets the Rhododendron Trail, and a picture of the Thomas Knob Shelter that sits along the Appalachian Trail. From here, I took the Appalachian Trail for 1.2 miles to the Mount Rogers Trail. From here, it is a half-mile hike to the summit. The backtracking occurred in two places: a) After climbing over one of the gates on the Appalachian Trail on the way to the summit, I mistakenly took the Rhododendron Trail instead of continuing on the Appalachian Trail. I didn't notice this for probably a half hour as a result of the scenery. I believe that the Rhododendron Trail and Highlands Horse Trail takes a more roundabout approach to Rhododendron Gap. b) There is nothing on the summit that says Mount Rogers, highest point in Virginia, etc. I got to the summit, saw the trail ended, was too lazy to get my guidebook out, so I continued back on the trail looking for the blue blazes on the Mount Rogers Trail and then upon making the summit for the second time, found the USGS marker on one of the boulders. There was no sign there and no view whatsoever from the summit, as it was completely covered by trees. In spite of all this, the hike was great - wild ponies roamed all about the park, beautiful scenery, and no sign of civilization. The roundtrip hike (including the backtracking and screw-ups) took a little under 4 1/2 hours. The weather was gorgeous - clear in the upper 80s.